7. The Dobzhansky template

The name comes from one of the most famous geneticists of all time, Theodosius Dobzhansky. I talk about it in detail in my Houston book if you’re interested, but, for now, let’s just talk about what the template is:

Nothing in _ makes sense, except in the light of _.

Is having a single word as your message an elegant thing to do? Not always. Does it work? In today’s world of excess noise, it not only works, it’s essential. The mass audience can’t pick up on a nuanced message. They work best when there’s mostly just one thing.

Applying the idea to the Kavanaugh hearing

Their “narrative coach” could have said, “Okay, Feinstein, you start the session by explaining to the American public what temperament is, why it is essential in a judge, and what reflects a lack of it. Then, Whitehouse, when you read the entries from his yearbook, explain how that material reflects on his TEMPERAMENT. Senator Harris, when you compare his process to Gorsuch, explain how Gorsuch had the right TEMPERAMENT to be a Supreme Court judge, which made his confirmation easy, but Kavanaugh does not. Blumenthal, instead of rambling through four topics, pick one that no one else has covered and relate it to TEMPERAMENT. Then Harris, you’re last, so give us an ending to our story by pulling everything together, saying that we feel all of what we’ve heard today underscores our belief that Judge Kavanaugh LACKS THE TEMPERAMENT to be on the Supreme Court.”