Marketing change in the Democratic Primaries, Part 1 — different approaches
At Saturday’s New Hampshire debate among four Democratic contenders – Hillary Clinton, Bill Richardson, Barack Obama, and John Edwards – the central theme was change. All the Democratic candidates agreed on four basic concepts:
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Change from the Bush Administration is paramount.
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Change has something to do with helping the poor, the working class, and children.
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Change in Iraq policy – specifically, bringing US troops home from Iraq – is mandatory.
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Change in health care insurance is important.
No surprises so far – the first three are obvious Democratic positions, and the fourth has been a major Democratic theme since early in the Bill Clinton Administration.
But the debate also highlighted considerable disagreement and competition to further define what “change” entails. At least three major categories of change were brought up, each with a number of subpoints:
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Change in who’s in charge — e.g., somebody competent, a woman, or the son of a poorly educated, undeniably working-class mill worker.
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Change in who has influence — e.g., less influence for corporations, their lobbyists, or the rich, and more influence for “the people.”
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Change in outcomes — e.g., troops home from Iraq, carbon emissions cut, or more people with health insurance.
And that’s just one night’s haul, leaving out other major “change” themes in this campaign. Barack Obama in particular offers a multi-faceted message of change.
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