I think I’ll go call Florida
I have a friend who’s been phone banking for Hillary. No one’s seen her for weeks. This weekend she’ll be frantically making last-minute calls to swing states to pull for her candidate, and I deeply respect her passion and effort, actually doing something in the face of the looming disaster for America and the whole world that would be a Trump presidency.
But I have to wonder: has any human ever convinced another human of anything? I don’t mean to be gloomy, but if anyone ever has, I don’t think I’ve seen it. We’re not really a reasonable species. Least of all now, when one candidate is seen as irredeemably corrupt because she exists in our current system and the other is profoundly unqualified, unstable, immature, unintelligent- Sorry, it’s hard to stop that list. The other candidate is….Trump.
But whether or not phone banking ever does any good, I have to wonder: this weekend? Is there anyone left in America who hasn’t made up their mind yet? If there’s anyone with any shred of doubt left, will a phone call help?
I want to find out. I want to see what a political phone bank call is like. I’m thinking Saturday afternoon. I’ll call Florida and ask them “So? Whaddya think?” I’m not going to try to convince anyone. Of anything. But I want to hear the opinion of a complete stranger in a battleground state.
Lordy help us. Battleground states. That was once a very real thing, 1861-1865. And more and more, it feels that way again. Every 2 or 4 years.
When people attack Hillary for being part of Obama’s administration, why doesn’t she answer with facts?
Can we indict the 24 hour news cycle on charges of treason? I’m getting sidetracked. But that’s the theme of this election, where the entire country was sidetracked from the issues. Yes, Donald Trump is a reprehensible human being, and should face charges of sexual assault. And plenty of people want to see Hillary in the defendant’s chair too. But as satisfying as revenge fantasies are, I’d rather we were talking about actual issues.
Wealth inequality. Systemic racism & sexism and how we’re going to ameliorate both. The military-industrial complex and a world making money off bombing Yemen/Syria/Afghanistan/Iraq/Pakistan (Libya? Are we still bombing Libya? How shameful that I can’t even keep track of who we’re bombing?) International trade agreements that benefit the mass of Americans but pose a threat to continued progress, and whether backing away from the TPP would simply allow China to fill the void. Climate change. The fact that we are the only country on Earth still “debating” it as a theory. Nevermind, let’s not talk about that particular shard of shame. You get my point.
If Trump supporters were actual Republicans, this would matter to them
I’d rather talk about issues, because it would be better for the country. Coincidentally, it would be better for my candidate, since she has policies beyond “I’m incredible. Build a wall. Everything’s your fault and rigged. No. Obama founded ISIS.”
So, tomorrow evening, I’m going to try to hear about issues. Will I? Or will I hear periodic character attacks and frequent dialtones? Can’t wait to find out. And then, after a little dip of such demoralizing abuse….I’m going to go get some ice cream.
And maybe a bunker.
I do believe your friend is wasting their breath. Who is going to vote, IMO, made up their mind long before now.
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I think you’re probably right. They say that calling to help people make a plan to vote helps, but I think this election was passionate enough that this wasn’t as much a factor as in other elections. This time I think the biggest impediment to voting wasn’t motivation, but adequate polling places and disenfranchising laws. But those aren’t so easily addressed by volunteers, unfortunately!
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Though I don’t believe phone banking works, the door-to-door ground game does. There’s nothing as effective as a successful face-to-face, goal-oriented encounter, not TV, not phones, not writing. And of course it doesn’t always work either. But it’s the entire basis of trade, sales psychology and transactional analysis. A master salesperson can (and regularly does) get people to agree, and to “buy” (including ideas), even when they start out not wanting to. Humans wish to find common ground and “strike a deal” more than they want to compete and oppose each other. It’s that simple.
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I think you’re right, especially when the issue is one of compassion. It’s really easy for someone to say “They” are a problem or bad in some way, if that person has never met one of “Them.” There was a This American Life about that, people going door to door to talk about reproductive rights, and what a difference it made to people’s opinions to actually talk to someone who’s had an abortion and see the issue with their human face instead of political rhetoric. Interesting stuff!
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This is one of the best pieces I’ve read in a long time. Until the last 2 years I was a frequent campaigner and phone bank caller. I can’t imagine how it is effective this year, but in past campaigns, especially local ones, people really didn’t pay that much attention. They wouldn’t know who was a Democrat and who a Republican. But now? ENOUGH ALREADY! Really wonderful post.
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Thank you, Barb, I really appreciate that. I fear this blog has become something of my therapy outlet during this election, but hopefully my attempts at self-treatment can benefit a couple other people too. 😉
Those days of elections no one really cared about seem like a fond memory now. Except I’m not sure they are… Here’s to the hope that we have passionate debate and elections in the future, but that move us as a civilization forward!
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I totally unloaded on social media, which I try never to do. It didn’t make me feel better and I am sure just annoyed other people. No discourse to my rants. Your post encouraged critical thinking and discourse.
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Several points:
1) There’s a wealth of academic research that demonstrates, plainly, that when confronted with unassailable evidence to the contrary of their pre-existing beliefs, the clear majority of people DOUBLE DOWN on what they already believe. Contrary evidence actually HARDENS the beliefs of most people.
2) Uncommitted voters at this stage of an election campaign…particularly at this stage of THIS election campaign…the polls say there are lots of them. In reality, the vast majority of self-described “undecideds” at this point are basically decided. When I was still actively involved in polling/public opinion survey design and analysis I routinely ran discriminant analyses on self-described undecided voters and could usually confidently assign 80-90% of them to one candidate or another based on demographics and the responses to a series of other questions. And that was a lot further out from election day than we are now. (This would be trickier if Johnson and/or Stein appeared more viable than they presently do.)
3) If you hear word one about actual issues–including, but by no means limited to, those you laid out above, I will be shocked…shocked I tell you. What passes for issue discussion from Trump and his surrogates…it’s the kind of thing I’d expect to hear from the guy at the end of the bar at the corner saloon. (“I’d bomb the hell out of ’em…” “Japan’s going to get nuclear weapons anyway…” “I’d appoint justices like Scalia…” “We’d solve all of our health insurance problems by eliminating the state restrictions…” And so forth. And maybe I’m being unfair to the guy at the end of the bar.
Policy matters are routinely dumbed down in political elections because, let’s face it, it’s a lowest common denominator exercise and a clear majority of potential voters are either unable or unwilling (or both) to immerse themselves in the nuances of real world public policy. But there’s dumbing down policy discussions and there’s…whatever the hell it is that Trump is doing this year. I’m convinced that this is, at least in part, a function of the fact that he’s at least as ignorant about these matters as the people he’s appealing to.
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God #1 is depressing. I completely believe you, but oy, good luck to all of us.
And #2 as well. So much for free will? Or maybe it just shows a certain reluctance to declare, when people found both options so distasteful. The hope that somehow, if they just hedged long enough, a positive option would magically appear.
And #3. Yyyyup. I agree. And it’s bloody terrifying. All these years of lowest common denominator “discourse” led to a lowest possible denominator candidate. And we’re all going to suffer for it. Maybe we could just go on a photography hiking trip….for four years. I’m thinking Michigan UP.
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Heh.
If you ever really want to head to the Upper Peninsula, let me know. At the very least I could provide you with some information. With some luck, I could join you and show you around in person.
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