What is the best argument to go after Republican voters ?

[kentuck]

I think we could pose a question to the American people. We need to decide what kind of government we want in this country? Do we want it to be every man for himself? Do we believe we are all in this together? Do you think we get our money's worth with our taxes? Do we think we have a responsibility to take care of our elderly, after they have worked their entire lives? Just how much faith do you have in the markets? Did we learn nothing from Enron? We want every American, Democrat or Republican to look deep into their souls and ask themselves, is this the direction our country should be headed? If you can honestly answer that question in the affirmative, then by all means vote Republican. But if you think we can do better, then we can join together as Americans, Democrats and Republicans, and put our country back on the right track.

[applegrove]

1. Liberals are into good information. And using new knowledge to

make the lives of people better. Republicans are out for the elites and hide behind patriotism to get votes from people who will be voting against their own best interest.

[Melodybe]

12. New Freedom Commission, repubs don't want their kids getting drugged

either, I'm guessing that is why it is getting 0 coverage in the CMC.

[Zenlitened]

2. I'm not sure we NEED to go after republican voters.

There is a huge, untapped well of eligible voters out there who are NOT voting presently. I'd rather see us having a conversation with them.

The repub voters who have any brain cells functioning will hear and possibly listen, and join us if they wish. If they're not too far gone.

The hard-core repukes... well, they're a lost cause anyway. Let's not waste our breath on 'em.

[kentuck]

4. You don't like the divide and conquer strategy?

:)

[Zenlitened]

6. Meh.

There are none so deaf as those who will not hear.




(edited down because, rereading, I.m tired and I don't seem to be xplaining myself very well. Sorry! :) )

[Robeson]

5. You pretty much summed up my thoughts...

...as did the guy in your picture!...:-)

[Zenlitened]

7. People-powered Howard!

:hi:

[Hello_Kitty]

10. 'Zactly!! One third of Americans didn't even vote this time.

All we have to do is get a big chunk of them and the Republicans can go screw themselves. We have to get them to see that these neo-cons are going shaft them out of everything they've worked hard for. Eventually the Bushbots will come around because they are mostly bandwagon jumpers who want to go with the "winner".

[Lexingtonian]

13. sadly, that's not true

These days, simply increasing turnout doesn't get more Democratic voters. It basically gets more people who lack information, and in November a majority of them got sucked into voting Republican.

Because Republicans have so absolutely embraced The Way We Have Always Done Things, their leaders and 'ideas' have to fail in every department (economic, social, and foreign policies; integrity and leadership) before they lose their sway with average, conventional, Americans. The conservative/Southern Democrats preceded them in this pattern, surviving in office five years past the end of their job in history- getting the more civilized half of U.S. society through the Cold War fairly intact. Republicans have now gotten the other half past their hangups and resentments of most of the Cold War- well, up to about 1972 or 1973 at this point. (We should clear 1980 in late '06 at the present rate, and get to 1989 or 1990 or so by the end of '08. We've been promised retribution at Iran and more mercenary warfare in Latin America, in any case. And we're running some sort of economic and military containment scheme against the present Red Menace, China.)

Back to the present: Democrats pretty much own the swing voters on social and economic policy agenda- that was gained during the late Clinton years and first year of Dubya. Republicans are nursing a slight edge with swing voters on foreign affairs, i.e. the Iraq mess and the way it and this 'War on Terror' is diplomatically propped onto the credibility and forebearance of a diminishing, highly exploited, set of Cold War alliances and friendships.

The leadership/integrity issue is presently moot to swing voters, but there have been enough scandals already that once the priority and 'success' of foreign affairs diminishes for them, the other side is extremely vulnerable.

So a great deal depends on the Iraq business. The Bush people know how vulnerable it their game is to a few decisions going against them- Britain shearing out of the Coalition, for example, or the Saudis telling them to give up. That's why they're trying to keep ahead of the deterioration by distraction efforts and energetic ploys and secret negotiations, e.g. Syria/Lebanon, Iran, and paying off 'insurgents'.

Polling has the Parties running at their persistent 45% each. And no one believes that swing voters are unbiased or unpolarized anymore. Nor are there genuinely untapped reservoirs of voters left. The question is really only which Party can snatch the other's leaners/moderates. Personally, the historical logic of what is being done says that Republicans won't recover swing voters on social or economic policy, and there is a point where their overextension and failures in foreign policy will finally cost them the swing voters on that. The question is only how long Republicans can hold off the reckoning, how long they can find angles and resentments that swing voters aren't wised up on.

