If elections were won or lost based on policy, Trump would have won easily. He made the country richer, he made it safer, and he reduced disparity between the best and worst off citizens. He organized and supported the states to fight the pandemic based on their individual needs and judgments. He limited early COVID infection from flooding our country. He reduced the expected delivery of a pandemic killing vaccine from a decade to a year. He put in place a vaccine delivery process that works so well Biden has claimed it as his own. He gave the people more control over their own lives. He fixed medical care for veterans and permanent funding for historically black colleges. He destroyed false narratives including, “Two percent annual GNP growth is the new normal!” “The Palestinians hold the keys to Middle East Peace.” ”The Chinese Communists will become more like us.” “NATO is committed to defending itself.” “Iran under the Ayatollahs and North Korea will behave themselves if we keep paying them off.” There were no policy alternatives discussed or even offered during the campaign. Shame on Trump for not forcing them to the table.
Elections are won or lost on narratives, not policy. The winning narratives were, “Trump is evil, incompetent, untrustworthy, divisive, racist, a liar, a bad man, unfit for office. Everyone in the world agrees on this. People who support Trump, all 75 million of them, are crude, uneducated, limited, naïve, unfit to vote.” These were the winning narratives. Truth does not matter. What people believe is all that matters. Do not underestimate how widely and deeply this narrative is believed. “We must rid ourselves of Trumpism and all its horrors!” justifies any deceit, any false promise or any dishonest narrative.
If Republicans expect to win, they must seize control of a new narrative, and that narrative cannot be about Trump.
Rule One: Don’t let Trump be an issue going forward
Don’t deny or criticize him. Celebrate his accomplishments but do not celebrate him. Don’t defend or excuse or condemn him. Don’t respond to slander about him. He is the past. You are the future. This rule is not a sign of disrespect. It is recognition of the reality that the “Trump is evil” narrative cannot be reversed. It is too entrenched in the minds of too many. Let History be the judge of Trump. Nothing is gained by trying to convince others of Trump’s merits. Those who can understand already do. All any discussion of Trump can do is to tar you with the “Evil Trump” stain. Let Trump chart his own path forward. Communicate with him. Try to get his support but be clear that the next generation is in charge. If Trump is removed from the dialog, the Democrats have no winning issues. Honor Trump’s legacy but change the vocabulary. Trump will ultimately appreciate the mantle of leadership being seized by a new generation.
Rule Two: Align your next generation of leaders around Republican narratives.
Democrats are much better than Republicans at selling narratives, principally because Republicans do not understand their importance. Narratives of the left are brutally consistent, repeated often and by many people each with their own spin on the dominant theme. They begin with their conclusion stated as fact. They ignore logic and contradictory fact. To sell Republican narratives everyone in the Republican Party must sing from the same hymnal, and with the conviction that there are many new leaders in the party. If this sounds too unselfish, remember that no one in the party five years ago could touch Trump. It was not even close. Let new leadership emerge as a team effort and everyone on the team labor unselfishly for the team and the narratives for the next three years. The measure of your new standard bearer will be to be better than Trump; to love America and Americans, to understand the depth of the swamp, to fight unrelentingly, and also be smoother, more articulate and have better public relations.
The dominant narrative of the new Republication party needs to be, “We are the party that respects the people. Republicans believe in government by and for the citizens. Democrats believe in caring for and controlling its subjects.” The Romans knew the difference. Citizens voted. Subjects had few rights. It will always be thus. Thomas Jefferson warned us: “I predict future happiness for Americans, if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them.”
Rule Three: Be relentless.
Republicans are too silent. If you had any impact today, Biden could not possibly have a 55% approval rating, but that is what he is reported to have. First get out there and TWEET. Every day send out unvarnished facts with narrative taglines. Don’t complain about the press and social media. Dare them to shut you up. Challenge them. Defeat them. If you can’t figure this out you are not fit to lead. They are giving you ample ammunition. Try these for openers.
“Republications respect the people. Democrats scorn the people and only seek power over them.”
- School Choice for better education opportunities for everyone.
- Defund the Police, deny the people protection while elite democrats have private protection.
- Highlight arrogance and the danger of trading civil liberties for stringent COVID rules.
- Democrats do not care about minority and immigrant people. They only court them for their votes.
- Who are democrats serving when they release illegal immigrants who are known criminals or infected with COVID-19 into our population.
- Republicans want all citizens to be successful and prosperous. Democrats do not care about making citizens more successful and prosperous. They want us all to be subjects, more and more dependent on government.
“Democrats squander your tax dollars. They throw money at wasteful tactics without having sound strategies”
- Keep hammering on specifics in the $2 Trillion Democratic Party COVID Pork Barrel
- Challenge Democrats to not have middle class families’ taxes pay for student loans for Ivy League graduates.
- Challenge Democrats to not have middle class families’ taxes pay for corporate welfare or health care for illegal immigrants, or luxury health care for Congress and Administration executives, or subsidies for states that have squandered their birthright.
- Challenge the green narrative with the fact that the grid cannot function with more than 30% interruptible (Solar and Wind) energy and that over one third of our oil and gas consumption is used for petrochemicals and air and sea transportation. The end of oil wells and pipelines and zero carbon emissions is a big lie. We need modular nuclear power and a redesigned and simplified grid to be parts of the solution.
“Democrats are committed to a failed foreign policy of weakness, trust and don’t verify, sign unenforceable agreements with nations that will not follow them. ”
- React strongly to every reversal of sanctions, every failure to answer challenges, human rights violations and aggressions by China. These have already begun.
- React strongly when sanctions are eased or bribes attempted to Iran, China, Russia and North Korea.
- Hammer Cuba and Venezuela when they give opportunities. (And they will)
- Highlight weakness in any attempts to re-open Paris Accords or Iran Deal. Emphasize the futility of agreements like Paris that do not hold China or India or Iran accountable.
- Applaud Biden when he follows through on Trump policies.
Rule Four: Use the courts to enforce the law and to protect the constitution, including election laws and practices:
- Democrats have given you the playbook for the last four years.
- Trump has populated the bench with sound judges.
- Legal victories and convictions will not go unnoticed or unheeded
Rule five: Create a new contract with America: Congressional Reform including Term Limits and Staff Limits.
This can be your unstoppable winning issue. Most Americans want to see term limits but do not believe they can happen. Show them that it can but do not stop there. Most Americans believe Congress is wasteful of time and money but can never be held accountable. Show them there is one and only one party who will put the people first.
Draft a Constitutional Amendment to limit three terms for a House Member and two terms for a Senator. Propose this Amendment to Congress in 2021 with unanimous or near unanimous Republican support. This gives room for enough tenure to preserve sound leadership but not enough to fill chairs with tired and dated voices.
Draft new rules for the Senate and House to include a reduction in staff salary allowances by 50%. Every House member has a one million dollar staff salary allowance. Senator’s staff salary allowances vary with the population of their states from three to four and one half million. These allowances are in addition to office, travel and other expenses and they are in addition to committee staff salaries and expenses. Representing the peoples agenda does not require and is not helped by this bureaucratic bloat! Add a provision to the bill that until the term limit amendment is ratified, Representatives and Senators that extend themselves beyond the term limits specified therein are ineligible to serve on committees and will have further staff limitations. Promise that a Republican Congress will adopt this Amendment and rules change in 2023.
Then get your candidates teed up. Democrats will not know how to respond but voters will!
Michael Moffitt
March, 2021