Bobby Jindal - Still the GOP's Best Bet

Much ink has already been spilled regarding Governor Jindal’s performance following the President’s address to Congress earlier this month. Let’s begin with what has not been as widely discussed; the Governor’s strength of intellect, his mastery of public policy and his obvious passion for the people of Louisiana.

A review of Governor Jindal’s management of evacuations and preparations for Hurricane Gustav last summer demonstrates his strengths: his ability to assimilate vast quantities of conflicting and shifting information, his willingness to act decisively and his ability to communicate these complexities under pressure.

In television interviews during this emergency, the Governor exudes a sense of command and urgency, but also inspires confidence. He is comfortable and in command of the facts, deftly managing events that have intimidated and diminished other leaders.

On the flip side, this event also demonstrates what we might call the “vices of his virtues”.

Television is rarely the appropriate venue to download all of the factors and variables of the decision making processes. Governor Jindal’s ability to communicate more effectively with his audience would have been enhanced by determining in advance precisely what the citizens of Louisiana needed to know, and communicating those few things, simply and succinctly, over and over again. This requires a bit of intellectual discipline, and sometimes, good staff support.



Governor Jindal is at his best talking specifics. This is a man who clearly knows and understands the details of policy and administration. He is smart, articulate and appropriately animated. His February 22nd appearance of on NBC’s Meet the Press once again demonstrates these strengths. Governor Jindal is in command of not just the “executive summary” of the proposed stimulus package. He understands the details and their consequences, perhaps better than many of those who voted on the bill. Jindal also managed the moderator effectively, refusing to allow David Gregory to set the agenda and define his choices.

The Governor anticipates objections to his positions and defends thoroughly and amiably. He is responsive to the moderator’s questions, without surrendering direction of the interview and speaks to the interests of his constituents. Here again, we see the qualities that make Bobby Jindal one of the most promising young leaders of the Republican Party nationally. This is the Bobby Jindal that excites conservatives, and that most of America has not yet had the opportunity to meet.

What the Governor fails to do in the midst of all of this is reach through the camera and grab the viewer in a personal way. The viewer is left appreciating the man’s intellect but without any sense of his likability. The Governor fails to build a relationship with the viewer. Part of this is attributable to Jindal’s tendency to focus almost exclusively on details and complexities of the issues. Here again, his performance could be improved by considering larger goals and specific objectives, and determining how the facts can serve and support those goals. Again this requires the ability to step back from the issue, assess the audience, and exploit the appearance for its larger opportunity.

Given all these strengths and abilities, the Governor’s performance following the President’s address is all the more frustrating.

There are philosophical issues related to this, which reflect the current internal debate within the Republican Party. Clearly, the message and the content fell flat. I will leave further discussion of that to others, and focus my remarks on a few more technical observations.

The practice of allowing the loyal opposition an opportunity to respond to a Presidential event is an art form in search of an application. I don’t think anyone has really mastered it yet. One of the primary factors that has not yet been fully exploited (and therefore presents a pregnant opportunity) is one of physical venue.

Consider the contrast that strikes the viewer at home: First, a wildly popular President who is a practiced and articulate communicator in his own right; a (mostly) adoring crowd cheering and seeking autographs, and all the color and pageantry of a national event broadcast live from the Capitol. Then the venue changes abruptly. The viewer is in a silent, marble hallway, watching a lone and little known figure reading off a teleprompter to an empty room. I know of no one on the American political scene who could have made this stark contrast compelling.

Two other points to consider; I suspect the Governor was not intimately involved in writing the script. He didn’t seem to relate to the material in a personal way. Either the Governor needs to find a speechwriter who has a deeper sense of who he is personally, or the Governor needs to take a greater hand in drafting the material. Perhaps both.

Secondly, the teleprompter. Most of the people who criticize a politician’s ineffective use of a prompter, have never had to use one themselves. Allow me to interject a personal observation. It is harder than it looks. It is a skill, not a talent. Like all skills, it requires practice. Lots of it, and not just 24 hours before a major address.