Why don't they just stick to the issues? And is it just me, or do you find that Republicans tend to do this more often than Democrats?
2007-10-27 16:30:53 · 14 answers · asked by Anonymous in Politics & Government ➔ Elections
Unfortunately most people fall victim to this "negative advertising" because they are not smart enough to realize that just because one candidate is wrong/bad that the oppenent is not necessarily right/good. It's a sad fact, but it just works-find some b.s. moral/political reason your opponent is unfit and suddenly you are seen in a god-like light (or at least enough to get elected). It's all about finding a way to distract from the real issue. This isn't always true, but if a candidate does this, they are probably too weak to win by just showing the good side of themselves and must exploit (often slanderous) flaws of their opponents (except that unfortunately they almost all do that these days). And yes, republicans do this far more often. Not to get to political...well i guess i won't...all i'll say is "Think what that might tell you about republicans." But don't listen to me, i am a heathen swine who doesn't embrace their "good" christian values (admittedly they're not all christian), so oh no, i must be a damn communist...NOT!!
2007-10-27 17:37:04 · answer #1 · answered by kreacher92 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Both parties are guilty of it to some degree. The Republicans have just gotten much better at it much quicker.
The reason for it is that it is easier for folks to figure out who they do not like than to figure out how to solve major problems. The result is campaigns run on bullet points rather than details and why I am a nice guy and my opponent is a(choose negative term or terms describing your female opponent).
I was involved in a local race a couple of years back helping a candidate who ran no negative ads and had some very good ideas. The last three weeks of the campaign, he was hit by ads bringing up every negative thing they could find in his record (including some things that were not true). There was not one ad from the other side discussing any of his substantive proposals The result was a 52-48 loss.
Bottom line is that people run negative ads because they work.
Other thing is that different people have different ideas of a negative ad. I personally do not consider it to be a negative ad if you run an ad pointing out that your opponent has voted to cut a particular program (as long as the vote is taken in context). I do consider it a negative ad if you say that your opponent is a liberal who can't be trusted or if you take a vote out of context (e.g. if the vote was for a bill that cut funding for one program but increased funding for a different program).
2007-10-28 04:03:23 · answer #2 · answered by Tmess2 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Politicians do this because they very rarely have anything of substance to talk about. It's all smoke and mirrors and mud-slinging.
Republicans and Democrats do this equally, but it seems the Democrats are better at spinning the facts while they do it to sway public opinion.
2007-10-28 10:23:23 · answer #3 · answered by Brian R 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
They have no real Ideas about the Country, Taxes, Social Wefare and other important matters. So they revert to ripping each other apart. Does not achieve much but takes up time while they are spruiking this C*ap.
2007-10-28 03:52:29 · answer #4 · answered by Dick E knee 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Depending on what side you are on you tend to see that the other side is at fault more often than your own. My impression is that the Demos are much more vicious than the republicans. That is why I changed party in the recent years, that and I found that the Demos were sounding more and more treacherous.
2007-10-27 23:46:09 · answer #5 · answered by scarlettt_ohara 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
First of all, it's just you. Both parties are equally guilty of this. The reason they do this in my opinion, is to take the spot light off of the fact that they are not qualified or have very little knowledge of the issues and no plans to fix anything.
2007-10-28 00:11:22 · answer #6 · answered by Cinner 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Well Comrade Hillary does it because she knows that her platform of creating the United Socialist States of America, is not a winner.
2007-10-27 23:54:50 · answer #7 · answered by satcomgrunt 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Politics is all about public relations man! Others may view it as a Patriotic service but basically it is still a career... they must show the public who deserves their votes....that simple!!!
2007-10-27 23:42:08 · answer #8 · answered by billy joel c 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Because they can't take any stand on serious issues, or they lose some voters. Our political system is a joke.
2007-10-28 00:30:17 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Because that's what we buy. That's what we vote for.
Simple solution:
NEVER vote for someone who spreads unfounded rumors.
NEVER vote for someone who treats others as "guilty until proved innocent".
NEVER vote for someone who publicly berates our country rather than pointing out things for us to fix in a positive way.
NEVER vote for someone who acts seditiously.
EVEN BETTER! Vote for the person who speaks up against these things.
Simple solution.
2007-10-27 23:41:01 · answer #10 · answered by mckenziecalhoun 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