Touro Communication Club Notes #42

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To see the two presidential candidates walk together down the ramp at Ground Zero on September 11^th was an unusual sight. It was odd to have a day of respite between the nasty campaigning. To add to the political stew, Gov. Sarah Palin went under the microscope with ABC anchor Charles Gibson. (She kept calling him “Charlie” as if she had known him for years, rather than second.) (Sorry for the mixed metaphor.)

With Hurricane Ike as a catastrophic distraction to the presidential campaign, both events demonstrated how Mother Nature and Human Nature can be so devastating to human aspirations. In New York City, we forget how powerful Mother Nature can be. We are also reminded in this campaign – and others before it – how poorly humans treat eat other. It sometimes feels that having a positive impulse is a lonely activity. The debris of human history is sometimes punctuated with moments of upbeat actions. We seem to always have to relive constantly the dreadful contents of Pandora’s box before we discover the sliver of hope at the bottom.

These thoughts gave rise to this week’s Communication Club topic of strategies in presidential politics. If we can learn how to strategize the direction of our lives from watching experts compete for the big brass ring, maybe then we can adopt some of these strategies to our own lives. We can only observe, listen and practice applying them.

Two weeks ago, I had the pleasure of talking at length to the freshman Congresswoman, Yvette Clarke, a Democrat from the 11^th district of Brooklyn, at our annual neighborhood block party. Among the slew of questions I asked her was, “What did you learn upon arriving in Washington that you didn’t know before?” She was quick to respond, “I didn’t realize how naïve I was about how difficult it is to get things done in Congress. The gridlock makes it virtually impossible to do anything constructive.” As she approaches her second election, she is running unopposed and will no doubt be re-elected by what she calls the most diverse Congressional district in the nation. I was struck by how few people came up to speak to her.

Here's our schedule:

Wednesday, September 17, 2008 – 2 pm Room 610. Club – Gender Communication. How men talk to women. How women talk to women. How men talk to men. Ever since Adam and Eve there has been a battle between Mars and Venus.

Wednesday, September 24, 2008 – 2 pm Room 610 – Debate - SPAR debate – the usual silliness that really tests linear thinking and relevant evidence

The Club will be co-sponsoring with Mr. Mason an upcoming film series co-sponsored by the Club and Mr. Mason’s office on Debate and Presidential Politics. Possible films might be “The Great Debaters” (2008) with Denzel Washington, “Recount” (2008), a fictionalized documentary about the 2000 election with Kevin Spacey and “The Candidate” (1972) with Robert Redford.

What happened on September 10, 2008 – Strategies in Presidential Politics

Present: Lorinda Moore, Olushile Akintade, James Millner, Carlisle Yearwood, Hal Wicke and, at the end, George Backinoff.

On the whiteboard, Hal had written a chart

+ The Goal: White House.

+ The Competitors: McCain/Palin and Obama/Biden

+ The Issues:

• Iraq/Afghanistan
• Housing
• Security
• Taxes
• Health Care
• Education
• Energy
• Bush legacy – domestic and foreign
• Wedge issues: same-sex marriage, abortion, stem-cell research, gun rights, women as presidential/vice-presidential candidates, “Bridge to Nowhere” and earmarks.

After a brief summary of each of the positions of both candidates, the group then focused on how each issue was to be strategized to present the most persuasive campaign program for the McCain camp (because the Obama camp was over-represented in the group.

The exchange for the next 90 minutes was fast, furious and exciting. We came up with a list of strategies that the McCain might use to defeat Obama. They included:

• Float untested ideas
• Push the envelope
• Change the definition of words
• Switch issues when unable to defend another issue
• Mea culpa – admit wrong on minor issues
• Assume a bi-partisan stance – regardless of what the reality was/is
• Appeal to “Country” and “Patriotism”
• Plan for an “October Surprise” (perhaps the Palin choice)
• Go negative – find all the negatives in the Obama/Biden campaign
• Discredit the accomplishments of the opponent
• Show family support during appearances
• Puff the highlights of the candidates’ resume
• Push “Maverick” concept to show independence from Washington
• Use “bait and switch” tactic” – show how opponent will promise more, deliver less
• Of course, there’s the always desperate tactic of “lying” or better, “making up facts.”

As our energy flagged, the discussion turned to whether we used these strategies in our personal relationships. The question of whether calculating a response was manipulating a relationship. Do I have a conscious agenda with another person? Should I? How carefully should I/ must I choose my words carefully? Or should I say what I want to say every time? Should I be open and free or calculating?

We probably could have continued for another hour or so. But we decided that our next topic should be “Gender Communication” – how men and women talk to each other, how men talk to men and how women talk to women. The topic is an important one in all our Interpersonal Communication classes, but we are going to start with everyone’s definition and proceed from there. It should be exciting.

After the session, Hal received the following email from Carlisle Yearwood,

Your last meeting was quite uplifting. In fact, it was so inspirational, that I hated to leave. I felt a sense of loss when I left you, because you were offering an inter-disciplinary lesson about life and education. It had Latin, Logic, Rhetoric, Politics, History, and Creative Thinking. These disciplines were subject to the effective use of language.

Carlisle is always very generous in his comments. However, without the enormous contributions of everyone present - Lorinda, Shile, James and, of course, dear Professor Yearwood, our discussion would have fallen flat on its face.

From time to time, I have to pinch myself to realize how extraordinarily articulate this group has become over the last year. There is no hesitancy about expressing an opinion, even if it is contrary to the prevailing ideas.

These sessions continue to be open for everyone to attend. Bring a friend and join in the excitement. See you next time.

Hal Wicke