Every election cycle Republicans complain that we have a messaging problem. I think we have a bigger outreach problem. It doesn’t matter what our message is if someone isn’t listening to us to begin with. Who are we actually reaching with our messaging? Republicans! We’re preaching to the choir. However, based on personal experience and observation, I believe that at least 10 percent of Democrats, and even more Independents, align with Republican values, but don’t know it because they don’t actually know what either party really stands for. We saw some of them emerge in 2020. Many vote how they vote because that’s how their parents or peers vote. And let’s face it, in today’s cancel culture, it’s safe to be a Democrat. How do we reach these folks? In the only way possible–by interacting with them meaningfully and personally; by getting out of our own echo chamber, getting out in the world and forging meaningful 1-on-1 connections with them so they can see first-hand that we’re not fascist devils, and they begin to question their own assumptions.
