Do Slogans Serve the Candidates?

Ike Today is Super Tuesday—Primary Day in 16 states—and it may be the moment of truth for the presidential candidates. It's time to see how far their words have carried them.

Why has Senator John McCain labeled his campaign bus the "Straight-Talk Express"? What do the words "The New Democrat" tell us about Vice President Al Gore? Does the label "Compassionate Conservative" mark Governor George Bush as a new kind of Republican? Is there a reason why Bill Bradley nixed the notion of a slogan altogether? What is the power behind a political slogan?

A good political slogan should give voters some idea of what a candidate stands for, and it should single him out from the competition. In addition to using slogans to define themselves, candidates also use them to take aim at their opponents. The dictionary tells us that the word "slogan" originally referred to a battle cry of the Scottish clans. Perhaps political campaigns are our modern equivalent to clan warfare. If so, can a proper campaign go forth without a slogan to rally its cause?

Governor George Bush first identified himself as the "Compassionate Conservative." But in February, as Senator McCain gained popularity with his reform agenda, Bush countered by re-identifying himself as a "Reformer with Results."

"Practical Idealism" is the slogan that Vice President Gore used to define his campaign when it was launched last summer. This oxymoron never quite took off. But later his team fired off "Stay and Fight," a not-so-subtle reference to the fact that while his opponent Bill Bradley left the Senate declaring it a "broken" political system, Gore chose to stay the course.

Your Interpretation
In your own words, what's the message behind each of the following slogans?

Candidate	Slogan	Message
McKinley	Patriotism, Protection, and Prosperity
Eisenhower	I Like Ike
Eisenhower	Taft Can't Win
Kennedy	Kennedy Cares
Johnson	A Better Deal for Women
Reagan/ Bush	Renew America's Strength/ with Great American Values
Bush	Compassionate Conservative
Bush	Reformer with Results
Gore	The New Democrat
Gore	Stay and Fight
McCain	Straight-Talk Express

Many slogans are deliberately "fuzzy" so that voters will interpret them to suit their own ideals. And often the messages are made memorable by the use of literary devices such as rhyme or alliteration that help the ideas roll smoothly off the tongue. ("Kennedy Cares," 1960; "Patriotism, Protection, and Prosperity," McKinley, 1896; "Reformer with Results," Bush, 2000). It is easy to get swept up in the momentum of an exciting election, and to allow a few deftly crafted words help you define a candidate. But ambiguous intent does not end with political slogans.

Visit the Campaign Sites
Visit the Web sites of candidates Bradley, Bush, Gore, or McCain. Read excerpts in the press of the candidates' responses to one issue, such as health care or gun control.

Does any candidate have more of a hold on your emotions than another? Can you explain why?

The art and skill of rhetoric are not to be underestimated. Many a candidate has won voters through style over substance. Many voters are not interested in scrutinizing the facts behind the punches and flourishes of the candidates's rhetoric. How will you make your decisions? What will sway you when it comes time for you to vote?

The Art of Spinning: Log Cabin and Hard Cider for William Henry Harrison
The "spin doctors" of today (professional speechwriters who "spin" facts to suit a given audience) are not a 20^th-century phenomenon. In the presidential campaign of 1840, General William Henry Harrison, who came from an aristocratic Virginia family and lived the life of the country gentleman in a 16-room mansion, was chided by journalists for his aristocratic aloofness. Sarcastically, they suggested that Harrison would be happy to retire to a log cabin with a barrel of cider. Their remarks prompted the Whig party to try to attract voters by making him appear to be a simple man of the people; they made log cabins and cider barrels their party symbols. Though things were not as they seemed, the appearance was enough for Harrison to win handily.

Charles Dickens on Politicians
Though some political speeches have become documents of great historic value, history is full of speeches made by politicians that have been skewered by literary wits. Charles Dickens was a 19^th century writer who took aim at political orators through his character Bounderby in Hard Times:

Oh, my friends, the down-trodden operatives of Coketown! Oh, my friends and fellow-countrymen, the slaves of an iron-handed and a grinding despotism! Oh, my friends and fellow-sufferers, and fellow-workmen! I tell you that the hour is come when we must rally round one another as One united power, and crumble into dust the oppressors that too long have battened upon the plunder of our families, upon the sweat of our brows, upon the labour of our hands, upon the strength of our sinews, upon the God-created glorious rights of Humanity, and upon the holy and eternal privileges of Brotherhood!

'Good!' 'Hear, hear, hear!' 'Hurrah!' and other cries, arose in many voices from various parts of the densely crowded and suffocatingly close Hall, in which the orator, perched on a stage, delivered himself of this and what other froth and fume he had in him. He had declaimed himself into a violent heat, and was as hoarse as he was hot. By dint of roaring at the top of his voice under a flaring gaslight, clenching his fists, knitting his brows, setting his teeth, and pounding with his arms, he had taken so much out of himself by this time that he was brought to a stop, and called for a glass of water.

What might we conclude about Dickens' view of political leaders from this passage?