Democrats Can Successfully Frame the National Conversation in New Ways
It’s Easy to Defeat Trump
Framing is a simple communications concept. Tell the audience what they should be thinking about. It involves smart choices: focus on ideas and concepts that are attractive to most rational people and — at the same time — put the opponent on the defensive. The Democrats have always sucked at this, but it’s not too late to get up to snuff.
Talented framers don’t complicate things. They don’t pick issues that are confusing, unpopular or make them vulnerable to attack. Out of the universe of ideas, problems and solutions, they pick the ones that resonate clearly and effectively, defining their own agenda. They don’t use the opponent’s words or phrases, because that puts them on the defensive and thrusts them into the opponent’s view of the world.
There are three main framing challenges facing the Democrats: defining Trump, explaining the themes of their candidacy and dressing down the Republican agenda. The Democrats’ party platform does a good job of covering the issues, but in an old and tired way, using words and phrases that people are sick and tired of hearing. In addition, the Democrats always fall back on lengthy, complex and stilted language, making the agenda difficult to follow and maintain concentration when hearing it. Fresh and new works, and old and tired closes ears.
Below is a recap, along with three suggested charts that contains simple winning frames, in my view. The frames are in the left columns and the associated messages on the right.
- Defining Trump: he’s (a) unstable, (b) not smart, (c) weak and (d) afraid.
2. Themes for the Democrats: (a) we care about you, and (b) we’re strong and effective leaders.
3. Republican Agenda: (a) they’re working on cutting Social Security and Medicare (b) they are hell bent on dismantling parts of our government that protect you and your families (thus helping big corporations), (c) they’ll push for more tax cuts for corporations and the wealthy, (d) they want to strip away our freedoms and (e) they let dangerous leaders run wild, worldwide.
Look at the charts below, and ask yourself: do you see worn out phrases — that people don’t truly understand — like “threat to democracy,” “fascism” and “infrastructure,” or policy details that put people to sleep?
Defining Trump — Four Frames:
The Democrats: Two frames:
The Republican Agenda:
Let’s see if the Democrats can learn from their past communication failures. If Biden gets out of the race, I think Democrats could successfully implement a strategy along these lines (Biden obviously can’t). If they do, they stand a good chance of beating Trump, by going on offense, on Day One.
Richard Quadrino is an Adjunct Professor of Law at the Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University. The views expressed are his own.
