Persuasion and Public Opinion - Assignment Example

? Persuasion and Public Opinion Persuasion and Public Opinion Persuasion is one the major techniques used by the government officials to create positive public opinions. It actually works in step by step manner where first the psychological, physical and emotional needs of the person are touched. This subsequently leads to more substantial benefits or losses that a person might face after accepting or rejecting a proposed idea. After the government shutdown the political parties, democrats, republicans, President Obama himself and the media used extensive persuasion in order to build a solid public opinion which could support their respective goals and objectives. Persuasion usually relates to convincing someone regarding an idea which is generally considered controversial (Larson, 2012). This paper aims to discuss the US government shutdown which took place on October 1, 2013, when the new fiscal year was started without a budget plan (Sahadi, 2013). There were several reasons which initiated such a huge conflict between Democrats and Republicans. Persuasion and public opinion played a vital role in the overall situation because the political parties, government officials and the media personnel used different tactics in order to convince people about their position. President Obama tried to persuade people to support him while on the other hand the Republicans tried hard to oppose Obama’s actions. Additionally the after comes of October 1, 2013 event would be discussed. Introduction On October 1, 2013, America stimulated a fractional shutdown of the government. This primarily happened because the ruling political party was unable to accept the idea of reducing the federal spending. Consequently, the national government had to undergo a shutdown which affected thousands of government officials whereas most of the important government services were delayed (Sahadi, 2013). In broader terms, Congress refused to pass a funding bill on September 30, 2013 which gave rise to highly complex situations which eventually break down the government (Sahadi, 2013). This happened first time in the last 17 years and the places such as the Statue of Liberty were suddenly closed (Cowan, 2013). America had been facing significant controversies over the budget since 1970 and last time in 1995 the government was shut down because of the dispute over the entire fiscal policy. However, this time the basic argument revolved around the Obama Care. In order to further understand the real reasons for the shutdown it is important to first analyze the Care Act of President Obama which is primarily responsible to ensure affordable healthcare throughout the nation. As the name indicates the Obama Care is solely based upon providing accessible health opportunities to the American people. It was initiated in 2010 whereas people are required to get their registrations until 2014 (Repeal ObamaCare or Defund ObamaCare?, 2013). Thereafter they would be able to gain extra health benefits including all the preventive services. Additionally it will give the health insurance by simply regulating the existing laws and increasing the rights of the insurers. Obama Care became the main cause of shutdown in October 2013 because the Republicans were aiming to defund it. In fact they insist that the new budget must disrupt the funding for the affordable care act of Obama while in contrast to this the Democrats persist over their position and refuse to accept the bill (Cowan, 2013). Reaction of Republicans and Democrats Although the healthcare law isn’t directly associated with the budget of US government or the financial plans but it has been used as a persuasive technique by the Republicans. For instance, they argued that the President’s domestic policy is going to severely harm the country and its economic position. This was further related with the much deeper ideas of the Affordable Care Act and the Patient Protection which actually requires the American people to go for a health insurance. Consequently, the employers would be affected and the finances would go beyond the limits of federal government. In addition to this, the Republicans also tried to gain the weightage of public opinion by stating that the burden on employers in form of medical taxes would eventually increase the chances of oversea jobs (Cowan, 2013). Republicans basically tried to persuade the employers so as to gain their consent and support in the entire case. They did so because the medical taxes and insurances are largely supposed to increase the expenses of employers. However, later we will analyze that their persuasion technique proved to be wrong since employers are significantly less in number as compared to the general public benefitting from the Affordable Care Act and supporting Democrats. Hence it can be said that although the Republican’s persuasion strategy was good but they failed to convince the majority on the basis of complex ideas such as the economic calculations which are difficult for a common man to understand. Larson states that political campaigns are not only based upon simple debates rather they encompass much more than that (Larson, 2012). For instance, if we analyze the language and tone used by republicans then it is clearly evident that they were strict in words. However, they should have used humility in order to persuade people and to gain their opinion. Additionally, the primarily focus of republicans argument was over the long term affects of Affordable Care Act however, in the modern culture generally people are negligent towards the future losses especially when it comes to sacrificing their present interests. Larson also argues that a persuasion technique might fail if the persuader already have negative image in front of the audience (Larson, 2012). Since republicans’ credibility was already weak as compared to Democrats and Obama therefore most of the people opposed them even before the initiation of their convincing campaign. In contrast to this the Democrats defended themselves by stating that the Obama Care Act will actually increase public access to the quality healthcare opportunities while on the other hand it will also help in reducing the medical coverage costs. They persuaded people that the Affordable Care Act protects people from being humiliated at the healthcare centers despite of having a medical insurance. Moreover, the additional charges and the indirect payments related to medical emergencies would be removed (Yan, 2013). In the American culture people are highly concerned about their general health and government benefits in this regard. Since Democrats persuaded them right on the point therefore they successfully gain the majority public opinion. Furthermore, the role and image of democrats is far better than the republicans as they are the ruling party and also because of the services they are extending to common people. This actually strengthened the overall persuasive position of Democrats. After building up a strong public opinion the senate house primarily dominated by the Republicans entered two bills which required amendment in the upcoming budget. The first amendment was regarding the delay of Obama Care Act until the next year whereas the second amendment canceled the additional medical device tax associated with the Affordable Care Act of Obama. The Democrats’ negatively reacted to the bill and its