The Democratic media consultants tell us the country has become more conservative and if candidates want to win, they must not appear too progressive. 

That's the same advice CNN followed as it became more conservative chasing the Fox News Network's popularity.  And it's similar to the memo MSNBC heeded in canceling Donahue.  As long as we listen to such advice, it makes no difference which candidate gets nominated.  We lose. 

There is an alternative.  Daniel Yankelovich (the senior partner of Yankelovich, Skelly and White -- one of the largest market research firms) has a wonderful book called Coming to Public Judgment where he distinguishes between public opinion (which is quite flighty and changing) and public judgments which represent a working through by the public on a issue.  Unfortunately, politicians confuse the quick answer to a pollster with real public opinion.

Republicans are masters of propaganda.  They win the battle of slogans, knee jerks reactions and snap judgments.  Dig beneath the surface though and a quite different reality emerges. Many people may identify with the deregulation, free market agenda of the Republicans but probe and you will find they actually are opposed to Bush's war on the environment, health, safety, and cavalier treatment of workers.  They don't like the spotted owl but they don't want their food and water poisoned or to get cancer before their time. 

Yankelovich has been tracking public thought for decades.  In the 1980's his New Rules: Searching for Self Fullfillment in a World Turned Upside Down showed 20% of the public were never affected by the great social revolutions of our time -- the women's movement or moving beyond the old ethic of society by obligation and obedience to the search for healthy self esteem.  Since only 40% the American people vote, these fundamantalists have developed considerable political clout.  It creates the illusion the country has become more conservative while in reality, nothing has changed (except the media and the propaganda).

Yankelovich's The Magic of Dialogue offers practical advice about what progressives should be doing.  Democracy must be more than just a logo.  Real democracy is quite different from public relations and spin doctoring.  We need a national dialogue about what kind of world we want to make. 

What is your vision of America and the world?  What will keep us safe?  Is the Golden Rule practical?  That would be a good public opinion poll question.

Should we sacrifice civil liberties at home for fear of terrorists or regulate practices of corporations that anger so many around the world?  Do we believe in military might or dialogue of the world community? 

In the Lincoln-Douglas debates, one candidate talked for an hour, the other responded for an hour and a half and then the first had a half hour rebuttal.  In the Gore-Bush debates, candidates had two minutes to answer questions,  60 second rebuttals, and two minute closing statements.  

Remember the polls of the 2000 presidential election?  The public kept going back and forth.  One weekend, CNN/USA/Gallup showed Bush with an 11 point lead on Saturday.  By Monday, it was only 2 points, Tuesday Gore was ahead by a point, and Friday Gore was up by 10 points.  It was a campaign of slogans, advertising and spin rather than real debate about the issues.  There was little public working thorough and coming to public judgment.

The political manipulators are trying to convince you the crowd is on their side.  Polling has becoming one of the most biased parts of spin doctoring imaginable.  How you ask a question influences results.  For instance, at the start of Gulf War 2, the networks flaunted a poll saying 2/3 of the American people favored war with Iraq.  The question asked:  "Is it now time to act and not wait for the United Nations?"  Polls asking "do you favor the United States acting alone or should we give the inspections more time to work and act in unison with the United Nations?" produced opposite conclusions.  However, the tag along Democrats were afraid of being accused of being unpatriotic if they had a dialogue.

"Middle Class Tax Cut" is also one of the biggest frauds ever perpetrated in history.  George Bush is the image without the content.  We have to expose these people as the con artists they are.

Liberal politicians have been reduced to slogans because they have refused to have it out on the issues all the way to the roots.  MOST PEOPLE DO NOT AGREE WITH BUSH'S VISION FOR THE WORLD.  They like the slogans and the theater.  He is an effective host of the conservative infomercial.  But if we slug it out, most people agree with more progressive thought.

We have to contend.  The abortion issue is an interesting example.  The so called "Right to Life" crowd have won the war of slogans.  Liberal politicians in conservatives states run from this issue at election time.  One particularly wimpy candidate last election kept insisting her views on abortion were the same as most South Dakotans but quickly moved away without clarifying.  She should have fought it out.  Most people believe that abortions should be performed to save a mother's life.  People don't think that we should imprison a parent who takes their 12 year old daughter who has been raped across state lines to obtain an abortion.  People believe that freedom of religion means that a decision you make in dialogue with your God should be respected as religious freedom and you shouldn't have to submit to someone else's religious beliefs. People believe that Nancy Reagan's plea to save her husband by research involving non-viable fetal tissue should be respected.  Some might say, we've been over this territory before.  Well, it hasn't stuck.  And until we contend and talk about it, platitudes reign.  Conservatives would look like fools if they had to spell out their official positions.

Until the Democrats stand up and totally have it out with the Republicans on every issue, we lose.  If it is only about image, Republicans have a distinct advantage.  They will tell any lie to justify their agenda of plunder. On the other hand, we are on the side of the people.

When marketing strategies and slogans are all that's important, then having the best product is irrelevant.  If politics is only about image, then it doesn't matter who has superior ideas.  We shouldn't join their game of images and spin.  We must cut through it to the issues.