# Why don't the Democrats do more "marketing" (plus the viability of "propaganda" legislation)?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-the-democrats-do-more-marketing-plus-the-viability-of-propaganda-legislation/841528
**Category:** Politics & Elections
**Created:** [October 9, 2019, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-the-democrats-do-more-marketing-plus-the-viability-of-propaganda-legislation/841528 "2019-10-09T13:06:38Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@KidCharlemagne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KidCharlemagne)
#### Post date: [October 9, 2019, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-the-democrats-do-more-marketing-plus-the-viability-of-propaganda-legislation/841528/1 "2019-10-09T13:06:38Z")
1. For the life of me I don’t understand why the Dems don’t do more traditional marketing such as TV and radio commercials, etc. Currently, they rarely directly address the American people, but instead rely on the media to report sound bites and quotes that are often taken out of context by the more hostile media outlets. While there are ads created by individual candidates during elections, I rarely see ads that advocate for party policy positions.
For example, why isn’t the DNC (or whatever national org) creating commercials that feature ordinary Americans saying why they support impeachment? Or workers and farmers who’ve been hurt by Trump’s trade policies? Or how Trumps blockage of the impeachment inquiry is holding up important healthcare and infrastructure legislation? They shouldn’t seem like traditional political attack ads that feature Trump with ominous music, but more like traditional commercials for some product. These commercials could be played during primetime to reach people that don’t watch the news, or people that typically only watch Fox News. They gotta sell this shit to the American people!
1. Would it be viable for the House to throw together and pass a bunch of legislation on infrastructure, healthcare, etc., that the Senate will inevitably block, that the Dems can use as evidence that the Republicans “don’t care about middle class Americans?” The proposed bills need not require a lot of effort since they are just being used for strategic marketing purposes. The Dems could then create commercials showing how the Republicans are voting against the American people.
Thoughts?
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### Author:  [@The\_Understander](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Understander)
#### Post date: [October 9, 2019, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-the-democrats-do-more-marketing-plus-the-viability-of-propaganda-legislation/841528/2 "2019-10-09T13:17:26Z")
Hot take: they don’t have the cash.
(Older article, but I haven’t heard of any post-Blue Wave windfalls to Democrats, either…)
> **[Analysis | The DNC’s money woes persist](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/08/21/the-dncs-abysmal-fundraising/)**
>
> Seven months into Tom Perez's chairmanship, the committee keeps bleeding cash.
There’s consequences to trying a little bit to not completely sell out to the billionaire psychopaths that run everything – not the least of which is that you draw criticism for not messaging hard enough. You gotta laugh to keep from cryin’!
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### Author:  [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)
#### Post date: [October 9, 2019, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-the-democrats-do-more-marketing-plus-the-viability-of-propaganda-legislation/841528/3 "2019-10-09T13:33:52Z")
I believe they already have done #2. The House has passed many bills but the shelled reptile running the Senate has decided to sit on them and the only business the Senate conducts is ramrodding right wing federal judges through.
Let’s see how the next few months- get a few court orders to enforce the subpoenas, let the Supremes either force the White House to stop stonewalling or expose themselves as partisan hacks. The Republicans are imploding, just pop some corn and enjoy the train wreck.
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### Author:  [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)
#### Post date: [October 9, 2019, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-the-democrats-do-more-marketing-plus-the-viability-of-propaganda-legislation/841528/4 "2019-10-09T13:41:52Z")
> [@The\_Understander](#):
>
> Hot take: they don’t have the cash.
>
> (Older article, but I haven’t heard of any post-Blue Wave windfalls to Democrats, either…)
>
> [https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/08/21/the-dncs-abysmal-fundraising/](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/08/21/the-dncs-abysmal-fundraising/)
>
> There’s consequences to trying a little bit to not completely sell out to the billionaire psychopaths that run everything – not the least of which is that you draw criticism for not messaging hard enough. You gotta laugh to keep from cryin’!
I wonder what the breakdown is between the RNC and DNC in terms of who is donating. Is the RNC making most of their money off of 6 to 8 figure donations by the wealthy while the DNC is relying on small money donations from ordinary people?
