Module 11

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Various politicians have utilized multiple strategies to ensure gaining the trust of voters. The “Southern Strategy” is among these numerous strategies utilized in politics. It was the plan utilized successfully by Nixon to boost voting among white voters, specifically in the south. His campaign heavily emphasized state’s rights, law, and order to draw white voters that were focused on racial integration. Various critics claimed that the language utilized in this particular strategy was a wrong response concerning the civil rights movement’s success and an appeal to racists. Thus, the entire “Southern Strategy” preface was a call to racism, particularly against the Blacks, to acquire white voters’ support in the south (Carter, 2013). Some movements that happened in the 1960s and 1950s resulted in more in-depth Southern racial tension than before. The movements consisted of the Voting Rights Act and Jim Crow Laws demolition.

Several approaches to the “Southern Strategy” existed throughout politics from multiple politicians such as George Wallace and Richard Nixon. Nixon’s “Southern Strategy,” when compared to Lee Atwater’s strategy, there was a relatively similar approach to the present issue, especially in examining the directions of the approaches. In his ill-famed interview, Lee Atwater talked about establishing a more theoretical way of handling America’s racial issues that would contribute to a considerable agreement among all people. He argued that Blacks are getting more abstract by talking about states’ rights and forced busing (The Nation, 2012). In addition, he said that his generation would be the Southerners’ initial generation that would not be biased. Therefore, Atwater’s strategy was similar to Nixon’s “Southern Strategy.”

George Wallace was specifically driven by raw emotions and rage, which resulted in him becoming an influence and power position. His utilization of religion and fear in the various speeches he made enabled Wallace to obtain a trusted following that believed all his words were laying a base for the republican party’s dominance. Thus, Carter showed his idea concerning ‘Wallace Factor’ by highlighting that “the trick for candidates who hoped to benefit from the ‘Wallace Factor’ was to exploit the grievances he had unleashed while disentangling themselves from the more tawdry trappings of his message”; this explained gathering a voter fundamental constructed on factors and performance showed by Wallace and simultaneously avoiding the unnecessary and profane elements that may contribute to the specific candidates losing various voters from varying localities (Carter, 2013). Thus, it meant in case a certain candidate had the ability to capitalize on these specific ideals without necessarily getting stuck in the message. Hence, they would obtain success at that point.

Atwater showed a similar political strategy in his infamous interview when arguing the Republican Party’s rise beginning the 1970s to 1990s. His strategy to encourage the Republican Party had similar agenda involving pleasing white southerners. However, he used a considerably subtle dialect to keep away from critics from various more liberal voters. Lee Atwater discussed support gained for the Republican Party utilizing various economic policies. These were to be the platform’s face, but these particular policies would affect the black race negatively. In addition, Atwater utilized varying tactics compared to different republicans, where he appealed to white extremists in a considerably mild way.

Carter, in contrast to Atwater, had a belief that the Republican Party’s rise, particularly in the south, was established on the base Wallace had developed. I agree with this idea of Carter because the vibration of such dramatized and religious politics is presently visible in the south. The southern fear and faith concerned with politics significantly reflect the passion visible in various of Wallace’s campaigns.

Moreover, Atwater’s approach utilized multiple similar tricks that Carter’s book describes; this included the cover he had concerning the fundamental racist strategies in his existing political manifesto. For instance, the “Wallace Factor” is among the described similar trick that exploited the demands that Wallace had seen from other people to ensure acquiring their trust and obtaining his position in the office. He was then to carry out what he desired after gaining office. Similarly, Atwater explained the similar tactic of communicating significant abstract issues and avoiding being more detailed on the campaign’s aims but progressing in gaining voters’ trust.

Willie Horton’s ads critics were fair to say that they were racism-masked ads. The primary focus while watching the ads involves how Dukakis desired to permit weekend prison passes and declined to be involved with the death penalty for individuals with first-degree murder convictions. An African American, Willie Horton, is among the inmate focused on the ads (RETRO REPORT, 2016). He was arrested for rape, murder, and robbery. Therefore, they chose a Black American rather than any inmate and utilized his race to affect Dukakis’ rally further, specifically fighting against the death penalty.

References

Carter, D. T. (2013). The politics of rage : George Wallace, the origins of the new conservatism, and the transformation of American politics. Louisiana State University Press.

RETRO REPORT. (2016). Willie Horton: Political Ads That Changed the Game | Retro Report. Www.youtube.com. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdJ97qWHOxo

The Nation. (2012). Exclusive: Lee Atwater’s Infamous 1981 Interview on the Southern Strategy. Www.youtube.com. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_8E3ENrKrQ