subsequent amendments. They instantly refused to make any changes to the Obama Care. Next time the Republicans had another bill passed into the senate which had a proposal of removing the Obama Cara as a separate law or a legal entity. This was also rejected by the Democrats which eventually setup the ground for the national government shutdown (Yan, 2013). Persuasion used by Obama President Obama used strong persuasive methods in order to gain the majority public opinion. He along with his supporters argued that defunding Obama Care isn’t anything easy although it seem very simple. It is basically a huge law based upon significant provisions. Some of them require government funds while others don’t. On the other hand many of the provisions are actually the required reformations in the existing healthcare law. This does not burden the employers in anyway rather it will help them out in leading a better life. Furthermore, the objections of Republicans would not really stop the operations of Obama Care rather it will only affect some of its parts (Repeal ObamaCare or Defund ObamaCare?, 2013). This is further substantiated on the basis of the positive impacts that the Act will bring. For instance, people would not be denied for medical treatments due to various health insurance policies neither they would have to pay additional charges. Obama Care will eliminate the gender discrimination or the major healthcare treatment differences between the rich and poor. However, if the Affordable Care Act had been dismissed then people particularly working in companies such as Taco Bell and McDonalds would not be able to gain health insurance benefits. Moreover, the American government is spending so much over the healthcare that if no reformations are brought to the current law then soon the country would encounter bankruptcy (Repeal ObamaCare or Defund ObamaCare?, 2013). In broader perspective, President Obama was very clear about his health care programs and therefore he strictly concentrated over the health benefits people will enjoy in the current economic situation. As far as language is concerned then Obama did not used any complex terminologies rather he talked with high humility and concern for the disadvantaged groups of the society. This actually played a vital role in Obama’s overall persuasion campaign. Moreover, he enjoys a good position and prestige in the society and therefore people were already passing judgments in his favor. This can be further substantiated on the basis of the fact the persuader’s public image significantly helps him in gaining the public support even before starting a political convincing campaign (Larson, 2012). Role of media Politicians, democrats, republicans and the President Obama tried to persuade people with their unique tactics and logical reasoning. However, the role of media remained crucial in the whole situation. It majorly focused over the economic, social and individual losses the country and people are facing. For instance, the media discussed the severe outcomes of the government shutdown while leaving apart the reasons for such a massive action. Approximately 800,000 employees associated with the government services were forced to get off their jobs because of the shutdown (Yan, 2013). This subsequently affected the economic position of USA. Although the outcomes were not anticipated to be severe enough to create any threat against the economic development however, it must have turned into something devastating if the shutdown lasted for long. The rough calculations reflected the economic impact might be greater than 10 times as compared to the simple loss of federal workers’ wages. For instance, a 3 to 4 week national US government shutdown can cause $55 billion cost to the economy (Yan, 2013). In addition to this, the media such as CNN also reflected upon the affects that people might face on individual basis. For instance, if someone wants to buy house, need a gun license or even a passport then he would have to wait for a long time. However, in case of mails and social security there would be no significant changes in duties (Yan, 2013). Analysis The national government shutdown in USA was finally ended on October 17, 2013 when the President Obama signed the bill. However, the bill did not address the key conflicting issues between democrats and republicans which primarily revolved around Obama Care. The issue is actually delayed until January 2014 after which the political parties, media and general public are again expecting the same debate over the funding of Affordable Care Act (Cohen, 2013). The end of the entire shutdown of government activities and the delay of issues relating to Obama Care reflects that President was significantly successful in persuading people regarding his position. Moreover, he made very clear that the Obama Care Act is actually in favor of the public while the demand of republicans regarding the dismiss of its funding is absolutely unacceptable. Although the persuasion techniques used by the Republicans in order to achieve the majority consent were substantial but they failed to impact the emotional and psychological senses of the American people. They basically talked about the general harms of Obama Care and how it will affect the nation as a whole. In contrast to this President Obama mentioned the individual benefits of the reformed healthcare law and the possible outcomes of bankruptcy if America does not immediately introduce any medical amendments. The role of media remained somewhat neutral in the entire situation as they were more concerned about the negative effects of government shutdown while leaving apart the real dispute between democrats and republicans. In one or the other the media also supported the persuasive techniques of President Obama by not disclosing the positive impacts of reducing the funds of Obama Care or even the complex details of the Affordable Care Act which might be influential for the people. Hence people were eventually convinced to believe that Obama Care Act is in their benefit and that the republicans must not try to reduce its funding. Conclusion Persuasion and public opinion plays a major role in the entire government formation and the ruling strategies. The person having a strong positive public opinion ultimately wins over the opposition. This become even more significant if the senate has encountered a national dispute regarding the acceptance of any bill as it happened in the case of government shutdown. The above discussion and analysis substantiated the research of Larson that people are successful in persuading others when they can benefit them physically or psychological as the President Obama did. References Cohen, T. B. (2013, Oct 17). Obama signs bill to end partial shutdown, stave off debt ceiling crisis. Retrieved Nov 30, 2013, from CNN: International. Cowan, R. &. (2013, Oct 1). White House rejects latest Republican offer to end shutdown. Retrieved Nov 30, 2013, from Reuters. Larson, C. (2012). Persuasion: Reception and Responsibility, 13th ed.: Reception and Responsibility. USA: Cengage Learning. Repeal ObamaCare or Defund ObamaCare? (2013). Retrieved Nov 30, 2013, from Obama Care Facts. Sahadi, J. (2013, Oct 1). Shutdown: What happens next. Retrieved Nov 30, 2013, from CNN: Money. Yan, H. (2013, Oct 1). Government shutdown: Get up to speed in 20 questions. Retrieved Nov 30, 2013, from CNN: International. Read More