Political Slogans to Vie For

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Bottom 10 Presidential Campaign Slogans

1. Who Is James Polk? Henry Clay, 1844. "Henry Clay discovered a great way to give notoriety to an obscure opponent: Put the opponent's name front and center in your own campaign. Very effective—for the other guy. And the other guy, James Polk, won."

2. For President of the People, Zachary Taylor, 1848. "Some slogans are so mundane it's hard to imagine why the candidate even bothered. Taylor won in a three-way race that nobody remembers or cares about. Small wonder."

3. The Experienced Candidate, Adlai Stevenson, 1952. "He was kidding, right? Compared to opponent Eisenhower who had just managed the defeat of Nazi Germany, Stevenson's claim of more experience was downright laughable. Even Stevenson didn't believe it."

4. America Needs a Change, Walter Mondale, 1984. "Nope. America didn't. Mondale won only his home state of Minnesota and at that by only 4,000 votes. Reagan came that close to the biggest electoral trouncing of all time."

5. In Your Heart You Know He's Right, Barry Goldwater, 1964. "About what exactly? Goldwater was extreme to the right wing and proud of it. What he did exceptionally well was frighten millions of Americans that if elected he would start World War III and go nuclear. The Johnson camp saw an opportunity to turn this slogan against Goldwater and did with their retort: 'In Your Guts You Know He's Nuts.' The election outcome was never in doubt. Landslide for Johnson."

6. For the Future, Richard Nixon, 1960. "Let's see. Are we all for the future? The only weaker slogan he might have used would have been 'For the Past.' Forgettable slogans are harbingers of close elections. No one focused on Kennedy's either: 'A Time for Greatness.' Kennedy barely won."

7. The Better Man for a Better America, Bob Dole, 1996. "Dole lost handily to Clinton in 1996. Hey Bob, Americans don't want the better man for President, they want the right man. And, anyone using America in a slogan, beware. The slogan better be drop-dead fantastic or at least a brand new thought or no one will pay attention."

8. Prosperity and Progress, Al Gore, 2000. "Is this the best the Gore camp could come up with? No wonder the election wound up in the Supreme Court."

9. Yes, America Can!, George W. Bush, 2004. "Here we go again with America. I am pretty sure he's not referring to the American Can Company, but you never know. Can what? Can grow? Can go it alone and build 10-foot fences to keep the Canadians and Mexicans out? This slogan makes no sense."

10. Let America Be America Again, John Kerry, 2004. "Seriously, I can't make this stuff up. Three Americas appear in the last two candidates' slogans. I suppose it hardly matters since no American in America or outside America has the slightest idea these last two slogans existed about…America."

Kiley is a senior correspondent in BusinessWeek's Detroit bureau .