Posted on 08/16/2024 7:01:28 AM PDT by Heartlander
One of my favorite bits of ancient wisdom, which I have quoted many times over the years, is the Chinese military theorist Sun Tzu’s adage that a battle is won before it is fought because it is won by choosing the terrain on which it is fought. Accordingly, as I noted in a column a few months ago: “If former President Donald Trump and other Republicans on the ballot this fall want to win, they must choose the proper terrain.”
He who controls the narrative and framing necessarily controls the result. Every good trial lawyer knows this. And so should every good politician.
Although recent days have been more focused and suggest a possible turning of the tide, the electoral terrain for Republicans has generally been rather shaky ever since the bloodless Kamala Harris coup of Joe Biden a few weeks ago. Asking whether Harris—the daughter of Jamaican and Indian immigrants—actually counts as “Black” for U.S. demographic purposes is fair substantive game, but it is certainly not fertile swing voter terrain. Even less compelling, and certainly less propitious, is incontinent friendly fire directed at the popular governor of a crucial swing state, Georgia.
Early voting begins in Pennsylvania, arguably this election’s single most decisive battleground state, on Sept. 16. That is just around the corner. Can Republicans pull it together in time and successfully define the electoral terrain?
Republicans are not entirely themselves to blame for the current state of the race, which has seen the GOP squander much of its momentum from the former president’s heroic survival of an assassination attempt and the party’s successful nominating convention. The corporate media has aided Democrats every step of the way. After pretending to be real journalists for a few weeks and holding Biden accountable for his palpable senility, the Washington press corps immediately returned to regime-apologist form after party elites succeeded in their coup. Thus, the present spectacle of Harris not answering a single real question from the press for nearly four weeks. Funny how quickly the media went from probing to outright laconic.
Republicans and the Trump campaign need to break through the corporate media’s shameless attempt to shield Harris and prairie socialist running mate Tim Walz from any scrutiny whatsoever. Part of that strategy will necessarily entail utilizing alternative media sources, as Trump did earlier this week during his much-hyped X Spaces conversation with Elon Musk. But ultimately, there can be no substitute for hitting the physical campaign trail in the nation’s core swing states—for attending small-town rallies in Pennsylvania, leading local parades in Michigan, going on local news programs in Wisconsin, and the like. And it is imperative that in making the local rounds, Trump and Republicans define the proper terrain on which voters will make their fateful voting booth decisions.
It ultimately boils down to this: If Republicans can successfully frame the 2024 election as boiling down to the actual issues—and above all, the economy, inflation, immigration, and crime—then they stand a strong chance of prevailing. But if Democrats and their media propagandists can successfully frame the election as a subjective “vibes” competition or a mere high school-like popularity contest, the GOP could very well lose.
Harris is already attempting to distance herself from Biden. Republicans must not allow her to do that. Harris has been Biden’s (tongue-twisted and dim-witted) right-hand wingwoman since day one. Harris owns the Biden-Harris administration’s abysmal record no less than Biden himself. And that record is decidedly unpopular with the American people: According to current polling averages, the Biden administration’s approval rating is 20 points underwater on the economy, 21 points underwater on foreign policy, 29 points underwater on immigration, 28 points underwater on inflation, 19 points underwater on crime, and an astounding 34 points underwater on the war in Gaza.
Let’s be blunt: The Biden-Harris administration’s record is about as popular with the American people as venereal disease.
That suggests an obvious path to victory in November for the Trump-Vance campaign, and for Republicans as a whole: Stay disciplined and make the case on the leading substantive issues facing the American people. Now is not the time for self-indulgence. Now is not the time for needless distractions. Now is not the time to relitigate the past or to settle old scores. But now is the time for a ruthless, meticulous assault on the entirety of the fetid Biden-Harris oeuvre, and a concomitant positive case as to why a Trump-Vance administration will produce better results for a besieged and beleaguered populace.
The road map could not possibly be clearer. In fact, it practically writes itself. All that is left is to execute the plan.
Absolutely on point. Trump has to stop the meandering speeches and focus specifically on the Biden/Harris record, how the decline will continue if she is elected and clearly outline his policies.
Absolutely
We’re running out of time here.
Ok, I have had enough of this chit.
They are making that case. But it seems that the “focus on the issues” theme has now morphed into the “LASER focus on the issues” which will morph to something else.
