--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Many smart folks seem to think that if…" description: "\"Many smart folks seem to think that if you just get your metaphors and messages right, you'll win. That if you start describing what you favor as a 'mo..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/86c/eric-liu-9463_affordable_many-smart-folks-seem-to-think-that-if-y_1686367.jpg" --- # Many smart folks seem to think that if you just get your… ![“Many smart folks seem to think that if you just get your metaphors and messages right, you'll win. That if you start describing what you favor as a 'moral value' - 'affordable health care is a moral value' etc., - then you'll appeal to red-state voters.” quote by Eric Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/86c/eric-liu-9463_affordable_many-smart-folks-seem-to-think-that-if-y_1686367.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/86c/eric-liu-9463_affordable_many-smart-folks-seem-to-think-that-if-y_1686367.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/86c/eric-liu-9463_affordable_many-smart-folks-seem-to-think-that-if-y_1686367.jpg) > “Many smart folks seem to think that if you just get your metaphors and messages right, you'll win. That if you start describing what you favor as a 'moral value' - 'affordable health care is a moral value' etc., - then you'll appeal to red-state voters.” [Eric Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-liu/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Relying solely on moral framing of issues may not win voters; effective persuasion requires broader strategies beyond just metaphors. **In simple terms:** Moral arguments alone often fail to persuade; use diverse tactics. Key Takeaway Combine moral framing with practical solutions. Themes politics communication strategy values persuasion Mood analytical strategic cautious Type political analytical strategic When to use this quote - campaign speeches - policy debates - grassroots organizing - media interviews Key Concepts political science rhetoric behavioral economics Questions to Reflect On - What alternative framing resonates with skeptical voters? - How can you test message effectiveness before a campaign? A Different Perspective Moral framing can alienate audiences who feel judged. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Affordable health care](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affordable-health-care/) [Care](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/care/) [Health](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/health/) [Health care](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/health-care/) [Messages](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/messages/) [Moral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral/) [Smart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smart/) [Value](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/value/) [Voters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/voters/) ## Related quotes > [We care about moral issues, nobility, decency, happiness, goodness—the issues that matter in the real world, but which can only be addressed, in their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/we-care-about-moral-issues-nobility-decency-happiness-goodness-the/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [Nothing is more important to our shared future than the well-being of children. 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I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/unquestionably-consider-that-that-you-teatsd-your-favorite-reason/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Good people can't out-think evil, cause evil thinks of things good folks can't think of.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/good-people-can-t-out-think-evil-cause-evil-thinks-of-things-good/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [God must have a weird sense of values, and if there's a Judgment Day, as some folks think, He's going to have a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-appleman/god-must-have-a-weird-sense-of-values-and-if-there-s-a-judgment-day/) [Philip Appleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-appleman/) > [The great man is not so great as folks think, and the dull man is not quite so stupid as he seems. The difference…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/the-great-man-is-not-so-great-as-folks-think-and-the-dull-man-is-not/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) ## More by Eric Liu > [“There was an omnivorous intellect that won him the family sobriquet of Walking Encyclopedia.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-liu/there-was-an-omnivorous-intellect-that-won-him-the-family-sobriquet/) [Eric Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-liu/) > [Have you ever watched someone become American? Last week, at a national citizenship conference I organize, thirty immigrants from 17 countries swore an oath…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-liu/have-you-ever-watched-someone-become-american-last-week-at-a-national/) [Eric Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-liu/) > [It turns out umpires and judges are not robots or traffic cameras, inertly monitoring deviations from a fixed zone of the permissible. They are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-liu/it-turns-out-umpires-and-judges-are-not-robots-or-traffic-cameras/) [Eric Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-liu/) > [What we should celebrate more than diversity is what we do with it. How do we bring everyone in the tent and create something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-liu/what-we-should-celebrate-more-than-diversity-is-what-we-do-with-it/) [Eric Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-liu/) > [“Far too many Americans are illiterate in power — what it is, how it operates and why some people have it. 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And there is no better way for them to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-liu/americans-need-to-call-on-boomers-in-their-next-act-onstage-to-behave/) [Eric Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-liu/) > [Here's a proposal, offered only partly in jest: no resident of the United States, whether born here or abroad, should get to be a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-liu/here-s-a-proposal-offered-only-partly-in-jest-no-resident-of-the/) [Eric Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-liu/) > [Like the 'little emperors' of one-child China, too many Boomers were taught early that the world was made (or saved) for their comfort and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-liu/like-the-little-emperors-of-one-child-china-too-many-boomers-were/) [Eric Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-liu/) > [We're all better off...when we're all better off.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-liu/we-re-all-better-off-when-we-re-all-better-off/) [Eric Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-liu/) > [In the end no segregationist scheme has withstood the force of a simple idea: equality under law.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-liu/in-the-end-no-segregationist-scheme-has-withstood-the-force-of-a/) [Eric Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-liu/) > [From the right, you get demagogues shouting about brown-skinned anchor babies and clamoring to deport the undocumented. 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Rangel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-b-rangel/) Browse all 436 Affordable quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Many smart folks seem to think that if you just get your metaphors and messages right, you'll win. 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