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| etaoin shrdlu |
Posted - 8/7/2012 2:43:06 PM | show profile | flag this post
...to define himself.
And that may mean he's lost the race for the White House.
I've been talking for months about campaign narratives and how a candidate has to define himself before his opponent does.
Romney had a hard time trying to define Obama -- because Republicans -- and particularly the TEA Party types -- had created a cumbersome definition of "Muslim, Kenyan-born, socialist." I pointed out months back that it was difficult for any opponent to force Obama into that mold because events on the campaign trail would not pop up fitting that narrative.
So Romney had his work cut out for him. He tried to create a narrative built around the economy -- but, as pointed out today -- has apparently abandoned that whole strategy.
Meanwhile, Obama was able to pick up on the narrative created by Romney's GOP primary opponents -- that Romney was "a rich guy, out of touch with the great majority of Americans -- a flip flopper who will say anything to get elected."
Obama has built on that narrative and narrowed it to "a rich guy who's trying to hide his wealth AND his intentions if he gets elected President."
This has come through in the attacks on Romney's vague and often secretive tax plan -- and on Romney's own secrecy around his personal income tax history.
But the final straw came this week with "Romney Hood."
In just two words, Obama summed up the image of Romney that's been taking shape with voters -- and it stuck.
Romney lost the race to define himself.
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| beenthere |
Posted - 8/7/2012 2:47:29 PM | show profile | flag this post
What I have found interesting is that after being bombarded with Romney ads for months, they have slowed significantly. Obama ads are still running, Romney ads have been very few as of late.
Wonder why. Seriously. Has he given up on winning FL? Or is the Romney camp regrouping and creating new ads?
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| thesecondcoming |
Posted - 8/7/2012 3:19:31 PM | show profile | flag this post
Foolish drivel by both of you
But keep on wishful thinking.
Obama is running out of money. Democrats are concerned that Obama is spending too much.
Romney is preserving his money for the last two months, in my opinion.
Drink some more kool-aid clowns.
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| thesecondcoming |
Posted - 8/7/2012 3:20:50 PM | show profile | flag this post
Oh yeah....
Are you predicting an Obama win yet?
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| orthicon |
Posted - 8/7/2012 3:20:57 PM | show profile | flag this post
with turd blossom mostly calling the shots..
anything is possible..
it'll be nasty..and mostly lies and distortions..
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| etaoin shrdlu |
Posted - 8/7/2012 3:22:47 PM | show profile | flag this post
I would expect Romney is going to have to regroup...
in the DC area, Virginia voters are being blasted with campaign ads. The Romney ads far outnumber the Obama ads.
But Obama has been steadily increasing his lead in Virginia since the primaries ended.
That's a sure sign that Romney's ads are not working.
Romney is now in a position where he has to redefine himself and defend against Obama continuing to shape the campaign's narrative.
In politics, that's playing defense.
And you can't afford to play defense when you're trailing -- as Romney is right now.
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| beenthere |
Posted - 8/7/2012 3:39:50 PM | show profile | flag this post
That is kind of my point. If Romney is determined to get FL, where are the ads? Where is the message?
It's really odd.
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| cdnreprtr |
Posted - 8/7/2012 3:53:11 PM | show profile | flag this post
Romney ads have slowed down because of PACS, etc.
Obama is outspending Romney right now because of rules that tie up PAC and other funds before nomination.
Romney's campaign is targeting key states. But the ad battle has really yet to begin on either side; and there is concern in the Dems about too much too soon.
Like an Oly track race, it is all about position and strategy. and there lot of talk and analysis.
But at the end, it is always a race to the finish
Anyone expecting an Obama bye is smoking (and inhaling) the clinton stuff. And ditto boasts for the bully, Mltt.
Both teams have solid campaign teams. The Dems have finally brought their ground level organization and GOTV game up to GOP standard. GOP have some smart mofos yet to be unleashed.
theres a lot of massaging still to take place, but the muscle in the field is pretty much equal IMHO.
Anyone thinking this campaign will be a cake walk is nuts.
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| etaoin shrdlu |
Posted - 8/7/2012 3:56:22 PM | show profile | flag this post
I think the Romney campaign...
is in a lot more disarray than anyone knows.
The first signs came with the foreign trip. He had only three (3) senior aides with him -- on what he should have known was a high profile trip that would define his whole foreign policy resume for the campaign.
Why only three people? Obama took a whole platoon of senior advisors with him in 2008 -- people with years of foreign policy experience specific to each country he visited. He had daily briefings with them on specific issues to address and avoid, customs, history, culture.
Romney comes back and now has ONLY the economy to use as an issue. Unemployment numbers come out, the unemployment rate inches up (even as Wall Street reacted positively to job growth) and Romney abandons the economic strategy. He opts instead for the "Glenn Beck attack" -- the scattershot approach of nontroversies that make the base happy but scare off independents and leave Democrats scratching their heads.
Couple that with the increased pressure from the TEA Party to move Romney farther to the right -- and you see that Romney has pretty much abandoned his campaign AGAINST Obama to return to his campaign to WIN THE GOP NOMINATION. He's again campaigning to his base.
This is leaving Obama open to court independents and rack up wider leads in the swing states.
And while Romney is trying to appease his base, Obama has succeeded in defining Romney to independents at "Romney Hood."
A right wing slant at the RNC could be the last nail in the Romney campaign's coffin. I see a repeat of the 1992 RNC disaster shaping up with Santorum, Paul and possibly Palin scaring off more independents.
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June 4, 2013 | San Francisco
