How to Beat a Republican

*This article appeared in the April 1988 issue of Campaigns and Elections magazine

By Rahm Emanuel

Start with a coherent program of your own, then expose the dirt...
Many political observers trace Ronald Reagan’s 1980 victory to one simple question: “Are you better off today than you were four years ago?” Today, many Democrats can reap similar success by asking voters a similar question: “If the Republicans win, do you believe you will be better off four years from now than you are today?”

On issues ranging from the economy to the environment, from crime to education, people are worried about the coming decade. Democrats can use these fears to their advantage. This year’s thematic hot buttons are security, fairness, and unease about the future.  But to win, you cannot merely criticize. You must offer a positive program of your own. Once you have clearly spelled out your own program, you can go on the attack. 

Many Republicans are businessmen, but the qualities that make for a successful businessman often make for a tainted politician. Business ethics differ from political ethics and business objectives are not always the same as society’s. In short, what impresses people in the board room may not impress voters at the polls.

A Winning Platform
In politics, no two districts are the same, and no two races are the same. Circumstances and demographics will dictate much of your agenda, but there are issues where most Democrats can make a great deal of headway.

Champion the Middle Class. Everybody knows Republicans are insensitive to the poor. That is a given. But Democrats rarely win by emphasizing the needs of the poor. Rather, they do best when they position themselves as staunch advocates to the middle class. That means stressing middle class concerns such as student loans, aid for small businesses, reducing crime, and improving neighborhood roads and bridges. Whatever you do, do not try to devise a new program to solve every problem.  Nothing sinks a Democrat faster than a big spender label.

Tough Talk. Crime and drugs affect everybody. Emphasize your ideas to reduce crime and stem the flow of drugs. Contrast these with your opponent’s votes to reduce the Coast Guard’s budget, cut the local police budget, or reject new prisons.  Similarly, stress your eagerness to reduce the trade deficit by demanding other nations open their markets—or we will retaliate. People are tired of seeing the U.S. pushed around by two-bit Third World countries.

Push the Environment. No one wants to let developers run wild. People along the coasts are concerned about clean water; people in cities about noise and clean air; people in the West about parks and forests. What makes this issue especially appealing is it does not cost much to stop polluters from ruining our natural resources.  

Be fair. Fairness has never been a GOP strong suit; this year Democrats have a unique opportunity to exploit the “fairness gap.” But it must be done positively. Rather than stridently denouncing Republican tax breaks, stress your support for 60-day notice of plant closings for workers. This measure is great politics: It costs voters nothing, and is of grave importance to blue-collar Democrats.

Emphasize the Future. Understand something: Ronald Reagan has tamed inflation, whipsawed interest rates, and brought down unemployment. There is no getting around this, if you try to debate the present you will lose. The economy can be  winning issue for Democrats  however, if you keep it focused on the future. That does not mean rambling on bout the deficit; rather, it means playing upon people’s concerns for the next decade. It also means stressing children’s issues, which polls show to be increasingly salient.

Going on the Attack 
Now that you have succinctly spelled out your own program, you can start dredging up dirt on your opponent. Start with the notion that good business is not necessarily good politics. Just because the law may tolerate ethical missteps does not mean voters will. And if your early ventures fail to pan out, keep digging. The untainted Republican has not yet been invented.  Here are some places to look.

Tax returns. Business ethics and political ethics are two very different things. A good businessman seeks out every possible deduction (and maybe even invents some) in hopes of paying the least amount of tax. Check his tax returns. If your opponent (or your opponent’s firm) has not paid what the average voter would consider a reasonable amount of income tax, you have an issue.  

Union-Busting Activities. Everybody knows that most businesses seek to wring as many concessions as possible out of unions while conceding nothing themselves. They also know that businessmen often stoop to unethical and occasionally illegal means to get those concessions. Find out if your opponent has—and see if you can obtain photos to prove it. Any candidate with a record of union-busting will not fare well among blue-collar and low-wage voters.

Conflict-of-Interest. Businessmen love to be on boards of directors. They revel in the prestige and contacts it brings. While this might be good business, it is not good politics—because it allows you to hold your opponent responsible for any action taken by that firm, even if he himself had nothing to do with it. Even if it can be easily explained, a conflict-of-interest charge is sure to put your opponent on the defensive for while. The conflict-of-interest charge also is applicable to votes cast on legislation affecting any business with which he has even a nominal connection. The charge probably will not be as serious as, say, Wedtech, but you still should be able to make political hay from it.

Democrats have an excellent opportunity to win this fall. But it will not happen by magic. People do not want their elected officials to act as Pollyannas, reciting empty platitudes as they go. Nor do they want them to sound like Chicken Little, claiming the sky is falling as a result of each new action by the Regan Administration. Rather, they seek out fair-minded people with responsive, well-thought-out ideas.

That does not mean you should not criticize your opponent when he is wrong, or seek to expose whatever improprieties might exist. You should. It is only to say that you should not do so in a vacuum. You first must give people a reason to vote for you.