‘If you’re explaining, you’re losing” is Ronald Reagan’s most quoted insight on political communication. It’s why stories that chime with people’s instincts about how the world works are more persuasive than a series of carefully constructed facts that don’t. This is particularly true in economic policy, where the narratives of the political right are more compelling because they are more intuitive.
“Immigrants are taking your jobs” works because people tend to understand the economy as fixed, not as something that grows as more people make a net contribution. “High taxes are bad for growth” is often effective because many perceive that the tax they pay makes them poorer, with the sum total being everyone poorer.
