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Exposed: GOP 'messaging bust' can't sell Trump's wildly unpopular spending bill
After Donald Trump narrowly defeated Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris by roughly 1.5 percent and Republicans flipped the U.S. Senate in 2024, quite a few pundits argued that Democrats had a messaging problem.
Some were right-wing media pundits who, as progressive ex-MSNBC host Mehdi Hasan pointed out, seriously exaggerated the size of Trump's victory. Others were Trump critics like "Real Time" host Bill Maher, who leans liberal but believes that "woke identity politics" and "political correctness" are detrimental to the Democratic Party.
In an article published by the Washington Monthly on June 19, however, journalist Bill Scher argues that Republicans are the ones with a messaging problem during Trump's second presidency — specifically, when it comes to Trump's "big, beautiful bill," which passed in the U.S. House of Representatives in a narrow 215-214 vote and is now being considered in the U.S. Senate.
"All year, we’ve heard from pundits and even some Democrats that the Democratic Party has a 'brand problem,'" Scher explains. "For longer than that, Democrats have been awed by Donald Trump's ability to deliver pithy, punchy messages without accuracy or substance. At the same time, the Democratic Party struggles to communicate nuanced points about its past governing record and future agenda. But Republicans are the party with the immediate and consequential messaging bust. Polls show that Trump and congressional Republicans have failed to sell the 'One Big Beautiful Bill,' which could make its passage a pyrrhic victory — if it passes at all."
Some were right-wing media pundits who, as progressive ex-MSNBC host Mehdi Hasan pointed out, seriously exaggerated the size of Trump's victory. Others were Trump critics like "Real Time" host Bill Maher, who leans liberal but believes that "woke identity politics" and "political correctness" are detrimental to the Democratic Party.
In an article published by the Washington Monthly on June 19, however, journalist Bill Scher argues that Republicans are the ones with a messaging problem during Trump's second presidency — specifically, when it comes to Trump's "big, beautiful bill," which passed in the U.S. House of Representatives in a narrow 215-214 vote and is now being considered in the U.S. Senate.
"All year, we’ve heard from pundits and even some Democrats that the Democratic Party has a 'brand problem,'" Scher explains. "For longer than that, Democrats have been awed by Donald Trump's ability to deliver pithy, punchy messages without accuracy or substance. At the same time, the Democratic Party struggles to communicate nuanced points about its past governing record and future agenda. But Republicans are the party with the immediate and consequential messaging bust. Polls show that Trump and congressional Republicans have failed to sell the 'One Big Beautiful Bill,' which could make its passage a pyrrhic victory — if it passes at all."
https://www.alternet.org/trump-messaging-washington-monthly/
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