What Exactly is Smart Politics Trying to Do?

Behold, The Great Circle of Work! (Or: "Whatever You Need, We Can Help")

Both newcomers and folks who’ve been with Smart Politics for years sometimes ask, “So what’s Smart Politics’ goal? What’s its purpose?”

• Are we trying to win elections by persuading Trump supporters to change their vote?

• Influence legislators and build bipartisan support for progressive legislation at all levels?

• Lower polarization and dehumanization?

• Repair personal relationships damaged by political disagreements?

• Or just stay calm and emotionally afloat enough to keep functioning and working?

• Is this therapy?

• Is it deep canvasing?

• Is it listen-first work?

• Is it bridge building?

It’s a fair question, and I know it can seem vague and frustrating when I often smile and shrug and say, “All of the above?”

Smart Politics doesn’t have a static resting point. Dr. Karin Tamerius founded this organization in 2017 with a focus on improving political persuasion, with the understanding that a deeper level of connection, empathy, and trust is needed to achieve lasting results.

However, in the five years I’ve been working with Karin, the scope and focus of the Smart Politics work has been always evolving and expanding, often in reaction to what’s going on in the country, who is and isn’t in power, and what progressive folks are feeling, fearing, needing, working at, and putting their energy into. For example, for me personally in the past year, this work has often been more about lowering hatred and negative partisanship, and especially lately the dangerous dehumanization and demonization along political divides.

That broadening scope of what we’re trying to “do” can’t always be easily summed up in a neat bumper sticker. So, my stock answer these days is that this work is whatever we need it to be; wherever it fits and helps with whatever activism or personal goals or interpersonal work we happen to be doing. There is no bar or gate or barrier to learning, practicing, and using Smart Politics methods—if you’re here, you’re welcome in; whatever you’re seeking help with, whatever your goals.

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Let’s Make a Chart About It!

The diagram above helps visualize this broader approach. It’s not meant to be followed literally, step by step—it’s simply a way to help us understand where we are in this work, what we’re trying to do, and the different places it could lead us next. As you can see, political persuasion and electoral work is only one part of it and may not be our personal primary objective right now. Instead, when we look at this, we may see multiple points that align with what we’re trying to do. Or we may only be interested in focusing on one aspect of it. Either way, it’s all good!

Remember:

• As always, Smart Politics is primarily focused on people of relative privilege having conversations with their peers. If you’re part of a marginalized or at-risk group, it’s understandable if some parts of this work—including conversations with people who feel hostile to you—may not be emotionally safe or may be too much of a drain. That’s okay—none of this is required or expected if you don’t feel up for it.

• It can be hard these days to want to talk with Trump voters when we conflate the average voter with various loud, attention-seeking Right-wing politicians, media pundits, and online influencers and trolls. But chances are our friends, family, neighbors, and coworkers aren’t as deeply engaged and committed to extreme beliefs as we might fear.

1. Our own emotional management and endurance

This has been one of Dr. Tamerius’ main focuses this year, as many of us progressives have been struggling with sometimes overwhelming fear and panic or worse, dejection and despair. The first step in Smart Politics work is to process and manage our feelings both to emotionally survive, but also in order to thrive and have the focus and energy for this work. This includes various calming methods as well as exposure therapy and desensitization to reduce triggering incidents. For some of us, this may be all we want from Smart Politics right now, and that’s okay.

For more resources on the emotional endurance part of this work, check out Karin’s free mini e-book and a couple of her interviews and webinars on the process.

My New Mini-Ebook Is Here—And It's Totally Free

Keep Calm and Carry On webinar video — 145 minutes

Karin shares emotional endurance tips with Egberto Willes — 15 minutes

Karin Tamerius, founder of Smart Politics, on engaging in effective opposing political discourse.

2. Empathy, compassion, and forgiveness for others

We must work to find and renew our compassion and empathy for not just our loved ones and friends, but for all human beings.

And that can start with something as simple as an open, honest, respectful conversation with them, one on one. We love to say we need more unity and less divisiveness, but too often we leave it at that; a vague, un-realized “wouldn’t it be nice” “need.” The best way to do this isn’t to buy a new coffee mug or bumper sticker with a “Kindness” slogan, but to actually sit down with a Trump voter and ask them questions, get to know their beliefs and motivations, and better understand where they’re coming from emotionally on the issues.

If we want them to see us as fellow humans, sometimes we have to make the first move and start seeing them as our fellow humans.

