Warren Nerds Out and the Crowds Go Crazy
The Twitter exchange played out over several hours on April 11: “Many profitable companies pay nothing in corporate income tax. Elizabeth Warren has a plan to stop that,” Vox wrote, linking to one of its wonky explainers. “You bet I do,” Warren tweeted back.
Then a woman named Keely Murphy — a self-described bookworm, space enthusiast and feminist — replied back to the Massachusetts senator: “I would certainly buy a shirt that said ‘Elizabeth Warren: She’s Got a Plan for That.’”
Within days, the tweet — along with many others the campaign had been noticing expressing unbridled enthusiasm for Warren’s policy-heavy approach to her presidential candidacy — prompted the campaign to embrace the nerd-tastic meme. “I got a plan” has become a staple of her stump speech, often drawing loud applause. And Warren fans like Murphy can now purchase “Warren has a plan for that” T-shirts and tote bags from her website.
The bottom-up evolution of the slogan is a source of encouragement for the Warren campaign, perhaps a sign that the former Harvard professor’s policy-heavy bid is breaking through. Since January, she’s rolled out plans to break up tech companies, forgive over $600 billion in student loan debt, enact a 2 percent wealth tax, provide universal child care and more — lapping the Democratic field on both the volume and scope of policy proposals.
She regularly goes into the weeds when taking questions at town halls and sometimes cautions voters that she’s going to “nerd out” for a bit. Some of her supporters see the approach as a way to distinguish her as a heavyweight in a crowded 2020 field. And Warren’s embrace of “I got a plan” has coincided with a rise in her poll numbers over the past two weeks.
Some Democrats say it’s unclear whether voters will ultimately care about the policy rollouts. They point out that Hillary Clinton also had a well-staffed policy shop and that the flood of white papers didn’t always resonate with voters.
But for now, at least, Warren and her campaign think they might be on to something.
[ed. Imagine... running a campaign based on detailed policies (instead of slogans, generalities, vague 'ideas' and aspirations) then being criticized for being too "nerdy". See also: A Guide to Elizabeth Warren’s (Many) 2020 Policy Proposals (The Cut).]
The Twitter exchange played out over several hours on April 11: “Many profitable companies pay nothing in corporate income tax. Elizabeth Warren has a plan to stop that,” Vox wrote, linking to one of its wonky explainers. “You bet I do,” Warren tweeted back.
Then a woman named Keely Murphy — a self-described bookworm, space enthusiast and feminist — replied back to the Massachusetts senator: “I would certainly buy a shirt that said ‘Elizabeth Warren: She’s Got a Plan for That.’”
Within days, the tweet — along with many others the campaign had been noticing expressing unbridled enthusiasm for Warren’s policy-heavy approach to her presidential candidacy — prompted the campaign to embrace the nerd-tastic meme. “I got a plan” has become a staple of her stump speech, often drawing loud applause. And Warren fans like Murphy can now purchase “Warren has a plan for that” T-shirts and tote bags from her website.The bottom-up evolution of the slogan is a source of encouragement for the Warren campaign, perhaps a sign that the former Harvard professor’s policy-heavy bid is breaking through. Since January, she’s rolled out plans to break up tech companies, forgive over $600 billion in student loan debt, enact a 2 percent wealth tax, provide universal child care and more — lapping the Democratic field on both the volume and scope of policy proposals.
She regularly goes into the weeds when taking questions at town halls and sometimes cautions voters that she’s going to “nerd out” for a bit. Some of her supporters see the approach as a way to distinguish her as a heavyweight in a crowded 2020 field. And Warren’s embrace of “I got a plan” has coincided with a rise in her poll numbers over the past two weeks.
Some Democrats say it’s unclear whether voters will ultimately care about the policy rollouts. They point out that Hillary Clinton also had a well-staffed policy shop and that the flood of white papers didn’t always resonate with voters.
But for now, at least, Warren and her campaign think they might be on to something.
by Alex Thompson, Politico | Read more:
Image: Ethan Miller/Getty Images[ed. Imagine... running a campaign based on detailed policies (instead of slogans, generalities, vague 'ideas' and aspirations) then being criticized for being too "nerdy". See also: A Guide to Elizabeth Warren’s (Many) 2020 Policy Proposals (The Cut).]
