Archives for Drew McKissick

Basic Political Negotiation Techniques

July 9, 2024 by Drew McKissick in Grassroots Tips | Leave a comment

Sun Tzu1Grassroots politics or lobbying isn’t always just about conflict. Sometimes it’s about negotiating and compromise.

As Sun Tzu put it, “Better to take all under Heaven intact than to fight”. If you can “win” without having to fight, expend resources, or potentially make enemies that you might need as friends in the next fight, it’s always better.

There can be a lot of reasons to negotiate and compromise. From the reality that “you’re going to lose” to “even if you win it will cost too much to fight it out”…or maybe you just need to stall for time to fight later.  However you arrive at the decision, you need to be just as clear-eyed as to how to go about it as you would if you were starting a campaign.

Define Success

Before you negotiate anything, make sure that you do your homework. What’s the objective? What do you want or need? What represents a good deal? What could put you in a better position to fight the next battle and make more progress in the future?

What do the other guys need, and why? What kind of pressure are they under to make a deal? What are your strengths and weaknesses? What are theirs? Who needs to make a deal more?

Decide what you can afford to give up in order to get a good deal – and what you absolutely can’t negotiate. The more information that you have the stronger your position will be…and the less likely you’ll be to make a bad deal.

Have a Plan

Don’t fly by the seat of your pants. Make sure that you have a reason for every concession that you make…and that you get something in return for everything that you give up. Otherwise, it’s not much of a compromise.

Negotiate From Strength

Sometimes the whole point of going on offense with an over-reaching, unreasonable position is specifically to be able to win an easier victory by “compromising” the position back a little later on. Of course this just reinforces the principle that you should always be on offense to begin with.

But if you’re in a weak position, your best bet is to try to get something that will either make you stronger next time, or buy more time to get stronger.

Never Go First

It’s a basic principle of negotiation that you should never be the first one to name a price. Usually, that person loses. When you throw out the first offer, you’ve given away some valuable information to the other side about how weak or strong you may be. They will also know what you’re willing to give up…and then they’ll want more.

Shut Your Trap

Let the other side talk. You’ll learn more that way. Listen to what they’re saying…and what they’re NOT saying. They might tip their hand. You’ll get a better idea of what they really want or need.

Take Your Time

Don’t get in a hurry. When you do, you usually screw up somewhere. Make the other side invest time. People usually get impatient and want to “get it over with”…and then they mess up. Make sure that it’s the other side, not you.

Have an Out

Always keep something in your pocket that’s your “out” if things start to go the wrong way. Something you can blame it on when you have to call it off, without damaging a relationship that you might need later.

Be Willing to Walk Away

If you seem too eager to make a deal, you’ll look weak and they’ll take advantage of you. But if you go into a negotiation willing to just walk away, it will show – and make your position look stronger.

It’s Not Personal, It’s Business

Stay focused on the deal and the moving parts. Don’t let it get personal. In politics, the odds are that you may need to work with them again in the future. Don’t be so pushy that the other guys feel trapped. Give them some room. As Confucius put it, “Build a golden bridge of escape for your enemies”. Let them see the way out that you want them to take.

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Remember, political negotiating and compromise are just means to an end, the same as political conflict. Just be sure that you know what defines a win that will help advance the “ends”.

What churches Can and Cannot Do in Politics

June 24, 2024 by Drew McKissick in Grassroots Tips | Leave a comment

church and stateWhen it comes to politics in churches, there is a lot of confusion (especially on the part of pastors)about what type of political activities churches can engage in given their non-profit tax status.

Some believe that all political activity is out of bounds and would put that status at risk.  Wrong. 

Of course a lot of this confusion is generated by liberals who don’t want to see churches dominated by conservatives get more politically involved, (go figure). As a result, most of what pastors and church members hear about it being legally “taboo” is garbage.

The problem is that a lack of knowledge leads to fear…and that leads to inactivity and ineffectiveness.

The thing to know is that there is a LOT that churches can do that most of them currently don’t do.

Church based groups do have some limitations when it comes to political advocacy however.  In order to be more effective, (and avoid any problems), it is important to know what type of activities can and cannot be conducted in or by a church.

The Dos and Don’ts for Politics in Churches

A Church Can:

  • Conduct non-partisan voter registration drives
  • Conduct non-partisan voter identification drives to identify conservative voters
  • Conduct “get-out-the-vote” drives, encouraging conservatives to vote
  • Distribute non-partisan voter education information
  • Allow political candidates to address the congregation
  • Host candidate forums where all candidates are invited and allowed to speak
  • Educate church members on legislative matters
  • Lobby elected officials on behalf of specific legislation
  • Make expenditures on behalf of state referendums
  • Rent church member contact lists to favored candidates at fair market value
  • Pastors may endorse candidates as individuals, but not on behalf of a church

A Church Cannot:

  • Directly endorse candidates in the name of the church
  • Contribute money to a campaign, or make “in kind” contributions, (such as resources or services), to a candidate or party
  • Contribute to political action committees (PACs)
  • Distribute materials that endorse a particular candidate or political party
  • Pay for partisan political events with church funds
  • Allow candidates to solicit funds from the congregation (from the pulpit)
  • Create a church political committee that would do any of the above

The bottom line is to avoid any partisan preferences in any activity done on behalf of the church itself.

However, what people do on their own time is their own business.   Once they are registered to vote, or receive information that educates them on how various candidates stand on important faith and family related issues, it probably won’t take them long to figure out who to support.

Encourage your church to do what it can do and get engaged!

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Related entries:

(You can find tips like this and much more in my “Grassroots 101: Grassroots Training Series”.)

How conservatives can impact the political system

June 15, 2024 by Drew McKissick in Grassroots Tips | Leave a comment

keys to impacting political systemSo, you want to make a difference in the political system on the things you care about?  But how should you go about it?

When it comes to being effective politically, there’s no great mystery.  But there are some time tested basics to successfully impacting the political system.

Generally speaking, there are three keys to impacting the political system:

  1. Identify and organize your supporters
  2. Inform them
  3. Mobilize them

Without identified people that are willing to help, you have no organization.

Without information, people will not know how to proceed, let alone when, where or why.

And without mobilization towards a given objective, an organization lacks a reason to exist and will quickly fade away.

These three simple steps constitute the fundamentals of successful grassroots politics at every level and can help you build a successful local organization from the ground up.  Embrace them and you’ll be on the path to achieving your goals.

So how do you get started?

Your first order of business is to identify a small core group of people who share your views and a vision for what you want to do.

Think of it as a sort of “steering committee”.  When small groups come together and direct their energies in pursuit of a common goal, leverage and synergies are achieved.  They begin to feed from one another and keep each other enthused.

Get together and discuss the different areas each of you would like to focus on and what you believe is important. Develop a consensus and then decide who will do what.

Then pool your resources.

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Get more tips like these in my “Grassroots 101 Training Series“.  Check it out!

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