TJ Walker breaks down four types of political rhetoric and examines Rudy Giuliani's claim that Obama doesn't love his country. Walker calls it divisive trolling that pushes away moderates, then uses Al Sharpton as a parallel to show how extreme rhetoric backfires across the political spectrum.
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Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani claims that Barack Obama doesn't love his country. Folks, as many of you regular viewers know, I'm a student of rhetoric and I help politicians with their own rhetoric. I don't mean rhetoric in any negative way. I just mean that is how you communicate with voters, with the public. I see four broad categories of rhetoric. There's rhetoric that a politician can use that inspires people across the political spectrum, something that galvanizes supporters but makes a lot of sense to people regardless of their political views. So if they are on a moderate side, independent side, or the opposite of your perspective, whether you're liberal or conservative, it's still. It's words that are compelling. It means something. The second category of rhetoric is words that you can use to inspire your own base. People who already agree with you and other people, moderates, people on the other side of the spectrum don't really have one strong opinion, doesn't strike them one way or the other. There's a third type of rhetoric where your supporters love you, but people on the other side are like, eh, that's just a cheap shot. It doesn't really mean that. But there is a fourth type of rhetoric that politicians use sometimes, and it's rhetoric that not all of their supporters like, but a thin slice of the extreme of their supporters like. But the problem with this rhetoric is that moderates, independents, and everybody on the other side just thinks of you as an absolutely, utterly despicable human being, a vicious demagogue. And that is how I put Rudy Giuliani's statements earlier this week where he said that President Obama doesn't love his country, he doesn't love you and me and anyone who suggests I'm racist for saying that Obama has a white mother, so it can't be racist, folks. That just seems bizarre and it seems like a cheap shot. Now imagine some of you who may agree with Giuliani. I want you to picture this. Imagine Al Sharpton just said that all Republicans are worse than Nazis and Klansmen and would secretly like to kill all black people. There may be some of Al Sharpton's supporters who might agree with that. And by the way, I haven't heard Al Sharpton say that. But there might be some people who like that who agree with Al Sharpton. But I'm pretty sure any moderate independent, any conservative, any Republican who heard Al Sharpton say something like that would just think that makes him an incredibly despicable human being. It's beyond the pale. It's so wrong at so many levels that it doesn't even deserve serious analysis or commentary. Folks, I call it like I see it. If you want to point out other examples to me across the spectrum, I'm happy to analyze it. But this Rudy Giuliani thing, It's just. It's pretty sad. And full disclosure, I voted for Giuliani when he ran for reelection as mayor of New York City, lest you think I'm just on some anti Giuliani rant. But this is somebody who was seen as highly relevant, at least in urban politics, for a long time, and now seems to figure the only way he can get any attention is just through simple trolling. And it's a bit sad. I'm TJ Walker. Post your comments.
