Member-only story
How to convince a skeptical public to support reparations
It’s all about framing
There’s a famous story about the Contract with America. If you’re like me, you’re old enough to remember the list of issues the Republicans pledged to pass within 100 days of electing a GOP majority in Congress in 1994. The idea behind the list was the brainchild of pollster Frank Luntz.
Luntz is well known for emphasizing the choice of language in describing issues. For example, he is credited with convincing the Bush administration to talk about “climate change” rather than “global warming,” and “energy exploration” rather than “oil drilling.” You can see the point. The goal is to use less scary language when discussing things you don’t want people to have a negative reaction to. This is called “issue framing.”
At any rate, the Contract with America helped the Republicans take control of the House of Representatives in 1994 — the first time they controlled it since Watergate — and made Newt Gingrich Speaker.
One policy idea that was actually not included in the Contract with America but many people think was, was the repeal of the estate tax. I’ll call it what it really is — an estate tax — because its better-known name is what this story is all about.
