Selling the Middle Class Sell-Out

8/7/2019 Selling the Middle Class Sell-Out

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A 20-Year Marketing Plan

March, 1991


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The Agenda1. Cut taxes for the wealthy to lower levels than we've seen in recent history.(Done.)

2. Preserve those tax cuts and make them even deeper.3. Offset the lost revenue by pushing radical spending cuts that hurt the

middle class.4. Increase taxes on the middle class. (This also allows Republicans to say

they're not always against raising taxes - they don't mind makingbeleaguered middle class voters pay more by removing the mortgage interestdeduction, for example.)

5. Allow the government to default on its $2.6 trillion debt to the SocialSecurity Trust Fund - money that was collected to fund retirement and

disability benefits - in order to fund this tax giveaway.6. Ensure that the payroll tax cap isn't raised - or is only raised slightly - asanother way to keep taxes low for the wealthy.

7. Raise the retirement age. That not only preserves income tax breaks for thewealthy, but enlarges the labor force. That keeps wages artificially low andensures an endless supply of low-cost, blue-vested Wal-Mart greeters.


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A Hard Sell Our plan will milk the middle class


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A Hard Sell Decimate or eliminate health care for the elderly


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A Hard Sell Require drastic cuts in education


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A Hard Sell Devastate homeowners


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A Hard Sell Increase joblessness


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A Hard SellAnd condemn millions of older Americans to poverty


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The Problem:The old way isnt working. People wont buy these

radical ideas from anyone labeled as far right. Andlets face it: Our ideas are pretty extreme.

How do we sell the unsellable?


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We can do it!Heres a new idea


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The Marketing Plan: Make Our Program

Seem Moderate - and Necessary1. Sell the Deficit as Problem #1 in fact, as the only problem2. Make it a Spending Problem3. Protect low taxes for our clients

4. Convince the middle class that Social Security is broken5. Look technical; call everyone else extreme and ideological6. Stay away from real health reform!7. Radicalize Washington; Marginalize America8. Create the Theology of Compromise

9. Create our own experts10. Create an artificial economic panic11. Use our usual tools at the ratings agencies12. Find people eager to look rational to speak for us


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Selling the Deficit Convince people that the government deficit is our

most urgent problem - the only one that matters.

That means distracting them from unemployment,stagnating wages, wealth inequality, the health andfinancial security of the elderly

But protect defense defense contracts are lucrative!

-- The bottom line: Keep them afraid of dying fromterrorist acts, but fearless about dying becauseMedicare wont be there for them.


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Make it a Spending Problem Distract them from the ever-decreasing tax rate for

high-income Americans

Keep the focus on spending Start with Reagan

Keep up the drumbeat

Get Democrats to push 3-to-1 spending to revenue cuts
http://www.slate.com/id/2291530/http://www.slate.com/id/2291530/


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Make Tax Increases for the Rich

Off-LimitsJust be radical and crazy about it

Get nonpartisan operatives like Simpson and Bowles

to propose lowering the top tax bracket even further(from 91% under Eisenhower, 50% under Reagan, 35%currently, down to 25%)

Keep on being radical and crazy

Did we mention radical and crazy?


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Promote false myths about Social

Security's fiscal outlook Its just IOUs!!

Greedy geezers!

We cant afford it!Note: Use the prospect of a 25% shortfall in benefits in

year 2037 to push bigger benefit cuts now

Push all the false myths that have been discredited

since 1939, and which were fully discredited byPresident Eisenhowers panel in 1959


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Sound technical. Make the other

guy ideological Convince journalists that its ideological and rigid

not to accept our rigid ideology as fact-based

Ignore reputable economists whenever they discreditus

Make sure that journalists mock anyone who speaksfor a majority of voters including Republicans as

extreme and even silly. (See latest example.)


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Stay away from real health reform! Medicare is a long-term deficit problem; in fact, its the

problem

Fixing Medicare means fixing our broken health caresystem

That means fixing for-profit health care

Musnt do that! Lots of money there for our clients

Solution: Dont fix our health problem. Just capMedicares budget. Then those costs are the old folksproblem not ours.


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Radicalize Washington; Marginalize

America First, make sure that centrist and bipartisan DC

accepts our program (see foll

Ignore poll results which show how unpopular ourprogram is

Make sure the media ignores them too

Explain that the American people arent practical

about the deficit, even though their preferredsolutions (ie, higher taxes on our clients) would workperfectly


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The Theology of CompromiseAfter building a consensus among DC power brokers,

we must marginalize anyone who disagrees

Compromise must become an ideal, rather than ameans to an end

Genuine differences of opinion must be dismissed asuncooperative, politicians placing politics over

getting things done


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Move the Center of Debate Keep proposing radical, far-right ideas

Marginalize journalists who point out that they are, in fact,extreme

Promote journalists who act as if they are actuallyreasonable

Moving the Center, together with the Theology ofCompromise, is the path to victory

Thought: If this works, by 2011 a Democratic President perhapseven one whose biography makes him fresh and different might endorse the idea that compromise with radical ideology ismore important than an ideal outcome. Lets think big!


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Create Our Own Experts Generously finance any economist willing to push our

ideas (Who can we get?)

Fund think tanks to push our ideas as nonpartisan,technical, and above old ideas of left and right(What do you think of this name? The Third Way.)

Remember: Were the ventriloquists.


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Create an Artificial Financial Panic Convince people that government debt will ruin their

lives

That means suppressing discussion of unemployment,

poverty, the need for health care and income securityin old age, etc.

Increased employment means more revenue forgovernment but not worth the risk that our clients

might have to pay for stimulus programs Government debt a real problem but lets exaggerate.

(How do we like the phrase financial Armageddon?Over the top? I say lets go for it.)


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Use Ratings Agencies Our Wall Street friends say Standard & Poors will say

whatever they want to say. (Can you believe howpliant these agencies are?)

Have them instill a panic at the appropriate times bythreatening to downgrade the US governments creditrating.


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Get Dems and moderate

observers on board Make sure we get some Dems to push our program.

(What do you think of that new kid Durbin? Hesfeisty, but hell come around.)

Get some fresh faces in journalism to go along

The fresh faces dont have to agree with us 100%

They just have to say our ideas are reasonable


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Conclusion Sure, our proposals are radical ..

But our plan is solid

It takes time, money, patience and confidence

Remember: It can be done,, ndwere the guys to do it.All we have to do is ..

think like winners!

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Selling the Middle Class Sell-Out