3. Repair relationships with family, friends

Many of us have felt the pain and loss of longtime friendships or relationships with loved ones being damaged, destroyed, or just diminished by differences in opinion about Trump and politics. We’ve sometimes shunned, banned, blocked, estranged, or just avoided. While I reiterate that each of us has to set our own boundaries and do what we feel we need to in order to feel safe, in many cases we truly want to find a way to reconnect with folks who’ve slipped, ran, or been pushed away.

Practicing Smart Politics approaches and using the conversational tools can help us better manage each others’ emotional defensiveness. That doesn’t mean we’ll automatically convince a loved one to completely change their views, but it can help reopen trust and communication.

4. Lower polarization, hatred, dehumanization, and negative partisanship

These days, this can be one of the more disturbing and frightening aspects of (primarily online) extremism: the dark, sinister move towards painting political opposites as inhuman, evil, demonic, violent, or threatening in some way.

But when we talk respectfully with folks on the Right and build connection and trust through productive conversations, no matter what we talk about or where the conversation goes, we show them that we, individually, are loving, caring, good-intentioned Americans. Whether we think of ourselves or they see us as Leftists, progressives, Democrats, liberals, or whatever else, simply talking can melt away assumptions, generalizations, preconceptions, and blanket fears and dismissals.

As I’ve said, we may not help them change their mind or their vote, but we don’t need to. We just need to let them see us as human beings, that not all [insert group] are irrational or dangerous. It’s amazing how far towards that a simple conversation can go.

5. Build nonpartisan alliances and work together to solve problems

When, through conversation, we find common ground or shared values or goals, we can start to think of this work as powerful alliance-building. Once we both agree something is a problem (Corruption? Violence? Crime? Cost of living? Healthcare? Free speech? Racism, sexism, all the cultural phobias?), then we can start thinking about what we can do together as individuals to improve things.

This works especially well on the local level—if there’s a municipal problem in our town or county, we can team up with friends and neighbors to find solutions. Not only might we make our community better, but working with one another reminds us all of our shared humanity and good intentions.

Or maybe we just agree with a friend on the Right that we’ll both try to think before posting something potentially inflammatory, extreme, or angry on social media.

6. Persuasion around issues, attitudes, and electoral politics

As I said, this is where Smart Politics started some eight years ago: If we want to win more elections more decisively or build bi-partisan support for progressive legislation, some of the work has to focus on having more effective and persuasive conversations with folks who tend to vote differently than ourselves. Smart Politics was formed around sharing the approaches and tools to facilitate that improvement.

Historically, these goals also include things like canvassing, phone banking, voter registration and mobilization. Those are all important and necessary and are supported by Smart Politics—often the conversational tools we teach can improve more conventional electoral activism.

But Smart Politics also believes that one-to-one conversations, especially with loved ones—so-called “kitchen table talks”—can be even more effective and efficient, laying a more lasting “bedrock” of connection that can foster deeper long-term electoral and cultural change.

7. Long-term cultural shift and change

Yeah, this is the Big One, the proverbial pie in the progressive sky, but it’s important to keep the larger goals in mind. Most everything we do politically is in service of a more progressive future and a safer, freer, more equitable society. Not to go full hippie on you, but one with more love than hate, more peace than violence. Less corruption. More democracy and freedom. Less racism, sexism, homo or transphobia, anti-Semitism, and other discrimination. More human rights; better, more accessible and affordable education and healthcare; cleaner air and water; more income equality and economic opportunity.

This may not be where we start all our conversations, but ultimately this is the larger goal most of us progressives are working for—all those other circles above in the Smart Politics diagram, all the tools like the Trust Pyramid and Persuasion Conversation Cycle, all the conversations and connections are building toward a better future. One we hopefully create together with our fellow Americans.

So, wherever you see yourself on this chart, well, there you are. We welcome you into the work!

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What is the Smart Politics Way?

Smart Politics encourages and teaches progressives to have more productive conversations with Trump voters. We believe the most effective actions for achieving short- and long-term progressive goals involve talking one-on-one with and listening compassionately and constructively to folks with different opinions.

Want to learn more about Smart Politics and get involved?

• The Smart Politics Toolkit: The Truth Pyramid and Persuasion Conversation Cycle

• Every Sunday night (and some Wednesdays), we meet on Zoom to teach, share, and support one another. Sign up for email recaps and reminders about these weekly calls

• Smart Politics Website

• Smart Politics Linktree

• Resources page

Locke Peterseim is the Smart Politics Content Manager.