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### Author:  [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)
#### Post date: [October 9, 2019, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-the-democrats-do-more-marketing-plus-the-viability-of-propaganda-legislation/841528/5 "2019-10-09T14:29:39Z")
> [@FlikTheBlue](#):
>
> I wonder what the breakdown is between the RNC and DNC in terms of who is donating. Is the RNC making most of their money off of 6 to 8 figure donations by the wealthy while the DNC is relying on small money donations from ordinary people?
[Open Secrets](https://www.opensecrets.org/news/2019/03/february-showed-strong-fundraising-for-both-parties-particularly-among-small-donors/) is usually a good source for this kind of information, although it doesn’t address this exact question.
> [@](#):
>
> The Republican National Committee (RNC) celebrated raising a record-breaking $14.6 million in February, the most it ever has collected in a non-election year month and its second-best February ever. Meanwhile, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) raised around $6.2 million over that same time.
> An RNC official told The Center for Responsive Politics that almost 60 percent of the RNC’s donations in February came from small-dollar donors ($200 or less). The official noted that since January, the RNC’s small-dollar fundraising arm has had six days of seven-figure fundraising.
> [@](#):
>
> A DNC spokesman said that year-to-date the DNC has raised $14.4 million, the most it has ever gotten in a presidential cycle off-year since 2003. The spokesman noted that 63 percent of the party committee’s February donations came from small-dollar donors with an average donation of $47.
Not exactly a direct comparison.
Regards,
Shodan
---
### Author:  [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)
#### Post date: [October 9, 2019, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-the-democrats-do-more-marketing-plus-the-viability-of-propaganda-legislation/841528/6 "2019-10-09T14:40:00Z")
> [@The\_Understander](#):
>
> Hot take: they don’t have the cash.
>
> (Older article, but I haven’t heard of any post-Blue Wave windfalls to Democrats, either…)
>
> [https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/08/21/the-dncs-abysmal-fundraising/](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/08/21/the-dncs-abysmal-fundraising/)
This one has me scratching my head. If Trump being president isn’t enough to lead to a huge flow of donations to the DNC and anything (D), then what does or would it take?
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### Author:  [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)
#### Post date: [October 9, 2019, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-the-democrats-do-more-marketing-plus-the-viability-of-propaganda-legislation/841528/7 "2019-10-09T14:52:14Z")
> [@KidCharlemagne](#):
>
> …For example, why isn’t the DNC (or whatever national org) creating commercials that feature ordinary Americans saying why they support impeachment? Or workers and farmers who’ve been hurt by Trump’s trade policies? Or how Trumps blockage of the impeachment inquiry is holding up important healthcare and infrastructure legislation? They shouldn’t seem like traditional political attack ads that feature Trump with ominous music, but more like traditional commercials for some product. These commercials could be played during primetime to reach people that don’t watch the news, or people that typically only watch Fox News. They gotta sell this shit to the American people! …
> Thoughts?
I think that is the exactly the wrong message the Democratic Party should be sending out. Impeachment is not the Democrats issue; it is a rule of law issue. It is not about selling it to the American people, it’s about the elected officials of all parties doing their duty as described in the Constitution. If the DNC tried to “sell this shit to the American people” it would completely undermine the seriousness of what is happening, create a false narrative and ensure that Americans could just dismiss what is happening as another partisan issue.
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### Author:  [@KidCharlemagne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KidCharlemagne)
#### Post date: [October 9, 2019, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-the-democrats-do-more-marketing-plus-the-viability-of-propaganda-legislation/841528/8 "2019-10-09T15:32:27Z")
> [@madmonk28](#):
>
> I think that is the exactly the wrong message the Democratic Party should be sending out. Impeachment is not the Democrats issue; it is a rule of law issue. It is not about selling it to the American people, it’s about the elected officials of all parties doing their duty as described in the Constitution. If the DNC tried to “sell this shit to the American people” it would completely undermine the seriousness of what is happening, create a false narrative and ensure that Americans could just dismiss what is happening as another partisan issue.
