Politics

Rating the Democratic Candidates’ Slogans

How are the campaigns branding themselves?

So many candidates! Twenty-five at last count, although by the time I click “publish,” six or seven of them may have thrown in the towel. (Rep. Eric Swalwell, who took part in the first round of televised debates, in June, dropped out last week. His slogan was “Go Big. Be Bold. Do Good,” but three short verbs didn’t sufficiently activate his supporters.)

All those candidates, but few signs of originality in their messaging.

Nine candidates — Cory Booker, Bernie Sanders, Amy Klobuchar, Beto O’Rourke, Pete Buttigieg, Tulsi Gabbard, Wayne Messam, Joe Sestak, and Tom Steyer — use only their first names in their logos. It’s a trend that goes back as far as 1948’s “Give ’Em Hell, Harry” and 1952’s “I Like Ike,” but which got a big boost in 2016, with “Jeb!,” “Hillary” and “Bernie” as first-name-basis contenders.

That’s a lot of sameness, and zero clear-cut messaging.

Beyond that major theme, I see a bunch of other trends. Here are my evaluations and letter grades for the 2020 Democratic slogans.

USA! USA! USA!

“America” is the most popular element in this cycle’s slogans, with three candidates simply (and unimaginatively) linking their names to the name of the country they’re hoping to lead. Joe Sestak, a former congressman from Pennsylvania, has the oddest twist on the…