Sophisticated Campaigning?

So, was it a simple contest between David Axelrod and Karl Rove?   And David won.  Did David jump to the lead early with his “tar and feather Mitt” campaign and Mitt just stood aloof and disengaged? For too long?  Did David get out the vote in Florida and Ohio and Virginia and elsewhere – whatever it takes – bus, train, automobile?  Donuts?  Small tokens of our appreciation?  While Karl just kept counting his money and moving his investments around?

Which was it?

A battle of the sophisticates?  Raising money – developing ads – showing up to talk, talk, talk – those well crafted sound bites – out of touch – cares only about the rich – job destroyer – life destroyer versus good guy – job creator – knows economics – successful businessman – works well with others.

It is clear that the winning coalition made it to 51% which means one won and one lost.  But in all that sophisticated campaigning do we really know what comes next?  Did anyone ever bring up, “ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country?”  Any talk of cutbacks?  Setting priorities?  Less spending to go along with those tax increases on the rich?

We didn’t hear it – not then, not today – doubtful they are saving it for after Christmas but who knows?  Maybe the 2013 surprise will be a boatload of pink slips for the federal government bureaucrats.  Can always hope.  Oh, but that theme was four years ago wasn’t it?

One of their height challenged minions is now calling it “sophisticated campaigning.”  We don’t buy that for a second.  Call it what it is – a few white guys with fancy computer programs crafting messages that are delivered at a very high cost to voters – over and over again and then, on the day of reckoning – who gets the most of them to the polling place to cast the votes the way they have been told to do so. 

Oh, one other thing – along the way – the two aforementioned “sophisticated campaigners” make themselves a fortune.  Not a “living wage” mind you – on a “level playing field" but a small fortune – measured in the millions of dollars.  Think about this point for just a second – these men didn’t pledge their fortunes to their cause – they made a fortune off their “cause.”

This is the new politics.  The new messaging.  The new guidelines for forming opinion and building support for legislation and forward looking governance.  You won’t see any of the old signposts – ask not what your country…; or balanced budgets....; or live within your means….set priorities….measure and account along the way…

Gone forever.  What they now call sophisticated campaigning, we call snake oil.  Slickly packaged – very media moderne – Madison Avenue branding and marketing – supported with statistics - but snake oil nevertheless.  To us, the new snake oil salesmen look just like the old snake oil salesmen – greedy, parasitical, and always counting their money.  It's propaganda folks.  Get used to it.

Every time we encounter one of these guys – and they are all over TV these days – we are drawn back to the words of our founders – those 56 men who chose treason over bowing to a king and his bureaucrats – those 56 men who pledged their honor, their fortunes, their lives to living free and we think what a small payoff many Americans accept today for this legacy of courage and sacrifice.  Does anyone think David and Karl would have signed that document?  Would you?

If you wish to learn about men who did  pledge their fortunes, honor and lives to a cause – really, not just in their mythological sound bite creating, money counting little minds, please go to:  http://www.usconstitution.net/declarsigndata.html  Here is a teaser for you – of the 56 who signed the declaration in 1776, most were lawyers; the youngest were just 26 years old – Edward Rutledge and Thomas Lynch of South Carolina – the oldest was a 70 year old fellow from Pennsylvania named Benjamin Franklin.   Do you think they were self described “sophisticated campaigners?”