The Battle For Hearts And Minds
The most important battle over immigration policy isn't being fought on the streets of Los Angeles right now, but rather over the airwaves. This is the fight for public opinion, and it could go either way. If the public largely sides with Trump's immigration tactics, it will strengthen his hand. But if the public decides the tactics go too far then it will weaken him in the long run. How the events of this week are ultimately seen by the public could be the deciding factor. Is Donald Trump and his administration doing what the voters elected him to do, or is he vastly overreaching in a dictatorial fashion? That's the entire rhetorical battle in a nutshell.
Trump has always wanted to be seen as a strongman, of course. So to him, brutal tactics and overreacting are exactly what he wants to see. Trump, aided by the rightwing media echo chamber, would like the public to think that Los Angeles is in danger of being "burned to the ground" and that lawlessness reigns throughout the city. This is wildly inaccurate hyperbole, but that's never stopped him before. But he is in serious danger of people turning against him on the issue precisely because of the brutal tactics.
Trump, aided by all his zealous underlings, wants the public to see all immigrants as murderers, rapists, and child molesters. This is also wildly inaccurate hyperbole, which is only going to become more apparent as ICE runs out of actual criminals and increasingly just takes to the streets to round up anyone they feel like.
Trump started with a slight advantage in public opinion on the issue. In fact, immigration is one of the few things where Trump's poll numbers haven't (yet) gone completely underwater. But this public support is only an inch deep for many, since a lot of people agree that violent criminal immigrants should indeed be deported but when the question shifts to deporting people with no criminal history who have been here for a long time, or to splitting up families by just randomly deporting people, public opinion shifts to disapproval. Trump is bending over backwards to paint all immigrants with a very wide brush, by highlighting the actual violent criminals he is deporting -- but that's only a fraction of those being rounded up. And the more workplace raids or street sweeps they perform, that percentage is going to get smaller and smaller.
Eventually, this is going to impact American citizens in ways that they do not expect. What will people say when hotels have to stop offering maid service or fresh towels -- because the people who cleaned and laundered aren't there anymore? How will parents looking for child care react when they can't find any, or the remaining options are far too expensive? What will people say when housing becomes much more expensive -- because there aren't enough workers to build it as fast? What will people say when meat or produce either becomes scarce or the prices go through the roof -- because the meatpacking plant workers and farmworkers are all gone?
The battle for public opinion isn't over, but like I said it could go either way right now. Democrats -- especially those from California -- have been taking the lead in making their case to the public. Governor Gavin Newsom is doing a good job so far explaining that there was simply no reason for Trump to call up 4,000 National Guard soldiers and 700 Marines, and the specter of seeing the U.S. military patrolling American city streets is a jarring one for many. Today, Senator Alex Padilla tried to question Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem during a California press conference, only to be manhandled out of the room, shoved to the ground, and handcuffed -- even though he had identified himself as a United States senator. That's another jarring image for the public to see.
To make their case, Democrats need to humanize the immigrants being rounded up to counter Trump demonizing and dehumanizing them. Show footage of the workplace raids and then ask: "This doesn't look like they're targeting criminals -- it looks like they're grabbing anyone they can to boost the number of arrests." Show men in full battle gear with no badges and no identification wearing masks over their faces just snatching people off the street, and ask: "Is this really America?" Show the families affected, complete with crying children. Tell the stories of the immigrants who have been working here for years, have built a life for their families, and have not committed any violent crimes at all. Show that Trump's insistence that all immigrants are murderers and rapists is a propagandistic lie. Tell the stories of people who were doing the right thing -- showing up for appointments with immigration offices or in court -- who were just snatched up and whisked out of the country.
That is how this public opinion battle can be won. Highlight the outrageousness and brutality of the tactics, and people will be faced with the reality of the situation rather than Trump's fantasies and lies.
This weekend, it is likely that the biggest anti-Trump protests of his second term will appear. The stage is set for Saturday, when Donald Trump will celebrate his birthday by holding the sort of big military parade that is normally associated with totalitarian societies. Protests had been planned for the day even before the Los Angeles protests began, but with the growing anger out there the Saturday "No Kings" protests will likely be a lot larger and garner a whole bunch more media attention than they probably would have.
Military parades aren't normal in America. The fact that Trump is blowing $45 to $50 million on his birthday parade is bad enough, but even some Republicans are worried about the message it sends. Senator Rand Paul was the most dismissive:
I've never been a big fan of goose-stepping soldiers in big tanks and missiles rolling down the street. We were always different than the images you saw of the Soviet Union and North Korea. We were proud not to be that.... I'm not proposing that that's the image people want to project, but I'm worried about the image that it isn't necessarily the best image to show.
