Reviewing the Slogans: What a Candidate’s Slogan Says About a Candidate’s Campaign
Hillary Clinton: Hillary for America
Intentionally boring, yet effective. Hillary uses a conservative, unexciting, trite slogan that is painfully vague. However, she doesn’t need something flashy — with the wide lead that Hillary holds over Bernie, she does not need a slogan that will draw unneeded or unnecessary attention. Instead, Hillary plays it safe with this vague slogan.
Though this slogan isn’t setting the world on fire (maybe Hillary doesn’t want voters to feel the Bern), Hillary is catering to her base. Established, moderate, simple — all characteristics of her message and her base. Thus, while Hillary does not get more support from her slogan, she does not lose support either, which is really all that Hillary needs to win the nomination.
Grade: C+/B-
Bernie Sanders: A Future to Believe In
The key word in this slogan is “believe.” By saying that you can “believe” in Bernie, Bernie is subtly (yet effectively) distinguishing himself from Hillary Clinton, who has been under constant attack for corruption and scandal. This is a double edged sword, however — while Bernie packs a good punch, it is generally bad practice for a candidate to cater their campaign message (or in this case slogan) to their opponent. Voters typically vote for a candidate, not against another (though this election cycle may break this tradition). While Hillary delivers a message about her plans for the country, Bernie’s slogan simply states that he is not Hillary, rather than showcasing his own platform. While Bernie’s overall message does not carry this tone (running as a socialist is a clear message that he has his own ideas), his slogan takes away from what could be an even more powerful message.
Grade: B+/A-
Donald J. Trump: Make America Great Again
Partisan politics aside, Donald Trump is a master marketer. As a businessman and now a politician, Trump has never found difficulty in making headlines and attracting media attention for his reality TV-like personality. Trump’s slogan is just par for the course. The obvious implication of this slogan is it’s nearness to Ronald Reagan’s 1980 slogan “Let’s Make America Great Again.” By basically copying Reagan, Trump is comparing himself to Reagan, and making the statement that he would be a similar president to Reagan. Remember, Reagan ran in the midst of a serious international crisis (see Iranian Hostage Crisis), and took office following a less-than-popular Jimmy Carter administration. This begs the question of whether Trump is comparing Obama to Carter; an unfair analogy to some, but a strong pandering to a Republican base that has trashed Obama for the past eight years.
So, by comparing himself to Reagan (revered as a God by many Republicans) and trashing Obama (who most Republicans hate), Trump’s slogan panders to his Republican base and serves as an effective message to his voters.
Grade: B+/A-
Ted Cruz: Reigniting the Promise of America
This slogan is sub par, at best. First of all, this slogan has no message. What is the promise of America? An evangelical with strong conservative principles, Cruz does not showcase any here. Rather, Cruz makes a vague statement that America needs to be reignited (which sounds somewhat similar to Making America Great Again), and that the country has promise. The only case that can be made for the word “reignited” (which was undoubtedly carefully chosen) is that Ted is a fiery candidate, and the fire that he brings will reignite the country. However, at this stage, Trump is certainly more fiery; whether its making xenophobic slurs or assuring that Mexico will pay for the wall, Trump is always making incendiary remarks. Thus, by Cruz painting himself as a fiery candidate, he is juxtaposing himself to Trump. This is not a good move for Cruz, to say the least.
Cruz’s slogan offers no boost to his campaign message, and so Cruz receives the lowest grade.
Grade: D+/C-
Marco Rubio: A New American Century
Rubio brings a fresh, hip brand to politics, and it is up for display in this slogan. By referring to his campaign as a “New American Century,” Rubio alludes to his youthful, energetic character. In addition, as a junior Senator, Rubio is open to attacks regarding experience; however, Rubio turns this attack on its head, saying that he brings a “New American Century” rather than continuing the ways of the establishment.
The issue with this slogan is that it really doesn’t bring anything new to the table — rather, it simply reinforces Rubio’s somewhat disorganized message. A new face with a new century — but what exactly comes with this new century?
Grade: C/C+
John Kasich: Kasich is for US
Kasich is for US packs a similar punch to Hillary’s slogan. Its boring, trite, and offers little insight into Kasich’s policies or campaign. The key with this slogan is the US in the end. US can be interpreted two ways — it can be interpreted as the U.S., that Kasich is for the U.S., and us, that Kasich is for us. While both of these interpretations offer different characteristics of Kasich’s campaign, it still gives no policy perspective. Whether Kasich is for U.S. or us, what exactly does this mean? How is Kasich for US?
While Kasich is the most moderate of the Republican candidates (or has at least portrayed himself that way), this slogan reinforces this message — Kasich is for the whole country and for all of us, rather than being just for Republicans. A solid effort, but still lacks the pizzazz of a good slogan.
Grade: C+/B-
