tl;dr!? The DNC trails the GOP in social media advertising and fund raising. Trump reaps millions to billions in free Twitter advertising. This is a prescription for the Democrats to grab a “personality” and start tweeting truth to power. It’s 2019 DNC. Catch up.
Democrats and the DNC are getting killed by all the free advertising the Trump generates on the daily with unhinged tweets. He has created a hurricane cheered on by a cult of personality. As science tells us, hurricanes lose energy when they hit a land mass. The DNC needs to create that land mass. And not just for one Democrat, for all.
This prescription is homeopathic:
Match the energy and intensity of Trump’s tweets every.single.day. Every.single.tweet.
Tweet truth to power.
Trump generates free buzz, free advertising from (well it was while it lasted) the most powerful office in the world — President of the United States — POTUS. As Trump estimates he has lost billions in business revenue as POTUS because that’s how it “feels,” we “feel” he’s generated hundreds of millions in free advertising, publicity, messaging, care, feeding, and incitement of his cult. Maybe it’s been worth even a billion dollars. It’s hu-uge. He’s used Twitter to attack US private citizens and government officials, cyber-bullied and name-called elected politicians, announced foreign policy, threatened Iran with military might, tweeted top-secret satellite photos all from the confines of his own little mind on his own little phone. But her e-mails!
I digress.
President Obama (Twitter handle @POTUS44) created 352 tweets between May 18, 2015 and January 20, 2017 or 0.57 tweets/day.
Although tRump tweets as President, it is safe for me to say that not all tweets are Presidential. Running some numbers — Trump has been in office a century lifetime decade 1005 days. If he tweets an average of 10 times per day, and one tweet per day is “Presidential,” i.e. language used does not attack, demean, or subvert security, procedures, processes already in place, he has tweeted 1005 times fitting of the position of POTUS and 9045 times as Teflon Cheeto.
Let’s do math! Trump is followed by 66 million people give or take a couple million bots. Oh well. Assume an audience of 50 million. Assume the value of each view is $0.01/view (a penny).
9045 tweets sent from the seat of POTUS multiplied by 5M (50,000,000) Twitter followers equals 452.250B views!
I don’t like where this is going, but run with me.
452.250B multipled by $0.01/view = $4.5225 Billion
And I thought his golfing expeditions were pricey.
After the 2016 election, I reported that the amount of money spent per voter could have purchased me three fancy lattes including nice tips for the baristas. The total was over a billions dollars US in campaign spending.
Whelp. We now know why the Democrats NEED TO CATCH UP THEIR SOCIAL MEDIA TWITTER GAME! The Trump Regime generates about $4.5 Million dollars a day in FREE from the seat of POTUS advertising via Twitter.
Catch up Democrats!
Develop an individual voice and up your Twitter game!
Details:
- Select an older Democratic statesman. Someone who has held elected office, someone who has demonstrated that they have a heart, someone with respect like Jimmy Carter or Joe Biden. This is the person that will draw lightning. They are the figurehead. Preferably, this person is white and male to minimize the distraction of differences from tRump. Make him name call at his own peril.
- To make it easy on Jimmy or Joe or <fill-in-the-blank>, hire a small group of communication, tech-savvy, and witty folk to compose tweet responses to Trump from the figurehead account.
- Take a cue from the Mitt Romney playbook. Create a fake user name. John J. Barron II? Jimmy Carter’s Pill? Well regardless. Promote, promote, promote.
- When tRump does send out a tweet of Presidential caliber, note it publicly. Do not debase yourself but recognize his ability to hand the keyboard to someone else once in a while who does respect the office. This should silence a few “but both sides … “ respondents.
- Don’t use swears or cuss words in response to tRump. We know he can spell BULLSHIT correctly and in CAPS. We’ve had quite enough of his. We don’t need yours.
- CALL HIM OUT LOUDLY AND REPEATEDLY. He is a bully with a bullhorn and an audience. Change the dynamic. Make him accountable for his “jokes.” Make him answer for his destructive and divisive statements. Make him answer to breaches of security and protocol.
- The DNC Twitter figurehead will be a natural voice to rally behind the eventual 2020 Presidential DNC candidate.
The DNC doesn’t have $4.5 billion dollars to spend on advertising in competition with tweets hurled from the seat of power. As has been pointed out, the Trump does not conform to the Twitter Terms of Service and @jack does nothing. This is a long-overdue opportunity for the DNC to install a single speaker on a Twitter podium, tweet truth to power, generate buzz, publish facts, and create a virtual landmass on which the Teflon Hurricane Cheeto can run out his energy.
We have hope.
Footnote: I suggested Joe Biden as I believe he could stand up to tRump. Biden would draw tRump’s attention and ire, could handle it, and could response with gravitas. This is also a good way for Joe to remain current, relevant, venerated, and do a real service for the country other than this current late-life run for POTUS. Take a seat Joe. Get behind the organization.
I suggested Jimmy Carter because he is good for people. He is good to people. He lives what he believes. He broke his hip last night. Wishing him a speedy recovery.
