Our state's political sphere is over-flowing with people who are incompetent at communicating. Either through ignorance or neglect, far too many fall short at every level of engagement. Plus, some are simply bald-faced liars. They don't distinguish fact from fiction, they don't know how to give truthful speeches, they don't know how to answer simple questions, and they don't understand what it takes to connect honestly with other North Carolinians.
So we're all really lucky to have the chance to see a master communicator on the circuit: Jeff Jackson, representing North Carolina's 14th Congressional District.
It's impossible to summarize Jackson's messaging approach ... every communication I get from him is a work of art. So do yourself the favor of reading and watching what he's doing. Here's an example.
Any politician who wants to be more effective should study Jeff's strategy and then borrow as much of it as they possibly can. Of course, if you're a Mark Robinson kind of guy, Jeff's approach won't work. You can't be a hypocritical SOB and also communicate authentically.
Comments
Gary Pearce on Jeff
A nicely crafted review from a real pro.
He's working an angle...
Don't get me wrong, he is an asshole. But ever since his pro-gun speech at the Greensboro City Council, he's been carving out his very own Uncle Tom niche, knowing that if he made racist white people more comfortable, the gravy train would keep steaming along.
There are some people who are driven to be different than everybody else, and it molds them into being a mega contrarian. There's probably some deep-rooted self-esteem issues at play, but he's getting too close to genuine power for me to feel any sympathy. He must be stopped, at all costs.
Agree
100%
A hired shill
The thing to keep in mind about Robinson is that this isn't just about him.
Robinson's run for governor wouldn't have been possible without the support of the NC GOP and several key right-wing donors. If you look at Robinson's campaign donation reporting at Open Secrets and do some poking around, as I did a few months ago, you find that he tapped into a network of out-of-state donors that also give to figures like DeSantis and Ted Cruz.
Robinson's campaign had a big push, just after his Greensboro speech, by Charlie Kirk's Turning Point USA, an extremist right-wing group that is raising holy hell on college campuses against "woke" professors and promoting a Trumpian agenda.
After Robinson got in office, he had an autobiography released by a right-wing publishing house as a promotional tool to set the stage for his run for governor or Federal office. His main little project while in office has been his anti-gay and anti-woke agenda against public schools and universities, closely paralleling efforts in states like Florida.
Before his Greensboro speech, Robinson was just a guy with a YouTube channel with a few dozen subscribers. Either before or after the speech, Robinson was recruited and funded by a group of well-heeled players in far-right politics.
Robinson is a hired shill - an empty shell, pushing out an agenda for money. That's all he is.
The explainer
Seems like everyone is jumping on the Jackson bandwagon. Our friend Thomas Mills has this take:
The Explainer
Give a read to this long-ish
Give a read to this long-ish piece from Politico, subtitled: "A former evangelical tracks the rise of white Christian nationalism — and looks ahead to where the movement goes next."
https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2023/01/27/apocalypse-coming-christian-nationalism-00079317
The Apocalypse has been coming
for decades, at least according to my ex-wife. Seriously, 1980's, 1990's, 2000's, 2010's, and the last time I talked to her a few weeks ago. It's exhausting.