Conservative Party of Canada dancing to tune of Frank Luntz – the USA Republican strategist
Tuesday, 18 July 2006
Is American Frank Luntz's advice the model for the Conservative Party of Canada?
snip
“Massaging the Conservative Message for Voters”
In May 2006 American Republican Strategist Frank Luntz met with Stephen Harper. Shortly after that meeting Preston Manning introduced Luntz to a gathernig of the “Civitas Society”, a powerful Canadian Conservative group that Harpers chief of staff is director of. Luntz gave a speech titled “Massaging the Conservative Message for Voters”, which consisted of communication tips for Conservatives to attain a majority in the next federal election. Among Mr. Luntz's advice: keep kicking at the Liberals. Keep up the accusations of corruption for another year, Luntz said.
Could that explain why the Conservatives can't deal with their current election financing controversy without pointing a finger at the Liberals?
snip
Another example of the Luntzian focus on “images and pictures” being exercised was the gst reduction. PM Stephen Harper used the occasion to attend a Giant Tiger store and flip some color cardboard props to signify the move from 7% gst to 6%. I can’t get that image out of my head, and if there’s anything negative about a 1% consumption tax cut (like how it cost businesses plenty of cash to enact and doesn’t help the poor as much as the rich) I can’t recall it. All I can see is Harper in the Giant Tiger with those pieces of cardboard. He would not answer questions during or afterwards, it was purely a photo opportunity. Journalists were anxious to ask him about the election finance controversy, which had just emerged, but were actually told: “Photo-op only guys, thank you.” by a PMO press aide.
Then there was the NHL playoff final on June 17th – game six in Edmonton. Recall that Stephen Harper and six Conservative MP’s managed to get last minute tickets to the sold out game. Courtesy of taxpayers, they flew in Harper’s jet, and along with bodyguards and four communication staff they all attended the game. There was only one seat next to the PM, so the six MP’s took turns sitting in it. A PM and six MP’s playing musical chairs at a playoff hockey game provided plenty of pictures and images, in keeping with Frank Luntz advice. But there’s more Frank Luntz in this picture than meets the eye….
Just one month prior to this game Luntz told the Civitas Society:
“If there is some way to link hockey to what you all do, I would try to do it.”
His theme was that the Conservatives should tap into national symbols.
Mission accomplished.
Frank Luntz: How to talk about terrorism
http://allpoliticsnow.com/content/view/28/1/Long read, but eye-opening.
VERY interesting PBS video link at the end shows him acting like a sociopath.
Goes on to mention the 2004 Luntz memo to the Bush admin on talking about terrorism and some interesting stuff on the environment.
The conclusion after looking at the Luntz environment communication advice:
The horrifying thing is that US Republicans and Canadian Conservatives are engaged in a communications strategy to downplay what an overwhelming majority of climate scientists are now calling a planetary crisis.
Crazy stuff, that environment communication strategy. Like, tell the people you're interested in "sound science", but take advantage of a quickly dissappearing opportunity to challange the science.
I guess that Inhoff SOB listens to "Luntz on tape" or something.
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