If you’re a voter in the United States, a supporter of the Democratic Party, and are planning on voting for the 2024 presumptive nominee, Joe Biden, things sure feel hopeless. But that’s par for the course of being a Democrat, I suppose. Worry, anxiety, bedwetting, gnashing of teeth, wailing…if you’re experiencing these symptoms there’s a good chance it’s because you are a Democrat — and witnessed President Biden’s inability to make the case of why he should be president for another term at a so-called debate on CNN (June 27th). I don’t want to rehash the performance of both Biden and Trump because, let’s face it, there’s no shortage of content focusing on that. What I’d like to make this post about is messaging.
I wrote about this topic in 2022 when the midterms were approaching and it seemed that Republicans were going to make huge gains in the House — which didn’t quite happen. At the time, Republicans — with a big assist from many media outlets — were making the case that Biden’s Build Back Better efforts were falling short. Never mind that the opposite was true. All it takes is for a small group of people to start yelling “fire” and the media cameras will go on to cover what’s being said. The media’s mission is to inform, but it’s also a business that needs to make money. Engagement means that media companies have to feature “content” that’s entertaining. Truth, lies, misinformation, and disinformation, are all part of the show. An anchor or host can tell viewers that so-and-so is lying, but they aren’t entirely making these comments as a public service. Rather, it’s more about playing a role in the show.
Is it any wonder why public opinion toward the media is so low? Why trust in the Fourth Estate has crumbled? The business imperative to make money eclipses its stated function of informing the public. But the public is to blame, too. The public wants entertainment, so the media is just giving people what they want — even if what they want makes them cynical about what they want.
This gets me to what people want from politicians (another group people don’t trust). Campaigns are like movie premieres at theaters. Both have to generate excitement around an event and get people out of their homes to vote or pay for a ticket. So, this massive messaging machine gets cranked up to generate excitement. For movies, actors will hit the promotional circuit of talk shows, sit down with trusted entertainment journalists to do one-on-one interviews, and there will also be the spectacle of the red carpet premiere where cameras are flashing, fancy clothes are worn, and pageantry is on full display. Hollywood often does this. It’s expensive, but it gets “butts in seats” — or nowadays, views on streaming. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. It depends on a lot of factors, but the story and the actors are essential to the success of any movie.
Something similar happens in a political campaign. The candidate, the party, and the policies are, in a way, the elements of the movie. Without a good script (policy), the actor (the candidate) can’t articulate to the public (the audience) what he or she wants to do for the voters. Without a party (the studio), the production lacks money and media attention — often resulting in the campaign being poorly managed. What the Democrats lack right now is a good script. The elements are there. The story can be told, but whoever is writing the script is filling it with many confusing things. Some politicians who are not running for president can improv around some key points in the Democratic story. Gavin Newsom is one person. Here he is at a campaign event for Biden-Harris in Michigan. He makes the case for Democratic successes under the Biden administration in about 15 minutes. His key points: more jobs have been created under the Biden administration than three Republican ones. More investments into manufacturing and technology have been made under Biden than any other president in this century. These are accomplishments that get buried, fumbled, and forgotten when Democrats are on TV. What are the Republicans selling? Hordes of immigrants are invading our country. This economy is the worst this country has ever experienced. Revenge. It’s a horror movie. Horror movies do well, but they aren’t for everyone. What kind of movies do well with audiences? Adventure stories — followed by action.
Adventure stories are about overcoming adversity and reaching a place of relative calm at the end. For the last eight years, the U.S. has gone through a lot: the chaos and corruption of the Trump administration, the COVID-19 pandemic, a murder rate that was the highest since 1997, an unemployment rate spiking to 14.8% in April 2020, a trade war with China, military conflicts in Syria, threatening war (“Fire and fury”) with North Korea, an impeachment, and an attempt to overturn an election by a violent mob on January 6th, 2021. Were you exhausted by all this? Or did it make you feel like America was great?
Biden was elected in part because people had enough of adversity and wanted relative calm again. I think the Biden administration and Democrats (along with some Republicans) have taken some bold and incremental steps in doing that. Getting people vaccinated to turn the corner on the pandemic, creating conditions for a very strong economy, passing two massive legislative packages that will spend trillions on Americans through investments in infrastructure, manufacturing, and technology, seeing the murder rates drop 13%, the unemployment returning to under 4% (for the most part) since spiking during the worst of the pandemic, and stronger ties with our allies.
But there are setbacks.
Two wars affecting allies of the U.S. (Ukraine and Israel), inflation spiking to 9.1% in June 2022, interest rates are high, abortion rights have ended at the federal level, housing is very expensive, and so is healthcare. In short, despite all the successes of the Biden administration and Democrats on the policy front, the audience isn’t feeling the good vibes of the plot. Why? Part of why is the actor in the lead role: Joe Biden. He can’t give a convincing performance in an action-adventure story — and that’s because he keeps fumbling his lines. This leaves the horror movie narrative the more compelling story because the actor delivering the line is a horrible person in real life — so are many of the people around him.
When the horror movie down the block is selling fear, terror, and shock, what’s an effective counterprogram? Action, adventure, drama, and comedy. Fortunately, the Democratic narrative has all that. If it’s “Ridin’ with Biden” to November, the message from here on out has to center on what he’s done for Americans, what his second term seeks to accomplish for Americans, and why his age and inability to be like Gavin Newsom can be deflected with some self-aware jokes.
I’ve listed some of what Biden and the Democrats have accomplished in the last 3 1/2 years — and it is significant as it is consequential. What should they focus on? The big pain points for Americans right now: the high cost of housing, the high cost of healthcare, the high cost of living, and the high costs of unplanned pregnancies. What will a second Biden term do to address those big things — as well as others like Social Security, gun violence, and the climate crisis? Keep hammering home the plans to address those — and that the only way to accomplish them is by getting Democratic majorities in both houses. Just remind voters when there were Democratic majorities in 2021 in both houses how much got done.
Finally, self-aware jokes about aging. Biden will flub, stutter, and struggle to find words to communicate what should come easily for a man who spent decades in politics. He’s 81. He should lean into the self-aware ageist jokes. When he finds himself stuttering, he should pause, look at the camera, smile, and say something like: “Oh no, cognitive decline!” Laugh it off, take a beat, and continue, “What I meant to say is, blah, blah, blah.” Be confident. Be simple in your sentences. Don’t talk too long. Be hopeful when it’s required. Be angry when something makes you angry. One thought per remark. No overloading people with facts and figures. Stop with the stories of what Dad or Mom said. But throughout it all, make sure people hear a message of hope.
