I've read that someone dressed in a fish costume appears at some Democratic activities to send the message that Kerry flip-flops. While I wonder about the meanness of such antics (and would welcome opinions on this), I have, nevertheless, been thinking about characters that could appear at Republican activities. I like the idea of finding a way to make a genuine, negative Bush characteristic stick.
Some of my character ideas are listed below. Any thoughts on which of these would be most effective? Least effective? Any thoughts on whether they would help Kerry at all? If they would help, I would be happy for anyone to use them.
As you will see, my ideas can use some refinement. If anyone is willing to help, jump in with suggestions. Also, I hope these ideas inspire others to create better, more effective characters.
Jann
POSSIBLE CHARACTERS
BumbleBee - Message: Bush is a bumbling leader. He has bumbled things in Iraq and in US (jobs, education, health care, etc.) While this could be called the Bush BumbleBee, is there a name with more pow?
Bush's Two Ballooning Deficits - Two persons dressed as big, round balloons; one named Bush's Ballooning Budget Deficit and another named Bush's Ballooning Trade Deficit. While I love this, I am wondering if enough people would get it. Even if they get it, many people don't seem to appreciate the magnitude of the potential negative impact of the ballooning deficit and trade balance on their future standard of living. Agree or disagree? By the way, one thing I like about this idea is that everyone demonstrating at the Republican convention could carry a balloon, or two. The balloon colors would have to be distinctive. Any suggestions for colors?
Wrong Way Duwya - A person dressed in a 1920s football suit or 1930s aviator outfit. Message: Bush is leading the country in the wrong direction. This fits nicely with poll results showing that a growing number of people actually believe this. Another bonus: this rating has served as a key indicator of election results in past presidential elections.
My internet search yielded two Wrong Way persons in history: one football player and one airline mechanic. The football player is Wrong Way Reigels, who carried the football the wrong way in the 1929 Rose Bowl game. At the last minute, a teammate saved him from scoring for his opponents. The airline mechanic is Wrong Way Corrigan who, in 1938, flew from New York to Ireland--when he was supposed to be flying from New York to California. Corrigan apparently said he misread his compass. Some people believe this was a ruse to bypass authorities and accomplish his dream of a transatlantic flight. Even so, he became known as Wrong Way Corrigan.
Bait and Switch - Two persons, one dressed as bait (maybe a jelly worm) and another dressed as a switch. Right now I don't have a handy list of Bush's bait and switch activities. Some things that come to mind are the Healthy Forest Act, the Patriot Act, and the Medicaid drug provision.
Big Spender - A person dressed as a "Big Spender," who hands out play money right and left. (I have some ideas about characters who could be hanging on his arms, but will skip those for now.)
Kerry's Thinking Cap - Someone dressed as a cap labeled "Kerry's Thinking Cap." Message: Kerry is a thinking person and will be a thinking President. IMO, this goes with Kos's ad script titled Serious and George Will's recent statement that a president and his administration must think. By the way, if anyone is interested, he or she can make and sell Kerry Thinking Caps - you have my permission.
Heart - Have a person dressed as a heart (think valentine shape), who asks everyone, "In your heart-of-hearts, do you believe that Bush is a strong leader?" I really like this one because I think people in the US know in their heart-of-hearts that Bush is not a strong leader. They know he is not a thinker (and certainly not wise), that he did not take the initiative to protect the US against homeland terrorist attacks after he got a clear warning, that he lied about WMD in Iraq, and on and on. They don't want to admit they know because they want so much to have a strong leader, but deep down inside, I think they know they don't have one. Asking what they really know deep inside is a powerful way to get them to face Bush's weaknesses.
The following character is not my own idea:
Bush Pinocchio - Someone dressed as a Bush Pinocchio. Message: Bush lies. This character could not be dressed like Disney's version of Pinocchio due to copyright laws, but that's OK because there are plenty of other ways to design this character. There is an great drawing of a Bush Pinocchio in the left column at Daryl Cagle's Professional Cartoonists Index at Slate:
http://cagle.slate.msn.com/
P.S. With the way Bush's numbers are dropping, we may not need to help negative labels stick, but we still have six months or so before the election. Given that, it may not hurt to think about lots of strategies and tactics, including these characters.