Showing posts with label GOP. Show all posts
Showing posts with label GOP. Show all posts
Michael Steele: How Real is Too Real?
Michael Steele, the RNC chairman notorious for his proverbial rhetoric and oft-controversial statements, is the focus of a new website that has surfaced called "Keeping It Real With Michael Steele". Users have the opportunity to "pose for the ultimate profile picture" by amalgamating their own photos with a likeness of the Republican leader.All one must do is upload a photo, select the Steele delineation of choice, and post the pièce de résistance for public commentary.
Steele has purported to want to focus Republican Party efforts on "emerging as the party of new ideas" by putting "energy, the focus, and the determination to turn our timeless principles into new solutions for the future". The "hipster" feel of the website certainly suggests the concept of new ideas, but does not claim to be affiliated with Steele. In fact, it bears a disclaimer that says: "Keeping It Real With Michael Steele is an independent project and not associated with any political party, organization, or company".
How, then, will this lone website affect Michael Steele as it makes its viral rounds on email, social media and the internet as a pass-along link and in blogs like ours, giving it more exposure? On one hand, the site may create public noise because of its cutesy creativity and as a result boost Steele's image and further his platform of new solutions. But because users can post almost any photograph, the website has risky potential to feature depictions that may or may not be favorable to the chairman.
View the website and let us know your thoughts.
As a side note, Steele's mother Maebelle Turner, was born into an African-American sharecropping family in our state -- South Carolina.
Sanford: More Popular than 'The Terminator'?
In terms of personal strife, our own Governor Mark Sanford has certainly seen his share. Over the past six months the married governor has endured ongoing criticism and public relations fiascos stemming from his actions related to his relationship with an Argentinian woman.
When it comes to the most unpopular governors currently in office across the nation, one might think Sanford would be a star in the topmost tier. But according to a poll released today by Public Policy Polling, Sanford doesn't even make the top 8 in terms of unpopularity. If the poll is correct, Sanford has a better approval rating than California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. Budget and financial issues appear to be the root reason of the unpopularity of the eight most unpopular governors, says PPP. They include:
John Baldacci (D) of Maine
Jan Brewer (R) of Arizona
Jim Doyle (D) of Wisconsin
Jim Gibbons (R) of Nevada
David Paterson (R) of New York
Bev Perdue (D) of North Carolina
Ed Rendell (D) of Pennsylvania
Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) of California
Takeaway from this poll? Even in an age when scandals like the Mark Sanford affair rock the country, more obscure, less flashy issues may ultimately have a truer impact on a governor's overall perceived image.
VIEW THE FULL POLL RESULTS
When it comes to the most unpopular governors currently in office across the nation, one might think Sanford would be a star in the topmost tier. But according to a poll released today by Public Policy Polling, Sanford doesn't even make the top 8 in terms of unpopularity. If the poll is correct, Sanford has a better approval rating than California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. Budget and financial issues appear to be the root reason of the unpopularity of the eight most unpopular governors, says PPP. They include:
John Baldacci (D) of Maine
Jan Brewer (R) of Arizona
Jim Doyle (D) of Wisconsin
Jim Gibbons (R) of Nevada
David Paterson (R) of New York
Bev Perdue (D) of North Carolina
Ed Rendell (D) of Pennsylvania
Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) of California
Takeaway from this poll? Even in an age when scandals like the Mark Sanford affair rock the country, more obscure, less flashy issues may ultimately have a truer impact on a governor's overall perceived image.
VIEW THE FULL POLL RESULTS
The Dissipating Strength of our South Carolina Incumbents?
According to an article by The Washington Post's Chris Cillizza, recent elections in our neighboring states have proven that the power wielded by incumbents running for re-election, well, just... isn't there anymore.
Cillizza says "Voters don't like incumbents these days", pointing to recent defeat of NJ Governor Jon Corzine and the fact that NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg barely managed to eke out a win even after far outspending his challenger.
Notably, Cillizza also remarks, "While it's likely that any sustained sentiment of this sort will hurt Democrats more than Republicans, this sort of political environment is decidedly unpredictable and could lead to surprising defeats for presumed safe incumbents -- of both parties -- next November." He says constitutents are quite simply just not intrigued by the politicians they currently have in office.
This comment is particularly interesting because in South Carolina, while Democratic incumbents are certainly susceptible to failure, our state is traditionally dominated by Republicans. So, for example, how will Cillizza's prediction play out when it comes to powerhouse incumbents Jim DeMint and Joe Wilson?
On top of that, we have side spin of the Mark Sanford affair, and how that issue affects the South Carolina Republican Party's candidates should prove quite interesting. Don't forget to read the full article from WaPo.
