We are all quite aware of what's at stake. And yes, we are familiar with the bleak projections that have been made.
I don't know how things are going to ultimately unfold, but I do know that there is something that Democrats---or rather, Democratic politicians---could do, that would turn the whole thing around.
The Democratic Party will retain control of both Houses of Congress in November if passionately expressed criticism of the Republicans is heard constantly in the MSM throughout October.
There is a reason why passion needs to play a much bigger role in the campaigns of Democratic politicians. Let me explain...
When the Tea Partiers express anger at their rallies, they are executing a calculated strategy that is designed to grab the attention of Swing Voters. You know the Swing Voters, the people who once supported Obama and the Democrats a couple of Novembers ago, but who are now saying that they will probably vote for Republicans in the Congressional elections?
The Republicans have a very good track record of persuading Swing Voters to vote for them, even when doing so is against their own best interests. Part of the problem for Democrats is they often make the mistake of assuming that Swing Voters care about the issues as much as they do. The Republicans, of course, never make that mistake.
Of course, it's not that the Swing Voters have no interest in the issues. They actually do care, at first. It's just that, when they hear their Republican friends/acquaintances explain some point about the issues, they find themselves agreeing. Then, when they hear their Democrat friends/acquaintances tell them the other side of the story, they find themselves agreeing with them. After some back and forth, the least-informed of them realize that they don't understand the details of the issues well enough to make an informed decision, so they fall back on their impressions of the candidates.
That is something the Republicans understand quite well. It is the reason why they always invest so much of their time and efforts on character assassination. They are quite aware that they represent the interests of only America's upper crust, and that their chances of winning an issues-based campaign are therefore very, very slim. So they must find other ways to persuade the least-informed voters to vote for them.
Their answer: tear down the other candidate's image. Associate the Democratic Brand with negative feelings, negative character traits, negative events. Seek always to denigrate your opponent with innuendo and accusations. Above all else, do everything you can to ensure that the Swing Voters hear a constant stream of harsh criticism directed at the Democrats through the MSM.
Republicans grasp the importance of this because they understand that the typical Swing Voter is a headline-reader and sound-bite nibbler. These voters never/seldom read up on the details of most accusations; they just know that A accused B of some bad thing. Over a period of time, the Swing Voters develop an increasingly negative impression of the target of that criticism.
That pretty much explains where Barack Obama and the Democrats are today. The Republican strategy works. They really have no just right to be in the favorable position they are in, given the spectacular failure of their economic agenda just a couple of years ago, but there they are again, threatening to take Congress away from us through the Audacity of Character Assassination.
The constant drip of negative complaints about all things Democrat, amplified by all that emotion they like to show, has them---until just recently---leading in the polls. Thankfully, Barack Obama has led the way in answering the Republicans with some emotion of his own:
Unlike most Democratic politicians, Republicans fully grasp the key role that emotion plays in election campaigns. They know that expressions of strong emotion can be very effective in moving the opinions of Swing Voters. Just watch, in the final 1-3 weeks of any national campaign, it is a virtual certainty that disciples of Karl Rove will be looking for some/any excuse to launch themselves into a display of phony outrage over some alleged transgression by the Democrat.
The Republicans have learned that when they express strongly felt emotions, Swing Voters tend to grant them a greater measure of authenticity. After all, why else would they be so upset? The burden of proof is implicitly placed upon the person being accused. If the Democrat does not respond to the attacks with some convincing emotion himself (e.g. ridicule), the Swing Voter is left with the impression that maybe the Democrat really isn't all that trustworthy.
The Republicans use emotion to model the kind of feelings/attitudes they want the Swing Voters to feel toward Democrats on voting day. And you know what? It works far more often than it should. A Swing Voter may not remember the the arguments that the Democrat made re: the issues, but he is sure to remember the feelings he saw on that guy's face when he was accused by his opponent.
Swing Voters are usually the key to any election that The Republicans win. It's the reason why The Republicans will surely do what they always do in the coming weeks: attack, insinuate, criticize. The question is, how are the Democrats going to respond? If they simply talk up the achievements of the Obama administration, but fail to express some emotion when referring to The Republicans, then we could very well lose both Houses of Congress to the Forces of Evil.
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We need to make The Republicans THE issue this fall. And we need to start referring to them with some emotion. What kind of emotion? Well, some Democrats might feel that anger is the most appropriate emotion to express when referring to The Republicans, but I think differently. The use of anger can actually backfire in a big way if you are not careful in expressing it. We do not want to be characterized as Angry People who are always angry [in a threatening sort of way].
Think of the many times when Republicans have accused Democrats of 'hating America' or of 'hating George Bush'. They make this charge to evoke an image of people who are imagined to be inherently angry and who are therefore a threat to 'us normal people.' But now think of how the impression changes if---when we are accused of hating---we respond by saying no, it is fear that we are feeling. It really is our best defense. (People only hate that which they fear.)
We want the Swing Voters to see us as people who fear the Republicans, but we also want them to see that we are brave enough to take on the threat. Like the sergeant said to the private in the foxhole, "Everyone’s afraid, son. But we can’t let that fear stop us. We still have a mission to carry out." Yes, we are afraid of the Republicans but we also have the courage to take on the threat that they represent. We just know that we must oppose evil when we see it. Verbalize fear. Show courage.
The Republicans may be experts in using emotion to move Swing Voters, but there is no good reason why Democratic candidates should let them get away with it. If the Democrats can succeed in convincing the Swing Voters that The Republicans are politicians whom they should FEAR, then control of both Houses of Congress will be maintained, and we will have stepped away from the brink.
THE REPUBLICAN NEMESIS