As The Way to Win demonstrates, the most vital goal for any presidential candidate is to keep control of his or her public image.
JOHN KERRY: FRENCHMAN
In 2004, the Bush campaign cast John Kerry as weak, indecisive, and out of touch. One could argue that the Republicans had a decent case on these points. But the Bush campaign and its allies also found ways to portray John Kerry as, well, French -- which he is not. And in 2004, French meant supercilious, elitist, anti-war, anti-American, and anti-freedom. By the end of the race, the Republicans, using all sorts of modern messaging techniques, had gotten inside Kerry's head, rattled him, and fully Jacquified him. See how they did it here.
Watch the extended version of this video, featuring Sam Donaldson, here.
HILLARY CLINTON: TAKING BACK CONTROL
In the 1990s, Hillary Clinton lost control of her public image, in ways that damaged her husband's presidency and nearly destroyed her own professional ambitions. She was painted as an arrogant, power-hungry, corrupt, harsh, hypocritical liberal. Then she began studying the successes and failures of Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Karl Rove, and recovered and rehabilitated her persona. These days, even many of her detractors grudgingly accept the alternative picture promoted by her political team and her public admirers. Now, she is seen as a competent, thoughtful, hard-working, determined, principled role model. The Way to Win explains how Clinton pulled off this transformation. This video shows you the difference between before and after.
Watch the extended version of this video, featuring Sam Donaldson, here.
