The Four Foundations of a Presidential Campaign Message
A Memorandum For Candidates Of Both Parties
A successful presidential campaign message can be built on four key foundations:
1. Philosophy. What is your philosophy of governance? What does the power of the Presidency mean to you? What is the proper role of a President in American society and the world?
2. Vision. What does America look like at the end of your term, or even 50 years from now? What kind of changes are needed to leave a better country for our children? How do you distill this vision of our future into a few words?
3. Ideas. What specific, innovative plans do you have for America? How do your ideas “fit together” in a way that communicates something larger about your leadership and beliefs?
4. Values. At heart, what kind of person are you? Are you tough enough for this job, independent-minded enough to stand up to friends and foes alike? What principles drive you? How does your faith affect your life and how will it inspire your leadership?
Most people would not bring up these four foundational themes if polled on what’s important to them in a leader, but collectively they get to the heart of what voters quietly and informally — even subconsciously — ask themselves in deciding who to support.
In the end, what you want is for a majority of voters, in the privacy of their hearts and minds and polling booths, to come to something like the following:
“This candidate cares about people like me, and has good ideas to help turn this country around. He/She’s a smart, tough and effective leader who knows how to get things done. A fighter who can ‘take the heat’ and do what’s needed to protect our country and make things better for our children. This candidate will get government working again, and leave America better off at the end of his/her term than at the start.”
Philosophy. In articulating a governing philosophy, consider the remarks of John F. Kennedy in January, 1960 at the National Press Club, when he said, “the history of this Nation — its brightest and its bleakest pages — has been written largely in terms of the different views our Presidents have had of the Presidency itself.”
Kennedy went on to describe his view of the office as a “vigorous proponent of the national interest — not a passive broker for conflicting private interests.” The times “demand that the President place himself in the very thick of the fight, that he care passionately about the fate of the people he leads, that he be willing to serve them, at the risk of incurring their momentary displeasure.”
Kennedy quoted Woodrow Wilson saying, “The President is at liberty, both in law and conscience, to be as big a man as he can.” Substitute “person” for “man,” and the point remains as valid today as it was a century ago.
The Presidency, said JFK, is “the vital center of action.”
Kennedy’s motivation in that speech may have been, in part, to distinguish himself from Eisenhower’s “above the fray,” non-partisan, hands-off style of governance, and to convey his own vitality, sense of purpose, passion and strength. The times have changed, but the need for a vigorous view of the presidency endures.
A serious candidate for President, in describing his or her philosophy of the presidency, can convey several positive messages: one, you are a responsible person; two, you are wise (you have an understanding of history and an appreciation for the meaning and value of the Constitutional duties you seek to undertake); three, you are decisive and strong — essential leadership qualities in a president; and four, you have a sense of purpose and direction.
Vision. President Clinton has often said that he measures success by asking this question, “were people better off when you left than when you started?” That is a simple, yet powerful guidepost. It gets right to the heart of what people really are looking for, regardless of party. And it succinctly sets out a simple and understandable goal line.
So it makes sense to look ahead to the year 2020, or (thinking more optimistically) 2024, and talk about what our country should look like in that not-so-distant time. In that way, you can begin to spell out, in both grand and specific terms, your vision of America’s future.
Doing so is an inherently optimistic, forward-looking action. Yes, people want to be asked their opinion on issues, but more important, they want to be led by someone they feel has their best interests at heart. Don’t just repeat rhetoric back to me, they intuitively say to themselves. Don’t give me poll-tested talking points just to make me feel good. Tell me, in both grand and specific terms, what you believe and where you want to lead us, even if it involves uncomfortable truths, or “momentary displeasure.”
There’s magic in FDR’s New Deal, Kennedy’s New Frontier and Reagan’s Morning in America. You need to paint your own big and bold painting of our country’s future, and how America will be better when you finish than when you begin. And you can do so in a manner that “aims high,” while speaking plainly, with candor and confidence.
Ideas. Plans and policies are inextricably linked to vision (as well as a philosophy of governance), though sometimes candidates spend too much time on details and fail to place them squarely in the context of the big picture. Ideas are tactics — vision is a strategy. Programs are details — philosophy is a theme. Issues are paragraphs in a longer story.
So tying ideas together with a simple, oft-repeated underlying message (or storyline) is crucial. Yes, this is a data-driven world, and infographics are fun and attractive. But don’t lose the narrative forest for the wonky trees.
