Bill Pascoe - Mourning in America

Mourning in America

Ronald Reagan proved that strong, principled leadership -- based on a belief in the traditional American values of individual liberty and limited government -- could lead a nation out of tough economic times and into a boom that lasted for more than two decades.

That was the thinking that underlay "Better, Prouder, Stronger," the centerpiece advertisement of the fabled "Morning in America" ad series that so brilliantly captured the zeitgeist of the Reagan era.

What made Reagan such a great leader was that he believed in the American people. He knew that if only the government would get out of the way, the people would do the rest.

"No crisis is beyond the capacity of our people to solve; no challenge too great," he said. And he believed it.

And he didn't buy the notion that the American Dream was about everyone being equal -- in fact, he specifically rejected that thought: "The American Dream," said Reagan in his final debate with Jimmy Carter, "is not that every man must be level with every other man. The American Dream is that every man must be free to become whatever God intends he should become."

Is it any wonder that with such an abiding faith in the American people, and such a deeply held belief in the American Dream, his leadership succeeded?

Now contrast that with Barack Obama and his apparent lack of faith in the American people and his clear misunderstanding of the American Dream.

Would a President who believed in the American people and the American Dream so casually brush aside their strongly stated objections to ramming through Congress major policies without votes, much less input, from the other side?

Would a President who believed in the American people and the American Dream so blithely issue orders to push the federal government into areas in which it has rarely, if ever, intruded?

Would a President who believed in the American people and the American Dream centralize so much decision-making in Washington, taking it out of the hands of individuals?

It's not just that his policies -- and his leadership -- have failed.

It's that he believes we aren't up to it.

Is it any wonder that Americans are depressed?

There is mourning in America.

That's the thinking behind this new ad, produced for Citizens for the Republic by Fred Davis, the political ad guru behind such notable ads as Jim Inhofe's 1994 tutu-ed thugs, John McCain's 2008  "Celeb" spot, and Carly Fiorina's 2010 "Demon Sheep."

The ad is a deliberate twist on the original 1984 Reagan campaign ad, and it uses nuance and subtlety to reach out to those Americans who aren't feeling angry, but sad.

Like the original 1984 Reagan campaign ad, it captures the zeitgeist of the Age of Obama.

Yes, there are many angry Americans across the land. We see them on TV every day.

But there are at least as many who are simply sad, many of whom have lost faith in the leadership of a class of liberal political elites who long ago lost faith in them -- if they ever had it in the first place.

The question is, how best to motivate them to get out and vote? How do you reach a portion of the electorate that's lost faith in a political elite that seems to have lost faith in them?

Says Davis, when "everyone else is shouting, a whisper can be the most powerful form of communication."

Here's hoping that for those who have lost faith, that whisper becomes a roar.

In 41 days, they'll have an opportunity to show Barack Obama he should not have lost faith in them. Because they are up to it.

See also: Citizens for the Republic 

See also: Bill Pascoe's Blog - In the Right