Leaked documents reveal GOP plan to use scare tactics to raise money

Not much of a surprise.

 

huh, you just realized this?

 

Moderate Republicans should rise up and denounce these fundamentalist evil doers.

 

It's interesting to me that they actually have a strategy guide with pictures and slogans I would expect to find on Beck's show. I guess I didn't realize that their dishonesty and fear-mongering was that organized.

 

The most ironic part, to me, is that these people who are blindly complicit with the GOP's scare tactics are accusing liberals of being "sheeple" (oh those Republicans, so clever with words).

 

That, and a certain level of cynicism about the human animal, are really the only two things that separate the two main political parties, in my view.

 

It is just a replay of the Bush-POwell-Cheny doctrine of trying to scare people about terrorism to win elections.

The Repubs have not much going for them, but fear itself.

Bankrupt philosophy. They tried their stuff and it failed. What can they say.

 

But that is the hallmark of the GOP strategy. Anything that is their own weekness, then they accuse the dems of EXACTLY that ...but say it loud and definatevly.

First time I realized this strategy was the Swiftboat campaign.

This way if the dems try to counter them, they come off sounding like whiny kids yelling, "no, your stupid".

 

Yes, it is that organized and no secret to many of us, but rarely has that strategy been so laid out for public scrutiny. Laid bare for all to see. Normally this stuff is kept tightly under wraps. I think this could be a big story and might have legs. I certainly hope so. If Democtrats can't use this to their advantage, maybe they need a change in the leadership. This is red meat, folks.

 

the Dems will screw it up, they always do.

to paraphrase Rhad's sig...I find my cynicism towards politics more justified every day.

 

They CANNOT and WILL NOT use this to their advantage.
BOOK IT!
I'd bet money on it.
Like all things. . the DEMOS will let this be off the news stands
by weeks end

Rocket River

 

Agreed 100%

No matter how blatant this stuff gets it just gets ignored. The GOP has been using fear to confuse and control their ignorant constinuents since McCarthy. The entire GOP could publicly admit this (which this basically is) and still the dittoheads and teabaggers will continue to believe Obama is going to take away their guns and lead us into Socialism.

 

Every special interest group in America (including Reps and Devs) issue these position papers and test outlandish strategies in focus groups to figure how to position themselves.

The US military does the same thing to test buzzwords about their actions overseas to provide to news outlets and build popular support. Remember the push to outlaw "rebels" among reporters and rollout of "insurgents" during the early days of the Iraq war? Where do you think that came from? A position document like this.

Similarly Israeli-interest groups tested positioning for Israel after 9-11 to see how to most make Americans sympathetic to their cause against terrorists and issued directives to not directly tie the Iraq war to the conflict between the Palestinians and the Israelis.

Nothing nefarious. Your local doctor probably gives money to some group testing similar stuff to fight health care reform. This is how American works. That they strategized about this stuff does not mean they'll be using it, nor does it mean it will take this form in its finality.

That you all think the republicans do this but not the democrats is

 

please link the evidence showing that Democrats plan on using irrational fear to raise money. please link to the evidence where Democrats refer to their own voters as reactionaries, or egotistical.

Thank you.

 

welcome to the dark side. they all suck

 

haha:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/04/AR2010030403276.html

Tweaking the RNC's fundraising strategy


By Kevin Huffman
Friday, March 5, 2010

To: Republican National Committee

From: America's Next Great Pundit

Re: Your Fundraising Strategy

I couldn't help but notice that your 2010 fundraising strategy was posted on the Internet this week. First, let me say, shame on Politico for publishing confidential documents like this -- I hope you punish them by stripping their access to rote talking points. But more important, having spent most of the past decade as a professional fundraiser in the nonprofit world, I thought I might be able to offer some strategic advice.

As a starting point, I like that your strategy has a framework. Frameworks bring clarity to the fundraising process, and your plan has a simple, clear message: We have fun peddling fear to Luddites. At the same time, I worry that this framework has some limitations.

First, your plan divides Republican donors into two main categories: small donors who are "visceral," "reactionary" and motivated by "fear," and large donors who are "calculated," "ego-driven" and motivated by "access." I don't know these guys as well as you do, but my experience in the field suggests a potential need for rebranding. What if, instead of labeling your small donors as "reactionary," you thought of them as "passionate"? And for the large donors, instead of "ego-driven," you could consider them "thought leaders." You see what I did there? It's a slight nuance, but if you give your donors a teeny bit more credit, it sets up a different framework to address some of the message and outreach challenges delineated below. Plus, these days, you never know what will wind up on the Internet -- it's probably best to word things in a way that won't alienate your supporters.

Second, as you lay out your messaging strategy for 2010, you ask an interesting question: "What can you sell when you do not have the White House, the House or the Senate?" Your answer: "Save the country from trending toward Socialism!" Your PowerPoint presentation depicts "The Evil Empire," with President Obama as the Joker, Nancy Pelosi as Cruella de Vil and Harry Reid as Scooby-Doo. I don't exactly get how Scooby-Doo furthers the Socialism message (or the Joker for that matter -- wasn't he an anarchist?). But in the context of donor targets that are visceral, reactionary and motivated by fear, it makes sense to portray your opponents as scary, cartoonish radicals. Nonetheless, my suggestion, based on some grainy footage I saw recently of Ronald Reagan, is to consider a more optimistic frame. This might be off the wall, but hear me out: What if the RNC developed a couple of serious policy initiatives and then messaged them as concrete reasons for people to support you? I'd be happy to look at any ideas, if that'd be helpful.


Third, you lay out a comprehensive set of events, activities and rewards to motivate Republican donors. I have to say, I love your idea that the RNC is "Putting the FUN back in FUNdraising." That's wonderful, and some of your scheduled events clearly further this principle. A reception with Tom Coburn at the Drake? Fun! Hanging with Bill Kristol at the Russian Tea Room? Good times! You mix these in with a bird hunt in Texas, an Ultimate Fighting match in Vegas, even professional bull riding. Heck, your strategic plan calls for "tchotchkes!!!!" (Twice.)

Not to beat a dead horse, but one additional idea would be events based on serious policy initiatives. If you thought of your prospective donors less as small-minded and big-egoed, and more as serious people interested in substantive policy discussions, you could create events designed to propose solutions to complex global and domestic challenges. I'm not saying that Ultimate Fighting or Tom Coburn can't be substantive, but it's not really their sweet spot.

So, to summarize: If you tweak the Luddite part of your strategic framework, then you could reconsider the fear. And if you go beyond fear, you could propose some policies. And if you pushed some interesting policies, you could maybe reach more people. Best of all, you could do all this while still embracing tchotchkes!

 

Brilliant!

 

Then it should be a simple task for you to point us to an analogous item from the DNC et al. which has similar characteristics to this (generally the blatant attempts to appeal to stupidity and anger -best described by Huffman as Ludditeism-combined with access peddling on the high end)

 

Quite frankly, I'm just shocked at this revelation that the GOP would stoop this low.

Who would have guessed it?

Simply shocked, I tell you.