That's from a Republican, mind you. And Trump is already ramping up his strongman tactics in preparation for the protest marches that will happen on the same day, saying: "For those people that want to protest, they're going to be met with a very big force. And I haven't even heard about a protest, but you know, this is people that hate our country, but they will be met with very heavy force."
Peacefully protesting the government isn't just as American as apple pie, it is a right guaranteed to all in our founding document. The right of the people "peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances" is right there in the First Amendment, proving once again that Trump has never bothered to read the U.S. Constitution. As far as Trump is concerned, anyone protesting him automatically hates America and should be "met with very heavy force." If this happens in Washington on Saturday, it will provide a jarring contrast -- soldiers and tanks marching through the streets for the Dear Leader's birthday while others brutally attack protest marchers.
Donald Trump overreacted in Los Angeles. There was no need for almost 5,000 soldiers on the city streets. For the area they are actually protecting, this is absurd -- hundreds upon hundreds of soldiers for every streetcorner? The area where the protests have occurred is roughly half a square mile. Where are all those soldiers even going to fit?
If Trump overreacts to protests in Washington in the same fashion he has in Los Angeles, he'll only be making Democrats' job easier. Because the real battle isn't for the streets themselves, the real battle is for the hearts and minds of all the rest of the Americans who watch it unfold on television.
-- Chris Weigant
Follow Chris on Twitter: @ChrisWeigant
Good points, all. But by putting the question as one of public opinion, based on media and messaging, you risk nullifying your conclusion that "the real battle is for the hearts and minds of all the rest of the Americans who watch it unfold on television."
Yup. Just so. And there are two, not one "televisions" that the rest of the Americans watch: the more generally open and honest network or moderate cable channels, and the right-wing propaganda channels that only show footage that echoes the Republican administration's party line of the day.
From my more right-wing friends or acquaintances, for days now I've been hearing lines like "What about those riots in LA?" or "Who'd have thought we'd need troops to suppress all the violence - thank goodness they're there."
So, if to win the "public opinion battle" means "Highlight the outrageousness and brutality of the tactics", etc. - just how do we do that, absent the use of mass media that only some of the people actually watch? There's no way Fox and the gang are going to highlight the outrageous and brutal tactics" - they're going to frame it all as justified against hardened criminals and violent rioters, just as the administration does.
Trump will overreact again and again in the weeks to come. He always does. But half the country doesn't ever see or learn that he is 'overreacting' - they see that he's strongly leading the nation against crime and anarchy etc. etc. blah blah blah.
The big question as the president increasingly turns to fascist-style tactics to suppress opposition and free speech, is how to get Americans to even realize that that is what he is doing, when they explicitly don't want to know that?
Just when Stephen Miller was really starting to unleash his inner monster, Fat Donny has gone all TACO on him. Right in the middle of Los Angeles burning to the ground, the orange one says he's going to allow illegals to stay if they pick strawberries or clean hotel rooms.
Now, of course, this means that Florida Man is officially endorsing illegal behavior. One cannot legally hire someone who is undocumented. Why are roofers exempted from all this law and order?
even if they are, their families aren't. it's like the "black codes" of the 1860's.
One cannot legally hire someone who is undocumented. Why are roofers exempted from all this law and order?
Many of those deemed “illegals” are folks who entered the country legally but who stayed after their visas said they had to leave. They stayed longer than they were supposed to, but they have the paperwork that says that they are cleared to work here. That is how they are able to get hired.
John M from Ct. [1]
Great post! Our country has two opposing news sources that tell only part of the story to their base. That part is what defines each political party's key talking points. Right-wing media constantly reports on how dangerous illegal immigrants are to our safety and highlights the threats they pose to our communities. They focus more on how much of your tax money goes to support and make life easier for these people at your expense.
Sadly, the liberal media has its own problems with reporting stories accurately. Rarely can you find the police being portrayed as doing their jobs correctly. I remember one article with the headline, “Police kill unarmed man during traffic stop.” The article’s tone throughout is one of questioning if race motivated the police to use deadly force for a traffic stop. Only at the bottom of the article do we learn that the driver refused to exit the vehicle when asked, ran over one officer trying to stop him, and was shot and killed by an officer the driver was aiming the car at. The officer who shot the driver was standing in front of children playing at a daycare that would have been run over had the driver not been stopped. The driver was “unarmed” only if you do not think a car can kill someone.
Sadly, it takes work to get a true picture of what is occurring in news stories today. Sometimes it is nothing short of shocking to see how different each side reports on a single story.