We could get a little bit more sophisticated with our campaigns. Listen to bray and David Horowitz in his new book.
"The Obama campaign aggressively went after Romney because he once put his dog in a car carrier designed for the purpose on the exterior of his station wagon. I saw bumper stickers, usually on cars driven by women, saying “Dogs for Obama.” Republicans laughed at the attack on how Romney treated his dog, not thinking it was serious.
Never mind the chutzpah of the Obama campaign attacking Romney for his treatment of his dog — all from a man who used to eat them. Had someone in the Romney campaign crafted a witty well worded response that alluded to Obama’s past, the whole matter would have boomeranged back on Obama. How many hundreds of thousands of voters, voters who didn’t pay attention to conservative media, would have said – “huh!? Obama ate a dog?”
Had someone in a 2008 campaign crafted a witty well worded response that alluded to Obama’s past other than the dog eating, we might never have been stuck with him.
Instead, the rational shrugged off the dog on the roof attack as silly. We’ve been laughing at the silliness of the left for 30 years, not thinking it was serious. In the meantime, the very unserious views we laughed at are now policy.
Saul Alinsky’s Rule Number Five understands this: “RULE 5: Ridicule is man’s most potent weapon. There is no defense. It’s irrational. It’s infuriating. It also works as a key pressure point to force the enemy into concessions.” When your opponent is ridiculing you, you are in very dangerous territory, and there is only one effective response. Fire must be used against fire.
Horowitz lays out an architecture in Take No Prisoners for conservatives to operate in the modern political battlespace. Among the key points are “in political warfare, the aggressor usually prevails. Position is defined by fear and hope. The weapons of politics are those that evoke fear and hope. Victory lies on the side of the people.”
The details are in the book. And if Republicans want to reverse a string of electoral losses in 2016, let’s hope Republicans read it.
But if you fight back you’re not going to be liked by the media. That is our candidates’ biggest fear.
Instead we have a clown car parade of Karl Roves.
I didn’t get a chance yesterday to tell you how much I enjoyed your post, linked to this comment.
You are just so correct and it’s been my lament for eons.
Your dog example is spot on.