Kamala and Tampon Tim are flawed candidates with both policy and character failings. They cannot be insulated from attacks on both with the ever narrowing “focus on policy” theme.
I have heard Trump and JD hammer inflation and the open border and crime and and and.
and let me add this. . .
Compared to 2020 and 2016, even the rigged polls show Trump with a slight lead. If he wasn’t focusing on the issues or falling what needed to be done, how would such a thing be possible.
He is hitting the issues. But we are flying blind here. The legacy media isn’t going to report whether that is effective or not. No way. Instead, all we are being fed is a steady diet of “Kamala Momentum!!” I am not even close to being sold on it.
Totally agree, and this needs to include TV ads, not on FOX, but on CNN, local news and elsewhere to target the low info voters.
Get some top notch marketing people to produce the ads. The one I did see recently was good, showing high costs of everything and ending with Harris cackling laughing how great Bidenomics is from a file video clip.
Make her look stupid, it should be rather easy. Use her own words and video contrasted with reality. Make some “funny”, people respond to humor.
Saturate the 7 toss up states.
Trump can run the perfect campaign but if its not being covered what does it matter.
Ill say it again, it doesn’t matter who we ran against the dems, if 100% of the media is behind the dem candidate and they are letting that candidate do whatever they want with zero pushback, how can we expect our candidate to win. I don’t care if it was reagan or bush jr, i don’t think anyone can win against this rigged system. It feels like I am living in an alternative universe. What the hell has happened to this country!?!?!?!?!
Trump did exactly that yesterday and he was brilliant.
We’ve had 4 years of Trump campaigning because of a stolen election meaning Biden and Harris weren’t popular 4 years ago..
They were installed. They aren’t any more popular now.
What’s changed is we didn’t get to kill the thieves and enemies foreign and domstic that did the stealing and installing, because Trump was focused immediately on 2024.
This campaign season has been 4 frickin years long..
That happens again, November 6, 3:01 AM is 1776 time..
BIDEN & HARRIS CANNOT erase the damage they have done.
BIDEN & HARRIS CANNOT erase the damage they have done.
I had lunch with some family yesterday.
A lefty relative bragged that he got all his information from “the news”.
Omg.
“Issues” to him are what the leftist propagandists on the Mockingbird media say they are.
I fear that Republicans, being politicians, are incapable of laser focus on issues.
The first step is to make sure the voting process isn’t corrupt.
The Democrat Party Crime Families have made fortunes for over 100 years by controlling the levers of power in government.
The Democrat Party Crime Families will manipulate people by stealing money to give to them for their votes.
If this is not enough, they will manipulate the voting process.
All while Harris & Walz spin fairy tales about how life will be more joyful under their regime.
ESAD democrats
Cut it out. Just stop it. He has spent the whole last two weeks talking policy and issues. He has spent hours on his feet talking about what you mention.
Problem is people like you listen to the media instead of listening to the campaign.
Have any of you ever said Kamala is ahead because she laser focuses on issues and policies?
If she is ahead it is because she only talks about JOY and offers up taxpayer handouts for all while the whole MSM fabricates her glorious countenance. She went fron dud to rosebud!
Nah, she doesn’t ramble, she just doesn’t answer anything. One thing is certain, she does at least listen a little to Trump(unlike some here on FR) because she likes to steal some of his policy at times.
But she is winning! /s
Have a discussion with a Democrat voter.
See what issues they feel will really affect them.
They can talk about a lot of issues, but there are only two issues they are really concerned about.
1. Getting money from Democrat politicians.
2. There will be too many people on this planet and that will hurt them.
They don’t care if the money is stolen from someone else who worked to earn it.
They have no concept that they are included in the “too many people”.
This guy is out of touch with the intellectual level and attention span of “the American people”
“Absolutely on point. Trump has to stop the meandering speeches and focus specifically on the Biden/Harris record, how the decline will continue if she is elected and clearly outline his policies.”
Agree 100%. Stop the personal attacks. Focus on the policies of Harris proving she’s a dedicated Marxist...like price controls and ending private health insurance.
The usual suspects...OMG!!!
Trump didn't say...
The usual suspects...OMG!!!
Trump did...
The usual suspects...OMG!!!
Trump didn't do...
The usual suspects...OMG!!!!!!!!!!
Post any story Trump related, sometimes not even related, and the usual suspects show up with the vapors. It's become predictable and boring.
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