TJ Walker (recording the day after the 2014 election) provides media-relations advice to President Obama on how to control immediate news soundbites after significant Democratic losses. Walker proposes a quoted-ready response — calling it "an interesting election" followed by rhetorical questions about Republican sincerity and willingness to govern — designed to avoid appearing defeated while supplying reporters with repeatable, message-framing elements.
Chapters
So now what does President Obama say? The election results were an unmitigated disaster for the Democratic Party and the Obama administration. Pretty soon Obama's going to have to speak to the media. They're going to ask him for his reaction. Now there is a time honored tradition in American politics that when a president's party loses, especially loses big, the reporters feel an obligation to get to get one particular quote that they can replay again and again and again for the next three to six months. So in 2006 when George Bush's party suffered significant losses, he was quoted as saying that his party had received a thumpin', thumpin'. In 2010, President Obama, after major Democratic losses, was quoted as saying it was shellacking. Now these were quotes. You saw a part of every political story for months after that. So here's the challenge for President Obama when it comes to just the. And I'm not talking about the overall politics or governance here, I'm just talking about how to claim the narrative for the stories coming out today. I'm recording this at 9:20, the day after the election, Wednesday, the day after the 2014 election. So Obama has made no statements yet, but reporters are going to ask him how he feels. The reporters are going to want to quote him saying, my God, I feel awful. I want to kill myself. This was an unmitigated disaster. They want that moment of emotion, they want that element of depression attacking himself, the party, because that's good theater and that's good sound. Here's my advice to President Obama. What to say? I'm not talking about how to govern for the next two years. I'm talking about just how to control the sound bites that get quoted today because he'll be seeing those quotes a great deal in the future. So when he's asked, what's your assessment of the election, how do you feel? I believe President Obama should say the it was an interesting election. Were Republicans sincere when they said they wanted to help govern the nation and solve our nation's problems? Or will we see more of the same knee jerk reactions of no to anything my administration suggests? Time will tell, but I'm willing to work with the entire Senate. Now if he says that, it would be quoted, but he'd have to stick with that. By saying it was an interesting election, he's answering the question how does he feel? So reporters can't claim that he dodged the question. They of course want him to say he feels awful, suicidal. He doesn't have to say that by framing it in the form of a rhetorical question and an attack. Were Republicans sincere when they claimed they wanted to help govern the nation? Rhetorical questions, sincere, implied attack, those are all quotable elements. Or will they just continue a knee jerk reaction of saying no to anything my administration proposes? Knee jerk is a cliche. It's action oriented. It's attacking the Republicans. Time will tell is a cliche. So right there you have about 10 soundbite elements reporters would use that. They'd use it again and again and again. The beauty for Obama is it doesn't put him in this sort of passive, submissive, pathetic little character of looking like someone who's crawling under a rock. He's setting the framework. He's saying to the political media and the country, you do need to actually hold these Republicans accountable. Okay? They're now governing. So simply saying no to every single thing I propose is just going to make them despicable to voters and they're going to be tossed out in two years. That's the subtext of the statement. So that is what I believe Obama should say if he wants to control the message and at least be quoted on something that doesn't make him look pathetic and defensive for the next three months. What is your suggestion? Now, I'm not trying to make partisan points here. I'm simply giving apolitical media relations strategy here. So post your comments of what you think Obama should say to get through this week of coverage where the reporters all want him to say he's absolutely suicidal and his administration is over. Post your comments. Thanks.