That’s why I said it shouldn’t seem like a typical political attack ad. The nuance is not making it seem like a partisan issue. I think a good marketing team could do it. Impeachment might not be an ideal issue for a campaign, but virtually all other policies are.
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### Author:  [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)
#### Post date: [October 9, 2019, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-the-democrats-do-more-marketing-plus-the-viability-of-propaganda-legislation/841528/9 "2019-10-09T15:36:17Z")
I don’t think that impeaching the president should be something that is sold, just like I don’t think prosecutors should take out ads drumming up support for their next indictment. Impeachment and the trial in the senate are public events that the public will be able to watch. It’s a democracy, not toothpaste to be sold on daytime tv.
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### Author:  [@KidCharlemagne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KidCharlemagne)
#### Post date: [October 9, 2019, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-the-democrats-do-more-marketing-plus-the-viability-of-propaganda-legislation/841528/10 "2019-10-09T15:40:21Z")
> [@The\_Understander](#):
>
> Hot take: they don’t have the cash.
I figured this was certainly an issue (though Bloomberg’s donations alone could buy 2 primetime commercials everyday for a year). Dems could also engage in guerrilla viral marketing. Creating memes, or a contest offering $5k for the funniest/most persuasive 2 minute video/song explaining the efffects of Rep or Dem policies. I mean I’m just spit-balling ideas (remember there are no bad ideas when brainstorming ;))
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### Author:  [@KidCharlemagne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KidCharlemagne)
#### Post date: [October 9, 2019, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-the-democrats-do-more-marketing-plus-the-viability-of-propaganda-legislation/841528/11 "2019-10-09T15:42:42Z")
> [@madmonk28](#):
>
> I don’t think that impeaching the president should be something that is sold, just like I don’t think prosecutors should take out ads drumming up support for their next indictment. Impeachment and the trial in the senate are public events that the public will be able to watch. It’s a democracy, not toothpaste to be sold on daytime tv.
The middle class is at work during the day. They only get highlights IF they watch the news. And any generally apolitical types who happen to watch Fox News are only seeing the clips where the “libs get owned.”
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### Author:  [@squidfood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squidfood)
#### Post date: [October 9, 2019, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-the-democrats-do-more-marketing-plus-the-viability-of-propaganda-legislation/841528/12 "2019-10-09T15:56:31Z")
So the R’s ran on getting rid of stuff: “Repeal Obamacare”. This is a two-line proposal that is easy to state - so they could vote for it over, and over again and it was a simple tagline (which of course turned out to be not-so-simple, but that was _after_ the elections).
The D’s are running on creating new stuff. So (1) proposals quickly get lost in details on how to implement the new stuff, (2) everyone quibbles about those details as soon as a proposal comes out, (3) due to the primary, there’s no single party leadership on how to resolve those details - the contest is very about which approach to take and (4) the R’s can turn those votes into poison pills, especially for swing district reps, by harping on the broken details, even if the concept as a whole is broadly popular (see: Green New Deal).
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### Author:  [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)
#### Post date: [October 9, 2019, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-the-democrats-do-more-marketing-plus-the-viability-of-propaganda-legislation/841528/13 "2019-10-09T16:06:05Z")
> [@KidCharlemagne](#):
>
> Would it be viable for the House to throw together and pass a bunch of legislation on infrastructure, healthcare, etc., that the Senate will inevitably block, that the Dems can use as evidence that the Republicans “don’t care about middle class Americans?” The proposed bills need not require a lot of effort since they are just being used for strategic marketing purposes. The Dems could then create commercials showing how the Republicans are voting against the American people.
The Republicans wouldn’t say _“We’re voting against this because we hate the American people.”_
They’d say, _“This is just another unnecessary special interests pork barrel project that the Democrats want to raise your taxes to pay for because they hate hard working middle class Americans. So we’re proud to defend the American people by standing strong against them.”_
There’s no issue so obviously good that you can’t figure out a way to spin it as a negative.
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### Author:  [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)
#### Post date: [October 9, 2019, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-the-democrats-do-more-marketing-plus-the-viability-of-propaganda-legislation/841528/14 "2019-10-09T16:43:29Z")
> [@Velocity](#):
>
> This one has me scratching my head. If Trump being president isn’t enough to lead to a huge flow of donations to the DNC and anything (D), then what does or would it take?
