Hearts over minds, he tells Democrats

LATimes ^ | July 9, 2007 | Robin Abcarian

[CutePuppy]

Hearts over minds, he tells Democrats
A brain researcher says the party needs to connect with voters' emotions to win.

WASHINGTON — Drew Westen, a genial 48-year-old psychologist and brain researcher, was talking to a rapt liberal audience about the role of emotion in politics, how to talk back aggressively to Republicans, and why going negative is not to be feared.

It was Day 2 of the progressive "Take Back America" confab, and those who had crowded into a meeting room of the Washington Hilton were about to discover why Westen, a psychology professor at Atlanta's Emory University and former associate professor at Harvard Medical School, had quietly become the great rumpled hope of Democrats who believe their candidates should have won the last two presidential elections.

.....

Westen has spent many years training psychologists, psychiatrists and social workers, and his major brush with fame before now had been the occasional commentary on National Public Radio. In the last several months, though, he has gone from a politically inclined nobody to a hot ticket, presenting his ideas to presidential campaigns, political strategists, pollsters, consultants and donors.

.....

"The political brain is an emotional brain," he said. "It prefers conclusions that are emotionally satisfying rather than conclusions that match the data."

.....

Westen writes that it doesn't make sense to argue an issue using facts and figures and to count on voters — particularly the swing voters who decide national elections — to make choices based on sophisticated understandings of policy differences or procedures. He says Democratic candidates must learn to do what Republicans have understood for many years — they must appeal to emotions.

.....

Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean blurbed the book. Billionaire George Soros opened his home for a book party last month.

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[CutePuppy]

Instead of "hearts-and-minds", "emotions-not-brains" ! Duh, what's new? They could just listen to "dreaded" Rush Limbaugh, he keeps saying this exact thing. Except, they can't - they're so smart and superior, and Republicans are so dumb, dumb, dumb, they just have to rub Republicans' noses in it!

[mainepatsfan]

If the Dems nominate Hillary you’ll see an emotional response from the GOP voters.

[raybbr]

Drew Westen, a genial 48-year-old psychologist....

Genial?

[sirchtruth]

"emotions-not-brains"

It's not even "emotions" anymore, it's complete irrationality to fill their perverted desires.

These people are the downright mean, degraded, spoiled-brats which both Clinton's have given a sort of justification to be so bold in their, "It all depends on what the meaning of is, is...

If conservatives are to stand ground there has to be many more Rush Limbaugh's standing up and fighting these jerks.

I personaly think conservatives ought to go on "Amnesty Slam Alert" for every issue which comes up!

[MNJohnnie]

Who are they kidding? This is a case of pure projection by the Left. The Left is the repository of the Bumper Sticker mentality. Their WHOLE political doctrine revolves around appealing to emotions instead of intellect.

As anyone who has observed the Left in action since the 1960s can tell you, their doctrine consists of relentless demagoguery, repeated emotional based ranting and relentless personal sliming their foes.

[LibLieSlayer]

I have always been a "little" emotional when it comes to dims... I hate every last one of them (except for Zell)!

LLS

[Peet]

Kevin Baker did a very good deconstruction of this pap over on Smallest Minority

Peet

[Moby Grape]

“Going negative is not to be feared”

What rock has this idiot been under...NEGATIVE is the ONLY thing democrats know.

[Jabba the Nutt]

"The political brain is an emotional brain," he said. "It prefers conclusions that are emotionally satisfying rather than conclusions that match the data."

It seems to me, that this is all about explaining why the dolts (voters) keep voting for Republicans. Dr Lackoff told the Dims that they needed to 're-frame' the arguments. Thomas Frank in "What's the Matter with Kansas?: How Conservatives Won the Heart of America" told the Dims that Republicans conned people in voting against their economic interests by blinding them with the social issues.

This is just the latest attempt to explain the unexplainable to Dims, how people can actually reject them, the caring, the compassionate, the morally superior, the more competent. It's inexplicable.

[gusopol3]

somebody’s not real bright—Westin himself, the reporter or the Democrats who are paying him. The Democrat party is the fouled nesting place of the trial lawyer buzzard— and he makes money claiming they don’t know how to win votes based on appeal to emotion rather than reason? The reporter has had a chance to think this through for more than 30 seconds and thinks he’s hearing something new or smart?

[PGalt]

Drew Westen, a genial 48-year-old psychologist and brain researcher, was talking to a rapt liberal audience about the role of emotion in politics, how to talk back aggressively to Republicans, and why going negative is not to be feared.

Anti-truth, anti-life individuals and collectives are likely to join forces.

[shrinkermd]

I am about one third of the way through his book. He does point out that people make political decisions on the basis of emotion--preference for party and candidate trumps specific issues. He also recognizes the subjectivity of experience--Alfred Adler said it better with, "...9/10 of the world is the way you see it and 1/10 is the way it is.

He has mastered the literature including recent brain physiology advances. He also has excellent foot and endnotes on the Web.

He is a fierce partisan and so is his daughter. Allegedly, the three and one half year old Mackenzie attended preschool at the "temple." When she returned she asked where is God and after the reply that God was everywhere she said "how could God let Bush be President?" This is found on page 82 and 83.

