Winning Progressive Message & Strategy

The Website and Blog for Schmeltzer PR

Tag Archives: communications


by 2 Comments

Hillary’s Opening Debate Statement

Traditionally, debates are mostly boring affairs, where we’re lucky to get a highlight or two.  But, we know what we’re getting, going in.  A couple of boxers who jab a little bit, and largely stick to the script, while answering questions the best they can.

Even though candidates aren’t afforded an opening statement anymore, they use their allotted time for their first answer to put the debate into the context they want.  In 2012, for example, the first question went to President Obama.  It was, how would he create jobs.

Here’s his answer:

Continue reading →


by Leave a comment

Trump Dispute On Wall Could Be an Implosion

I’ll make this short and sweet. Donald Trump’s campaign is built on three pillars:

  1. He will make foreign leaders fear and respect us, because he’s tough
  2. Relatedly, he will make great deals for America, because he can strong arm others
  3. Unlike “crooked Hillary” and the establishment, he will never lie to you, and will tell it like it is

In one news cycle, it is possible he has blasted those three pillars with dynamite.

Continue reading →


by Leave a comment

Trump’s New Message is a Winner. Here’s How Hillary Can Counteract It.

Donald Trump 9.0 was launched last night (or is it 10.0?  9.5? I lost track).

For a brief moment in time, fueled by a teleprompter filled with messaging from new campaign manager Kellyanne Conway and campaign CEO, Breitbart’s Stephen Bannon, Trump had a narrative that finally worked.

To use a phrase of Trump’s, I hated to just give him credit for something, “believe me.”

Now, if he regresses to his usual self, he’ll say something horrible and the campaign will be caught up in a whirlwind of controversy.  But what if he doesn’t?  This new campaign message can work, quite effectively.  So, what should Hillary do?

Continue reading →


by Leave a comment

The Op-Ed Bernie Didn’t Write, But Should Have

Yesterday, Bernie Sanders was given the chance to write an op-ed in the New York Times.

He had a golden opportunity to write a campaign-changing piece, and he whiffed. His piece focused on Brexit as a warning to Democrats to take seriously the negative economic impact of the global economy. Essentially, it was the same campaign speech he gave 1,000 times, recycled, using Brexit as the hook. It was largely ignored — not because he doesn’t have a point — but because he offered up nothing new.

Here is the op-ed he should have written. Here is the op-ed that would have made an impact on the debate. It would have given him new relevancy, and stature, as he continues to try to reform the Democratic Party.

Continue reading →


by Leave a comment

Warren’s “Secret” Selling Point

Elizabeth Warren.  Massachusetts liberal, right?

Extreme left, isn’t she?

These are how many politically aware people have branded her.  And Lord knows that Democratic consultants have.

But Senator Warren has a background that most people forget about – if they even knew about it, at all.

And that secret would be her strongest selling point as a VP candidate for Hillary Clinton…

Even through Bill Clinton’s administration, Elizabeth Warren was a Republican.

Continue reading →


by Leave a comment

Trump’s Trapped

Donald Trump has inadvertently laid himself one hell of a trap.  In his speech today, he said:

The father of the Orlando shooter was a Taliban supporter from Afghanistan, one of the most repressive anti-gay and anti-women regimes on Earth.

I only want to admit people who share our values and love our people.

Hillary Clinton wants to bring in people who believe women should be enslaved and gays put to death.

This is similar to what he said right after Orlando:

The burden is on Hillary Clinton to tell us why we should admit anyone into our country who supports violence of any kind against gay and lesbian Americans.

Obviously, he is referring to people from Muslim nations.  But you know what people have also violently targeted gays? Continue reading →


by Leave a comment

Progressives Rising

Piggybacking off my post from yesterday, Sahil Kapur at Talking Points Memo shows some other key victories for the “Democratic Wing of the Democratic Party” in the new Congress.

The Democrats’ progressive wing is enjoying a renaissance since the party’s crushing defeat in the 2014 midterm election, chalking up victories and capturing the attention of congressional leaders on causes near and dear to their hearts.

Some of the change is structural. The election wiped out red state senators and House members in less progressive districts, reducing the new minority party to a more ideologically cohesive unit. The loss of the Democrats’ Senate majority also breaks a four-year holding pattern in which leaders had to cut deals with the conservative-dominated House, making it somewhat easier for them to stand or fall on principle.

“It’s very, very liberating,” said one Democratic Senate leadership aide.

Continue reading →