If woven together with thematic threat, specific and powerful ideas can bolster people’s impressions of your vision, values and philosophy of governance as well. Perhaps most important in the context of a campaign, it can help distinguish you from the opposition in very favorable ways.
George W. Bush’s “no child left behind” policy fit neatly into his “responsibility” theme in 2000. Bill Clinton’s call for 100,000 police on the streets and middle class tax cuts reinforced the idea that he was a “different kind of Democrat.” Ronald Reagan’s 1980 plans for increasing the pay and benefits of our military was one of several specific ways he demonstrated an overarching commitment of strengthening America’s defense.
So articulating good ideas can help people understand — and get excited about — what your presidency would look like, even as it underscores your intellectual curiosity, creativity and sense of mission. And the connective tissue of those ideas helps form a larger pragmatic program that goes beyond ideology and taps into a richer vein of American common sense.
That’s where some Democrats and Republicans falter. With Democrats falling victim to special interest politics and Republicans having to argue for less government, not more, neither is capable of convincingly making the case for legitimately fresh, new ideas that require both independence from interest groups and an activist role for political leaders. A strong leader, with smart ideas, can and must rise about the partisan fray to convey a realistic plan for tackling America’s most urgent problems.
Values. There is nothing quite like the crucible of a campaign to reveal a person’s soul. But there is also nothing quite like being unafraid to shed light on the values that have propelled you on this path of life.
First, of course, comes faith in God, and how it inspires you to do good for others. This can be overdone, but it should not be overlooked. As the Good Book says, “be not afraid.”
Then there is an abiding sense of responsibility, which should be at the heart of anyone’s pursuit of the presidency. You feel a duty to serve a nation, not just an opportunity to win an election. You must convey to people that, for you, Election Night would be just a beginning, not an end in itself.
Another value is moderation. Not moderate politics or policies, necessarily. But having a sense of proportion, balance, equilibrium. That is especially important given how out of whack everything has become. The ship of state is heeling over at a dangerous angle, or so it seems to many Americans, and you can help make it upright once again.
Your toughness is also a virtue which adds worth to your candidacy. People want Presidents “who will not retreat in the face of pressure,” as Kennedy said in that 1960 speech.
Add to those such values as hard work, concern for others, and even some proper sense of humility and humor, and you have a strong set of attributes to convey to the American people, not necessarily in specific words, but through examples and deeds. The values that motivate you should course through the veins of your entire campaign.
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Elements of the themes described above should be woven frequently in remarks, interviews, town hall meetings, commercials and other forms of communication along the campaign trail. It might also be worth integrating all of them into a major address and/or a “stump” speech.
In the end, what you want is to grab people’s attention on a visceral plane, leaving them with an inner feeling about who you are, what you believe, and where you will lead America.
This is a glib comparison, but consider the way that people in the entertainment business manage to distill the essence of a two hour movie into a single sentiment, which they market the hell out of to encourage people to get out of the house and come to the theater on a Friday or Saturday night. They don’t try to convey the complexity of the film, or give a detailed synopsis of the plot; rather, they use visual and audio cues, with just a few words, to latch onto some emotion in the hearts of audiences, whether it is the promise of a thrilling adventure, the lure of an escapist comedy or the romance of a love story.
A person’s long quest for the presidency cannot be equated with a studio’s quest for a big opening weekend, but there is something to be said to the way moviemakers and politicians, at their best, work to create a special bond with real people (as moviemaker and politician Ronald Reagan did so well).
It is more alchemy than science, and it is not easily expressed or accomplished. But in the end, what you aim for is to a “gut check” (by the millions) that links who you are with what they want and America needs.
One final point: a President, as the vital center of action, can bring people together across the divides that plague our politics to forge solutions that can truly work, even if in small ways, though without losing sight of the distant vision which we wish to accomplish.
Like the architects of Medieval cathedrals, who knew they would be gone long before their ideas of greatness could be achieved, we must be lofty in our sights, and grounded in our work — willing to engage in the “strong and slow boring of hard boards,” as Max Weber described politics, and determined to make progress, no matter how incremental, on causes larger than ourselves, towards goals that stretch far beyond our lifetimes.
America would not be the great nation it has become, were it not for the farsighted genius, and selfless toil, of so many who came before.
Build on all those who came before us achieved. And speak of the philosophy, vision, ideas and values that will characterize your service as the next President of the United States.
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