So, be nice to moderate Repubs. They learn slowly. But they will make the difference when they switch.

[EVDebs]

3. Simply stick to the economic fiscal responsibility argument !

"Perfectly Legal" by David Cay Johnston -- especially chapters 7 and 8-- expose the Republicans as the party of the super-rich. "Wealth and Democracy" by Kevin Phillips shows us what happens when the concentration of wealth becomes too unsustainable for any economic empire.

[Laura PourMeADrink]

8. Devil's Advocate: "We're at war and we had to spend a lot of

money to protect us and promote democracy." Sorry, I am an expert, my husband's whole family is repuglican.

P.S. After months and months of debating, my husband finally voted for Kerry -- reason -- (1) doesn't like repuglican stand on social issues and (2) I convinced him that B** lied about the war

[EVDebs]

15. Shucky darn, that last OBL tape harped on destroying the US economy

OBL needn't have worried...the Republican economic policies are doing it for him.

[Laura PourMeADrink]

19. "shucky darn" ? Cute

[nytemare]

9. Use the fear tactic against them

Give every TRUE example we can about how we are becoming less democratic and more fascist. Highlight similarities between the administration and the Nazi's. In the end, it didn't end up good for the German people. Hitler took on "too many fronts", well look at all the talk now with Bush about Iran, Syria and N. Korea. If we keep headed in that direction, that will happen to us. We aren't a fascist nation, we are supposed to be examples for other countries to follow. This would take all kinds of advertising.

[leftofthedial]

11. .22 caliber at close range, .30 cal at distance?

ought to convince them

[JNelson6563]

14. Red Ink Repulblicans

should be our battle cry to win the independents over with. And don't you believe that nonsense that only a handful of people are indies.

Julie

[EVDebs]

16. EXCELLENT ! DEAN NEEDS TO HEAR THIS !!!!!

This slogan needs to get up the line to the General ! Soldiers, adopt ASAP and fire it at them when you see them. Use the slogan
LIBERALLY !

[quaoar]

17. Some arguments that resonate with Republican voters:

1. The treasury is awash in a sea of red ink.
2. Bush and his cronies in Congress have created the largest entitlement program in the nation's history when they passed the Medicare prescription drug program that is basically a giveaway to the pharmaceutical companies.
3. Bush has stretched our military to the breaking point. It will take years before recruitment rates recover.
4. Bush lost $9 billion in Iraq that cannot be accounted for.
5. No Child Left Behind has been so severely underfunded that some states have passed resolutions against it.
6. Bush promised during the 2000 election that he would not engage in nation-building.
7. Bush is defending his right to arrest American citizens and hold them without charges indefinitely.
8. Our nation's ports, nuclear plants and other critical facilities remained vulnerable to terrorist attack.

[kentuck]

18. Also, a lot Repubs appreciate their monthly SS checks...

and are a little leery of Bush's "privatization" plan..

[Padraig18]

20. "It's the economy, stupid!"

:)

[dolstein]

21. Because many of them used to be Democrats

The Dems used to command the support of well over 50% of registered voters. Sure, some have become registered independents, but many of them joined the Republican Party. And no, not all of them are racists.

[borg5575]

22. On the subject of religion

If it's true that the Rethugs got a lot of votes from so-called religious people in the last election, then we need to get out the message to Christians that we progressives believe in ideals that are much closer to what Jesus preached. The fundies however are running away from the teachings of Jesus. And the same applies to other religions such as Judaism and Islam.

[madmark]

23. Fiscal Incompetence

Followed by foriegn policy incompetence.
Followed by domestic policy incompetence (everything else).

They are good at media management. They are actually creative and cutting edge in the area using federal resources to purchase media buys and even creating their own reporters.

They are good at cronyism. They are able to shift federal resources to friendly constituencies and locking in long term political support. That's what the faith based initiatives are all about. That's what the no-bid iraq contracts were about. That's what Anwr drilling and Clear Skies is about (they are still working on those). That's what funneling SS proceeds into private equity markets is about (still working on it). These examples are just a sampling.

But alot of the republicans are rapture centric and economic self-interest is less important to them than gays not getting married (certainly an either/or proposition in their minds). And in those cases, what you need is not so much as "argument" but rather the ability to perform a lobotomy.