New Democrat strategy: We must stimulate the amygdalae!
This is high-larious. The Hill reports on an internal Democrat strategy memo complaining that the Democrat Party is too hyper-rational and lacks emotional appeal.
For real. They think “SUFFER THE LITTLE CHILLLLLDREN!” is too bland and accountant-like:
Democrats are losing the battle for voters’ hearts because the party’s message lacks emotional appeal, according to a widely circulated critique of House Democratic communications strategy.
“Our message sounds like an audit report on defense logistics,” wrote Dave Helfert, a former Appropriations spokesman who now works for Rep. Neil Abercrombie (D-Hawaii). “Why are we defending [the State Children’s Health Insurance Program] instead of advocating a ‘Healthy Kids’ plan?”
Helfert sent the memo this week to an e-mail list of all Democratic press secretaries and communications directors after staffers met on Monday to discuss rolling out the Democrats’ latest message.
He said the meeting left him cold because it focused on what polling shows voters want rather than how to present persuasive messages. Republicans have done a better job by developing poll data into focus group-tested messages like “culture of life” and “defending marriage,” along with attacks like “cut and run” and “plan for surrender” in Iraq, he argued.
My favorite part:
“I’m not trying to stage a coup,” Helfert said. “I’m hoping leadership and some of the members will embrace these principles.”
His memo is sharply critical of Republican policies but also suggests a neurological explanation for Republican message success: By using emotional appeals and warning of dire threats, Republicans can trigger neurons called “amygdalae” in the temporal lobe, which is the seat of the “fight or flight” response in the brain.
“Almost every Republican message contains a simple and direct moral imperative, a stark contrast between good and evil, right and wrong, common sense and fuzzy liberal thinking,” Helfert wrote. “Meanwhile, we’re trying to ignite passions with analyses of optimum pupil-teacher ratios.”
Yesterday, it was a “vote against S-CHIP is a vote against Jesus!” Last week, it was “Bush blows up people for his amusment!” And, of course, there’s the “MaglaGONG” strategy to deflect criticism of Democrat campaign finance shenanigans. And the open-borders DREAM Act agitprop.
The Democrats’ problem isn’t understimulation of the amygdalae. It’s overstimulation. Perhaps a political lobotomy–separating the nutroots lobe from the party’s thalamus–might be a far more effective prescription.
***
Ed Morrissey: “The Democrats have no problem exciting the amygdalae of their followers. The problem comes when the rest of the people use the rest of their brain to analyze their agenda and their tactics. Helfert might want to have the Democrats address those issues if they want to discover why they keep getting outboxed by a lame-duck President.”
Betsy Newmark: “Democrats just can’t believe that sometimes, people actually like Republican ideas but must just be fooled by a deceptive message. And why is he so convinced that Democrats don’t know how to craft emotional messages? What about all those “do it for the children” messages that Democrrats are constantly using? Isn’t that an emotional appeal?”
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Trackbacks
- JammieWearingFool
- Captain's Quarters
- Our Bodies, Ourselves [Dan Collins]
- Macsmind - Conservative Commentary and Common Sense
- The Democrats, The Party Of Amygdala? | Stuck On Stupid
- Riehl World View
- Sister Toldjah
- RealClearPolitics - Blog Coverage
- Stop The ACLU » Blog Archive » Internal Democratic Memo About “Message” Is Wrong
- Internal Memo About Democrats “Message” Is Wrong at Conservative Times--Republican GOP news source.
- Democrat indoctrination : [H] Hegemonic Pundit
- Hawaii Ending Universal Child Health Care After 7 Months Because Mamilies Were Dropping Private Coverage So Their Children Would Be Eligible For The Subsidized Plan | Right Voices
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He’s not even using the term correctly. The amygdala (amygdalae is an antiquated spelling) is a subcortical structure–it’s not in any lobe.
And the individual neurons aren’t little amygdala–they are collectively called that as it is the structure they form.
It is (though not entirely) responsible for emotional responses, though.
That’s right, Supply-side Jesus strikes again.
Am I the only one who can’t see any of the text in Michelle’s posts?
Mike:
You know, I don’t know what I was thinking. The Republicans should be doing things to change the mind of the people being polled, not beating back attempt after attempt by the Party of Desparation (POD).
If they don’t try to beat their message into the heads of the idiot voters of America, then the Republicans are doomed to what? Hillary being elected? The Dhimmicrats increasing their majority in Congress?
Medicine being socialized in the United States because we are in the early stages of World War 4?
Am I seeing your side of this now?
IMAGE: Brick flies through window and hits Bear1909 in the head.
Whoa!
Did I say all of those things out loud?
Flash: These 100 polls you are talking about Mike.
Who pays the tag on all of this “research”?
Hmmmm. No foolin.
Is there anything here? I can see any text.
I am not seeing any text on any article anywhere on this site. Whahappen?
I can’t see any text on any of the stories!
Why, that would have been on the Twelth Of Never, DL. Never been “polled” on anything. Unless you count the food samples at my local supermart on Saturdays where the sweet older ladies offer up free bites of sausage and sruff. They sometimes ask me if I liked the product.
Heh. That’s a 3-pointer!
That shoulda been “sausage and stuff”.
(Since I like free food, it’s usually a moot question.)
Cool
I wonder if the Democrats have ever considered that some people don’t accept their message is because Democrats are lying, anti-American, anti-Constitution, anti-freedom, bigoted, treacherous, perverted hypocrites.
Without the support of illiterates, ignoramuses, illegal aliens, inner-city government dependents, perverts, felons, the insane, fraudulent and dead voters, the Democrats wouldn’t have any viability.