Back in the late 1970s or early 1980s — my mind’s too pickled with Milwaukee-based products to remember specifically — a popular incumbent from the Midwest was being challenged by a wealthy outsider. For more than half a year, the challenger blanketed the district with glitzy TV commercials, filled with booming, patriotic music in the background and gorgeous images of the challenger walking confidently through the grazing lands of a prosperous, all-American cattle farm — his head held high, squinting stoically into the sunset.
The incumbent did nothing in response. No commercials, no rebuttal, no comment. And every opinion poll showed the incumbent in deep trouble.
Meanwhile, the wealthy challenger continued his ad blitz: Each TV spot featured the closing image of him strolling confidently with his head held high, dreaming of a better tomorrow, gazing stoically into the sunset. By the time the election was just a month away, pretty much everyone in the district had seen his commercial at least once.
That’s when the incumbent called a press conference and offered a one-sentence rebuttal: “What kind of moron walks around in a pasture full of cow manure, staring at the sky?”
Boom.
It was a PR killshot: The single, devastating sentence that changes everything.
They’re rare. Years can go by without one. But when you have an opportunity to launch one, you’ve gotta put the pedal to the metal.
(As for that Midwest congressional race, you can guess what happened: The outsider became a laughingstock — the “moron” knee-deep in cow [expletive]. All those ads backfired. Basically, he bankrolled his own demise.)
I witnessed a PR killshot during one of the very first political campaigns I ever worked on, back in 1994 (well, volunteered on: I was a lowly College Republican chairman/binge drinker).
Ollie North’s ill-fated Senate campaign in Virginia.
For a long time, Ollie North bragged about being “the most investigated man on this planet.” It was part of his stump speeches, referencing his “notoriety” from the Iran-Contra affair. I had heard it dozens of times.
He tried that line during the first senatorial debate, which also featured Virginia Gov. Doug Wilder (running as an independent): “I’m the most investigated man on this planet!” North declared.
Wilder immediately shot back, “There might be a very good reason for that to be the case.”
Boom.
(The line was quickly removed from future stump speeches.)
To be fair, that single line didn’t destroy North’s chances. Wilder was an outsider who later dropped out; he lacked the institutional advantage of his party’s PR machine and failed to gain traction on his own.
But it reinforced a narrative that haunted North ‘til the very end. In the same election cycle that saw historic Republican gains all over the country — including winning a majority in Congress for the first time in 40 years — Democratic Sen. Chuck Robb won reelection in then-red Virgina.
Donald Trump delivered a pair of PR killshots in his 2024 debate with Joe Biden. The first was his response to President Biden’s bizarre claim of having “finally beat Medicare.” (Trump: “He beat it to death.”)
The second was his comeback to Biden’s stream-of-senility rant about the “total initiative relative to what we’re going to do with more Border Patrol and more asylum officers.” (Trump’s response: “I really don’t know what he said at the end of that sentence. I don’t think he knows what he said either.”)
Boom. After that, Biden was dead man walking. (Even more so, I mean.)
PR killshots: When you have an opportunity to use ‘em, you’re committing political malpractice if you don’t use it. And speaking of which…
PRedictions: Yesterday, we discussed National Review breaking the story of Virginia’s Democratic attorney general candidate, Jay Jones, fantasizing about murdering his political enemies.
What caught my eye was the timing: The texts were provided by Republican House Delegate Carrie Coyner. (Well, National Review doesn’t say that explicitly. The article said: “In a series of text messages obtained by National Review…” but I assume that’s code for “Coyner gave us the story” because Jay Jones sure as hell didn’t.)
Jones: Three people, two bullets
Gilbert, hitler, and pol pot
Gilbert gets two bullets to the head
Spoiler: put Gilbert in the crew with the two worst people you know and he receives both bullets every time
Coyner: Jay
Please stop
Jones: Lol
Ok, ok
Coyner: It really bothers me when you talk about hurting people or wishing death on them
It isn’t ok
No matter who they are
Additionally, National Review provides the blow-by-blow account of a private phone call between Coyner and Jones, where Jones (allegedly) doubled down on his murder fantasies. Once again, that info certainly didn’t come from the Jones campaign. I could be wrong, but I strongly suspect this was something the GOP and Coyner were coordinating together.
