In politics, you’re either on message or you’re losing. Let’s get to it.
Welcome to On Message, a weekly look at where the battle lines are drawn and who is winning the war of words.
This week… Construct a Narrative.
Last week, the Salt Lake Tribune published a story with a headline posing the question, “Why is Utah spending hundreds of thousands for a building and a fence at Gov. Cox’s home in Fairview?”
The story outlines an increase in the Executive Protection budget – part of the Utah Highway Patrol and the Utah Department of Public Safety – of some 260-thousand dollars.
That money was appropriated to build a security station and add security fencing to the private home of Governor Spencer Cox, who has made his rural Utah roots and a determination to stay connected to his home community a part of his campaign and agenda.
The story frames the narrative that this is no run-of-the-mill state construction project and that the cost was concealed within the budget – all while posing the larger question of whether or not this is an appropriate use of taxpayer funds.
So, the Cox team was faced with a choice about how to counter the story.
The first question to ask in a situation like that is whether the story poses a threat. Will it become enough of an issue that it hinders other things you’re working on? Will it do any damage to the overall brand? Things like that.
If the facts are on your side, getting your side of the story out is almost always the best way to go.
The Governor and his team used a two-pronged strategy to do just that.
Spokeswoman Jennifer Napier Pierce gave the Trib the very minimum via an emailed statement saying, ““This project is the result of recommendations by the Department of Public Safety. In light of security concerns, we can’t offer further information.”
But they didn’t stop there.
Governor Cox also posted a 12-tweet thread in which he clarified the building was scaled down, that he offered to pay for the upgrades himself, that they looked for cheaper options and that Legislative leadership was fully briefed on the threats and expenditures – though they are not detailed in the budget for, you know, security reasons.
So here’s my take:
First on the expenditure: We spend money to protect our high-ranking elected officials because there is a real threat. There are crazy people who want to skirt the system and try to hurt or intimidate the people we elect to lead and run our state.
And, while the Governor’s Mansion sounds like a great place to live, it’s really more of a museum with an apartment on one floor.
We can’t blame the governor – whoever he or she is – for wanting to spend time at his or her actual home, whether that’s in Salt Lake City or Sanpete County.
Providing the state’s chief executive with security wherever he lives is a reasonable expense. The entire 4.8 million dollars for protective measures is a rounding error in a 25-billion dollar state budget. Consider it part of the cost of doing business.
As for the messaging strategy… what I find most compelling is how effectively Governor Cox uses his twitter account to work around a media outlet I’m sure he considers less-than-friendly.
Rather than simply replying to the Tribune, his tweet thread was sure to gain attention and any follow up coverage from TV, radio and other outlets was going to use his perspective. In a way that seemed less-formal than an official statement, he addressed the elements of the story he wanted to and didn’t add to any exclusive coverage the Trib would have had otherwise.
He also gave his supporters the ability to respond and extend the reach of his message.
The governor’s ability to use his twitter account to connect directly to his audience *and* its overall usefulness for side-stepping the media is a significant advantage.
This wasn’t likely to be a big story that had the entire state talking. But Governor Cox moved swiftly and effectively to nip it in the bud.
That’s it for this week.
More On Message in the next issue of the Utah Political Underground.
Make sure you visit the site and sign up for our weekly email update. You can find more On Message videos, in-depth Utah political stories and analysis, plus podcasts and more at utahpoliticalundergound.com.