On page 63 he asserts without empirical evidence that Democrats are too cerebral and the Republicans upend them with emotion.

On page 112 he summarizes his position by stating that between .5 and 3 percent of the average person's political decisions are based on "a dispassionate state of mind" (reason). All the other decisions are based on emotion.

All in all one can anticipate increasing emotional appeals from the Democrats. They are convinced they are right and everyone else is wrong. It is part of their quasi religious convictions that under gird their political discourse.

When I finish the book I will try to do a review for FR. It is a long book--420 pages--so it won't be soon.

As an after thought, he should have quoted Mark Twain who said that generally what most people call "thinking" is actually "emoting" and the aggregation of this "emoting" is "public opinion." Twain believed most people took "public opinion" as tantamount to the word of God.

[mbennett203]

""The political brain is an emotional brain," he said. "It prefers conclusions that are emotionally satisfying rather than conclusions that match the data.""

Spoken like a true liberal.

"It doesn't work? Well, keep funding it, it soothes my bizarre sense of guilt."

[xzins]

I would disagree with the good professor.

The facts are extremely important in establishing one’s frame of reference prior to any election. If emotion then prevails at election time with republican voters, that’s ok. They already have the factual background that enables informed emotion to let loose.

Mindless emotion isn’t really that effective. Otherwise, Dean’s & Gore’s rants would have carried the day.

[puroresu]

This one’s almost as funny as Keith Olbermann’s claim that the leaking of Valerie Plame’s name was the worst crime so far in this century.

Since when do “liberals” ever use logic? When do they ever fail to use emotion?

Point out that the recent terror acts in Britain are the result of open borders acceptance of Islamic immigrants (fact & logic) and the left will respond by saying “diversity is our strength” and issuing a ban on using the term “Islamic” when referring to terrorists so as not to offend anyone (emotion).

Point out that the public schools have deteriorated exponentially since the federal government started getting involved with them (fact & logic) and the left will howl that any effort to stop exponential expansion of federal education spending in an attack on our children (emotion).

During Hillary’s first senate campaign, her opponent Rick Lazio noted that she had violated her earlier pledge not to take money from outside the state (fact) and asked her to sign a document promising to stop (logic). Her response was to send some whiny women out the next day to accuse Lazio of bullying her and comparing his request to the behavior of a physically abusive husband (emotion).

And we all know that during debate on the recent immigration bill, the proponents’ arguments were the most logical and factual. “We’re a nation of immigrants”. “Let me tell you about Tommy, who lives in the shadows....” “If you don’t support this bill you’re a bigot and we’re going to shut you up.” That was far more intelligent than the actual crime stats, poverty stats, and cost estimates used by the bill’s opponents.

Yeah, whenever I see Michael Moore, Cindy Sheehan, Harry Reid, Ted Kennedy, Al Sharpton, Barack Obama, and Nancy Pelosi on TV, I know I’m gonna hear facts and logic, without all that emotional manipulation crap getting in the way of the intellectual discussion.

[socialismisinsidious]

Dr Genial is preaching to the choir. Liberals always emote instead of thinking and that is exactly why their policies don't work and exactly why they swallow socialism.

"Westen writes that it doesn't make sense to argue an issue using facts and figures and to count on voters"

Of course not! The liberal elite know what is best for you!...and they will do any thing possible (study history) to be able to control b/c the ends justifies the means and good intentions trump reality.

Liberals are all about choice UNTIL you choose differently than them.

[Suzy Quzy]

Democrats think they are RABID enough??? OMG! Drew needs MEDS.

[free_life]

This guy is right. Many and probably most voters who vote Democrat are led to the ballot box by their emotional nose rings. Instead of slamming this guy because he is a leftie...take notes on how to capture the votes of these voters who are swayed by their emotions on who to vote for. The same is true for swing voters and some who vote republican time after time. Most people have no time or interest in politics other than one or two issues at most and are caught by their emotional side to vote for this guy or that guy or party.

The folk here are very interested in politics and are informed, but don't think that most voters are like you, they are sheeple who's votes can be captured. Politics is war and I have no problem in getting someones vote by energizing them emotionally. The other option is to not get their vote.

[A CA Guy]

I saw this in the Slimes this morning and was itching to put this on FR for discussion. I am glad you got it here.

You got it right, this Democrat nut job is going to get the Democrats to continue in bold fashion what has been causing them to fail for decades now.

I wonder if this Doctor is a Republican plant doing the sabotaging from within?
I love it, great stuff, can we in some way help Democrats everywhere follow through with this so they all lose their elections?

This guy is doing more damage than any Republicans could ever hope to do.
God bless that doctor! I love it.

[A CA Guy]

The emotional response though will be from our knowledge of what a bad crooked person and politician she is. It isn’t emotion without a reason. We can all start a list of what is legitimately wrong with Hillary.

If Democrats try and make such a factual list about what is done, all you get is myth and talking points. IMO the voters see through that for the most part.

I hope this doctor gets deep into the Democrat party and gets them all to enact this self destructive strategy.
Could we ask for anything better than them self destructing in the name of their new plan? I love it.