By Sophia Ludtke ‘20, Commentary Editor  

There are those that say it like it is (“give ‘em hell, Harry!”), there are those that inspire (“Yes We Can”), there are those that go rogue (“Feel the Bern”), there are those that divide (“Make America Great Again”), there are those that unite (“It’s a new morning for America”), there are those that capture America’s hearts (“I like Ike”), and there are others that, well, just don’t exactly roll off the tongue (“Make America moral again. Make America return to the essence of who we are, the dignity of the country, the dignity of people and treating our people with dignity”). 

Stephen Colbert mocks Biden’s first stab at a campaign slogan. “Little awkward to say, I admit, but it’s going to look fantastic on his hat.” (https://twitter.com/colbertlateshow/status/1123386552581873664?s=20) 

For better or worse, presidential campaign slogans have power. 

Candidates must distill complex ideology, capture the essence of their campaign, and, perhaps most importantly, strike an emotional chord with Americans. Using just a handful of words, candidates must communicate their vision for our country. 

Indeed this is no small feat, especially for Democratic candidates faced with the challenge of defeating a President who has, after all, masterfully manipulated four divisive words into not just a campaign slogan but a brand. If Democrats are to defeat Trump in the 2020 election, campaign slogans must be thought of as more than just “complex distillations of political ideology.” They must be thought of as political weapons. 

Similar to how Trump’s “Make America Great Again” slogan voiced an emotionally resounding vision for our country, Democrats, too, must quit fumbling for words and precisely articulate how they plan to pick up the broken pieces of our country. 

As of yet, the 2020 contenders could use some improvement. Kamala Harris’s “For The People” is vague. Pete Buttigieg’s “A Fresh Start For America” sounds cautious. Cory Booker’s “We Rise” sounds vacant. Bernie Sanders’s “Not Me, Us” is counterproductive. Joe Biden’s “Our Best Days Still Lie Ahead” is wordy (though better than MAMAMARTTEOWEATDOTCTDOTPTOPWD). Elizabeth Warren’s is non-existent — technically, she has three contenders but has yet to definitively settle on one. 

Admittedly, in the face of a 2020 election that hinges on vital public issues such as health care, immigration, and climate change, parsing campaign slogans may seem insignificant.

But I would argue that weak Democratic campaign slogans are indicative of a larger problem: the failure of Democratic candidates thus far to build campaigns framed not around an offensive attack on our current President, but rather rooted in the protection of American values. 
Trump rekindled the idea of a historic American greatness, and Democrats too must reach into the American soul and articulate not what this country shouldn’t be but rather what it should be.