Which means, the GOP was sitting on this info for months or years, waiting for just the right time to drop it.
Well done, guys! Bravo!
You don’t wanna waste a PR killshot by using it too early. Timing in politics is what location is to real estate: EVERYTHING.
PRojections: And speaking of Jay Jones, if I were the GOP, I’d capitalize on the PR killshot by rebranding him “Grand Theft Jones.”
That’s because, in addition to fantasizing about blasting his political opponents with a gun, he was also clocked driving 116 mph — and then spent 500 of his community service hours “working” on his own political action committee.
“Grand Theft Auto” is one of the top-selling video game series of all-time. (If you’re not familiar with it, ask your kids/grandkids.) It’s ultra-violent and very graphic, allowing users to shoot each other on U.S. streets, violate traffic laws, and indulge in their most bloodthirsty fantasies.
Younger Americans will instantly get the “Grand Theft Jones” association. Older Americans won’t… but the moniker “Grand Theft Jones” still conveys a deeply damaging PR image.
That’s why it’s so perfect.
I’d make a multimedia campaign, with AI videos of Jay Jones as a “Grand Theft Auto” video game character, living out his fantasies, hurtling 116 mph down the street, and murdering his enemies. Use his own text/phones messages as narration, too.
Don’t squander the PR killshot. Capitalize on it!
And I assume the GOP will. The benefit, after all, of sitting on this scandal for so long is, you had all the time in the world to plan your next steps.
I sure hope they’ve got something good in the cooker.
PRaise: To Donald Trump for moving heaven and Earth to bring peace to the Middle East. As of today’s writing, it remains unclear if Hamas will actually follow through and release the hostages.
I’d like to be optimistic, but y’know… Hamas is Hamas.
I’m guessing there’s more going on with these “negotiations” than we’re hearing. Namely, there’s a [feces]-ton of bribery going on: Hamas’ leadership is almost certainly seeking a big, fat sack of money on their way out.
They’ll never agree to release the hostages, disarm, and cede to the Israelis without getting something in return. In the Middle East, this kind of corruption is commonplace.
It’d almost be impolite NOT to offer a bribe!
But hey, if that’s the only way to free the hostages and stop people from dying, so be it. (Bribery gets a lot of negative media attention, but it’s a great way to coerce an immoral scumbag into doing what you want.)
However, I do worry about this provision of the peace deal:
The proposal offers Hamas members amnesty if they disarm and “commit to peaceful co-existence.” Those militants who wish to leave will be allowed to go into exile.
Exiled… WHERE, exactly? ‘Cause the foreseeable consequences of letting radicalized Hamas militants move in with the rest of us is obvious. From recruiting Islamists on social media to launching terrorist attacks in their host countries, that’s just asking for trouble.
PRedators: In the Washington Post’s article about Hamas accepting Trump’s plan to end the war in Gaza, one line stood out:
At various points over the past two years, Hamas has said giving up its weapons would be a red line even though the group was ready to relinquish political control over Gaza. Hamas officials have also said they would not release all of the hostages unless Israel withdrew the entirety of its forces from Gaza and provided guarantees that the war would not resume. But with nearly the entire Arab world backing Trump’s deal, the militant group now finds itself more isolated than ever. [emphasis added]
Ah, so you mean there’s a correlation between outside pressure and Hamas’ conduct? That “isolating” them is what’s helped us reach the precipice of peace?
Then the opposite must also be true: Those who went out of their way to support and promote Hamas are the ones who helped keep this bloody, horrible war going.
I’m looking at YOU, Greta Thunberg and AOC. I’m looking at YOU, European nations that rewarded Hamas by “recognizing an independent Palestine.” I’m looking at YOU, Queers for Palestine. I’m looking at YOU, pro-Palestinian Hollywood nudniks, who proudly wore Hamas’ branding and trumpeted their talking points, yet never said a word about freeing any of the hostages.
You’re the people who kept Hamas motivated. You’re the ones who gave them hope. And you’re the ones who made this war last FAR longer than it had to.
You all have blood on your hands.