Well, there are ten or so major candidates running for President as well as competitive Senate races. Tom Steyer could do some good instead of a vanity campaign, perhaps he will after he’s embarrassed in the October debate.
Keep in mind the DNC and RNC are mainly for the purpose of getting the party’s nominee elected. There’s no real competition for the Republican nomination so they’re flush with cash right now and can run pro-Trump and anti-impeachment ads right now to benefit his re-election.
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### Author:  [@KidCharlemagne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KidCharlemagne)
#### Post date: [October 9, 2019, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-the-democrats-do-more-marketing-plus-the-viability-of-propaganda-legislation/841528/15 "2019-10-09T17:06:06Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#):
>
> The Republicans wouldn’t say _“We’re voting against this because we hate the American people.”_
>
> They’d say, _“This is just another unnecessary special interests pork barrel project that the Democrats want to raise your taxes to pay for because they hate hard working middle class Americans. So we’re proud to defend the American people by standing strong against them.”_
>
> There’s no issue so obviously good that you can’t figure out a way to spin it as a negative.
How about a tax policy that keeps net taxes the same, but shifts the burden from middle class to the rich and corporations?
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### Author:  [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)
#### Post date: [October 9, 2019, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-the-democrats-do-more-marketing-plus-the-viability-of-propaganda-legislation/841528/16 "2019-10-09T22:38:13Z")
> [@KidCharlemagne](#):
>
> The middle class is at work during the day. They only get highlights IF they watch the news. And any generally apolitical types who happen to watch Fox News are only seeing the clips where the “libs get owned.”
Yeah, I mean democracies die for a reason. I don’t think that any advertising effort by the DNC is going to change that a large segment of Americans are intellectually lazy.
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### Author:  [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)
#### Post date: [October 10, 2019, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-the-democrats-do-more-marketing-plus-the-viability-of-propaganda-legislation/841528/17 "2019-10-10T00:22:59Z")
FWIW, Penzey Spices is doing the kind of campaign you want: [Penzeys Spices backs Donald Trump impeachment with $92,000 Facebook ad](https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/elections/2019/10/09/penzeys-spices-backs-donald-trump-impeachment-92-000-facebook-ad/3920828002/)
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### Author:  [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)
#### Post date: [October 10, 2019, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-the-democrats-do-more-marketing-plus-the-viability-of-propaganda-legislation/841528/18 "2019-10-10T01:38:00Z")
> [@KidCharlemagne](#):
>
> How about a tax policy that keeps net taxes the same, but shifts the burden from middle class to the rich and corporations?
They’ll call it socialism, class warfare, and an attack on job creators.
We’re talking about a party that’s managed to turn their opposition to health care and the environment into something they brag about.
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### Author:  [@Flyer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flyer)
#### Post date: [October 10, 2019, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-the-democrats-do-more-marketing-plus-the-viability-of-propaganda-legislation/841528/19 "2019-10-10T03:39:18Z")
> [@KidCharlemagne](#):
>
> How about a tax policy that keeps net taxes the same, but shifts the burden from middle class to the rich and corporations?
One outcome is that taxes on the poor will go **UP**.
Or do you think that the corporations will simply watch their profits get reduced from higher taxes and not raise prices in response?
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### Author:  [@octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/octopus)
#### Post date: [October 10, 2019, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-the-democrats-do-more-marketing-plus-the-viability-of-propaganda-legislation/841528/20 "2019-10-10T04:17:25Z")
> [@Velocity](#):
>
> This one has me scratching my head. If Trump being president isn’t enough to lead to a huge flow of donations to the DNC and anything (D), then what does or would it take?
Wall Street billionaires and others not to be worried about all of the crazy proposals they hear? Wealth tax and free everything might have some worried about what the real costs will be. Plus it’s not as if once government and even worse, organized labor, gets their hands on the money that it will be used effectively, efficiently, or wisely. At least for what it was promised for.
I wonder if Biden or a Clinton/Obama type had a perceived insurmountable lead if the money raising would be easier.
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