As Cameron, Brown and Clegg spin out more and more explanations and excuses over MP expenses or ‘allowances’, the race is on to see who will perform the most convincing crisis-management of the greatest example of parliamentary Soul Trader shenanigans in modern times.

Discussing the MPs’ monopoly over tax-payer- financed perks, Nick Clegg believes “The only long term solution to this problem is to take MPs out of the property investment game altogether.” Brown has set a deadline of Monday for his ministers to lodge their expense claims for the past five years ” with the parliamentary authorities and ready for publication”. He has also appealed directly to the broader electorate speaking their language – rather than that of political double talk, saying in the News of the World that: “The bottom line is that any MP who is found to have defied the rules will not be serving in my government. The action must be swift and comprehensive” Moreover he has made decisive moves on his MPs, for example suspending, pending an enquiry, David Chaytor who claimed 13,000 pounds of taxpayers’ money for a mortgage which he had already paid off.

In terms of actions rather than promises, at this moment at least Brown’s propaganda expertise is getting closer to of Cameron who warned that Tory MPs who made extravagant everyday expenditure claims could be ordered to repay expenses or lose their party whip.

For an MP – or anyone with power – a direct threat to be destabilised from a person even higher than them will hurt. The higher their career position, the further distant they become from ordinary people at ‘ground level’. This could be one reason why so many MPs initially didn’t accept the errors of their ways, assuming that their rank, cushioned by their offices, would help cover things from those much lower than them in the pecking order – namely the electorate who voted them in. Coming down to earth would, for many, feel like a direct affront to their roles as successful people.

Current spin techniques tumbling out of the ‘House of Comics’ are not new. In addition to listing top twenty-eight ways to spin any story, Soul Traders tells the remarkable story of lies and propaganda as practiced over hundreds of years by institutions, business and politicians alike and perfected not just by the current incompetents in Westminster but manipulative leaders in both business and cultural circles.

Six of the best
Spot the spin – adapted from ‘The 28 Ways’ – Chapter 12 of Soul Traders

1. It wasn’t me – it was him – honest
Stain your advisory’s character rather than addressing their argument. This is probably one of the most common political tactics.

Liberal ministers smear Tory ministers, Labour smear Liberals and all are watched in hi-def absurdity on an £8,865 TV paid by taxpayers and owned by former Labour environment minister Sir Gerald Kaufman.

2. At all times, keep a stiff upper lip
Reassure those steadfast to your party that loyalty to the party, however tough, is the ethical as well as logical course of action. Indeed, the chastising act of enduring testing times or rules such as Cameron’s Whip decree, builds personal character. (This technique of making people feel they have to comply or quit the ‘inner circle’ is often used in religions or cults).
3. Call in the man with the braces and glasses
Secure and exploit the voluntary or sponsored endorsement of a respected expert, politician or celebrity. In the case of MP expenses, that expert is Sir Christopher Kelly. As part of a rather mealy-mouthed interim effort whilst waiting on the ‘bloke with the braces’ findings, Harriet Harman asked the cross-party Members’ Allowances Committee, chaired by Labour MP Don Touhig, to draw up proposals. Incredibly, their proposals must be approved by another group of MPs – the Members’ Estimates Committee, chaired by none other than Labour Speaker Michael Martin.

4 Repeat something with conviction– over and over again.
Cunning politicians exploit what psychologists have long known: thanks to the neurophysiology of the learning process, simple repetitive association between two concepts can make false propositions ‘feel’ true. Often trite, usually direct statements, which are repeated often enough, appear true.

Past masters of this are our ‘special relationship friends’ in the USA. “There can be no whitewash in the Whitehouse”…. “I did not have sexual relations with that woman”… “Healthy Forests Initiative”. (Allows clear cutting in federal land). “Clean Water” proposal. (Exempts Clean Water Act protection of 70% of US streams). It’s the economy, stupid” Not forgetting our own Great British examples: “Education, education, education.”

It will be interesting to see what Brown or Cameron come up with…

5. The Green Book says ‘Yes’ (Reductio ad Hitlerum)
This technique states that if an evil or undesirable faction supports, uses or performs something in particular, then that object or concept must be bad. In the case of MPs the ‘evil’ is the Green Book – not the MPs. The only trouble with their argument is that they wrote the Green Book!

In wider society if hoodlums carry penknives, all penknives are automatically reclassified as weapons rather than tools. In spin this can be useful, as culpability gets shifted from the villain to the object (in this case, knives). This creates the opportunity for lots of political spin in news stories about knives, which of course in the long term are irrelevant, as the real problem isn’t knives but the way they are misused.

6 The little red herring and big elephant in the room
The first technique mastered by magicians is sleight of hand and distraction. Peter Mandelson accused the Daily Telegraph of misusing leaked details about the Cabinet’s personal expenses claims to “inflict damage on the government and Labour politicians by creating the perception, but not the fact, on the evidence of wrongdoing”

In the lead-up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq, the Coalition said that there was evidence to suggest that Saddam Hussein had the capability to launch weapons of mass destruction that could reach Britain within 45 minutes. Despite all the subsequent reports and research, no hard evidence was ever proven.

Similar to the Red Herring technique is “card stacking.” Audience perception of an issue is manipulated by creating media events focusing on a particular view emphasizing one thing whilst repressing another. (For example, Hazel Blears brandished a poster in front of the world’s press of a cheque made out for £13,332 in capital gains tax that she had avoided when selling one of her homes.

In terms of the elephant, put forward a huge claim – so big, it has to be true – (Yet no one actually sees the tangible evidence for themselves). Persistency pays off; eventually your audience believes your account. Continue to discuss the elephant and its presence –despite any proof that it is actually there. The only steadfast rule to follow is that your story must contain a grain of truth that’s just credible enough to make your account plausible.

For example: Iraq could deploy biological weapons within 45 minutes – need I say more?
Jonathan Gabay
http://www.brandforensics.co.uk
http://www.soultraderstruth.com

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