Cillizza says "Voters don't like incumbents these days", pointing to recent defeat of NJ Governor Jon Corzine and the fact that NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg barely managed to eke out a win even after far outspending his challenger.
Notably, Cillizza also remarks, "While it's likely that any sustained sentiment of this sort will hurt Democrats more than Republicans, this sort of political environment is decidedly unpredictable and could lead to surprising defeats for presumed safe incumbents -- of both parties -- next November." He says constitutents are quite simply just not intrigued by the politicians they currently have in office.
This comment is particularly interesting because in South Carolina, while Democratic incumbents are certainly susceptible to failure, our state is traditionally dominated by Republicans. So, for example, how will Cillizza's prediction play out when it comes to powerhouse incumbents Jim DeMint and Joe Wilson?
On top of that, we have side spin of the Mark Sanford affair, and how that issue affects the South Carolina Republican Party's candidates should prove quite interesting. Don't forget to read the full article from WaPo.
Turning Bad Press into Opportunity: How Can Politicians Turn The Wheel?
Politicians walk a precarious wire. As public figures, every move they make in public and private becomes subject to scrutinization by constituents and the media at large.Joe Wilson's You Lie outburst earlier this fall during President Obama's speech wound up being a gold mine for the South Carolina Congressman. Facing condemnation from much of his own party and people across the country, he hired professional public relations pros who were able to tweak his message and tuck him into every social media channel across the country. His hired guns revived his campaign and then some, netting campaign funds that currently reach into the millions of dollars range.
And meanwhile... also in South Carolina... yet more controversy has erupted.
On October 18, Orangeburg's Times and Democrat ran an editorial page column by Republicans Jim Ulmer Jr. an Orangeburg County chairman, and Edwin O. Merwin Jr., Bamberg County chairman. The column, meant to highlight U.S. Sen. Jim DeMint’s stand against congressional earmarks, inflamed some readers due to a comment about Jews perceived by many as stereotyping. By October 20, the ire ignited into a statewide story, even landing on national news sites such as The Huffington Post. Following critical comments by Joel Lourie, a Jewish South Carolina legislator, Ulmer and Merwin issued apologies alongside SCGOP Chairwoman Karen Floyd and Senator Jim DeMint.
Ulmer and Merwin have a heap of options when it comes to neatly re-packaging their reputations following this fiasco, but what is the course of action they ought to pursue? As leaders, are they now in the pile of "damaged goods", or can they repair those cracks?
Ultimately, having begged public forgiveness, they may opt to sit quietly by the sidelines in humiliation until the public moves on to the next tumultous story of the day. Over time the story will certainly wane and some people may forget, but as far as reputations go, the issue could leave a stain.
They could hire a team of PR experts to work the media field and work on more positive, image-boosting stories. If they hire the right folks to manage the right message and atone for the negative perception of the Times and Democract column, they could even see their status elevated to leaders of their party on the state level.
Or perhaps Ulmer and Merwin could become their own best public relations spokespersons and make the news show rounds, inviting the public to engage in conversations about stereotyping and other similar issues in South Carolina. By taking the bull by the horns, they could potentially unfetter themselves a bit from their sticky situation. But until then, how the latest South Carolina political blunder plays out in full remains to be seen.
More:
Why GOP.com's Mistakes May Not Be So Costly After All
All the ado over the past couple of days about the new, re-vamped website by the GOP got us thinking about the overall impact of the fuss. If you follow politics, you've likely heard that the Republican National Committee finally launched their new site earlier this week, complete with a bright red banner and an "O" in GOP that apparently metamorphoses into a different human face each time you click the page... to represent party diversity. The intent of the site re-launch is to create, according to Republican Party Chairman Michael Steele, "a forward-looking, open platform for the party of new ideas."Critics pounded the site for looking too much like the Chinese flag, being short on content and crashing. Steele changing the name of his blog to "Change the Game" from the much-mocked initial title "What Up" didn't help much with the critics, either.
Bugs and other glitches aside, problems will eventually get fixed. But as you've probably heard many a time, no press is bad press. Our initial thoughts were how many MORE people will, as a result, be driven to the GOP.com website. GOP.com got many more web hits, links and traffic because of what's been called "negative press". Probably far more people - Republicans, Democrats, Independents and those unaffiliated with any party - are now familiar with and/or interested in the site, as a result.
So What Up with GOP.com? It may Change the Game more than you think.
More on the re-launch of GOP.com:
Wesley Donehue had some great insights.
The Washington Post
Politico
We also just learned via The Discust that there is a GOP site specific to South Carolina.
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