If Democrats phrase our position on entrepreneurs in society positively, we win.
Democrats say "it takes the work of many people to make a business successful." Republicans say "the only person who deserves even one iota of credit for a successful business is the entrepreneur who started it and/or the CEO who runs it."
The Democratic vision reflects reality. Furthermore, it congratulates the vast majority of Americans, who ARE employees and consumers, for the hard work that they've done. Democrats think people matter and that their daily working lives have meaning, even if they aren't CEOS. By contrast, Republicans think only CEOs and successful entrepreneurs matter. If you're neither, you're worthless. None of your work matters. The Republican position is nothing less than a smack in the face to the vast majority of Americans.
Republicans mask the truth of the parties' relative positions by removing the context and framing the discussion in a grammatically negative way. "You didn't build that" like taking away from the accomplishments of an individual. But when we frame it positively, Republicans' true message becomes clear: they seek to take all the credits and profits from the work of many and give it to a tiny group of privileged Americans.
I've always thought we should go on the "build that" offensive. In a recent email (and post to Daily Kos), Elizabeth Warren makes a similar argument to the one I've just made in a highly rhetorically pleasing way. I hope more Democrats continue in this vein. Some excerpts -- and why I think her messaging is so effective -- below the jump!
Let's talk about what really made the Greatest Generation so great.
Coming out of the Great Depression, America was at a crossroads. The future of our economy -- and our democracy -- was at stake.
We made a decision together as a country: To invest in ourselves, in our kids, and in our future. For nearly half a century, that's just what we did.
Warren is giving average Americans credit for their hard work. She's saying that each member of the Greatest Generation played a role in rebuilding our country and deserves to be thanked for that. It both highlights that we're all in this together, and says that individual Americans at that time were individually worthy of praise. It personalizes a collective view of society by highlighting that each American at that time was part of making choices and sacrifices. It's collectivism that works in a political environment that shies away from traditional collectivist language.
Tonight, Chris Christie and the Republicans told the American people that we're to blame for our broken economy. He told families to tighten their belts. He told seniors to live on less. He told teachers to stop fighting for fair pay.
He never, ever mentioned how much more the richest have taken, and he had no mention that those who broke our economy still haven't been held accountable.
The Republicans believe in an America that is rigged for the big guys -- giant corporations that can hire an army of lobbyists, ship jobs overseas, and take their profits to the Cayman Islands.
That's not who we are as a people -- and that's not the kind of country we want to be.
We built America together, and that's what makes America great.
This is my favorite part -- this is where Warren makes the contrast I was talking about before. She shows that the Republican vision of America gives average working Americans blame, but no credit. There are two different sets of rules for average Americans and the richest. Only the richest, the "builders," have the right to respect and solicitude in the Republican America. Since they "built that" they're not obligated to chip in their fair share to help make society work -- even though their profits came from the hard work of their employees and the money of their customers. After all, why give credit to hangers-on, to cogs in the wheel, to "you people"?
The Democratic vision isn't taking away from the hard work of the richest. Democrats merely observe that everyone deserves credit for their hard work, not just CEOs and entrepreneurs. Because we're all voting stakeholders in this society, we should all sacrifice in accordance with the same rules when the chips are down.
Republicans are elevating the rich to aristocracy status. Democrats are saying that in our economy as in our democracy, every person's contribution matters and is deserving of credit. Elizabeth Warren gets that, and she's a credit to the Democratic Party. I hope to see more of this type of argument from others.
Contribute directly to Elizabeth's Warren's campaign here, or through ActBlue here.
(Thanks Los Diablo for suggesting that I add links to Warren's campaign.)