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O's Re-election Gaining Steam
The first race was the one where you felt young, invincible and full of hope that you really could change Washington and remake the country. Then it all comes crashing down. Hope stalls, recrimination sets in, once-proud aides and confidants are shoved aside or exiled, best friendships are ruined. Geniuses become idiots overnight.It got crowded under the bus a long time ago. With the possible exception of Ronald Reagan's 1984 campaign, every president's reelection process since Richard Nixon has followed this script. The phase of glorious victory and disillusionment is followed by a grim determination to prevail in the reelection contest. This time the motivation may be less lofty: Instead of the joy of winning, it may be more about the fear of losing. There are no more happy warriors. Remember what happens when you corner a weasel. By this standard, the Obama campaign of 2011 is actually holding up well. Certainly, the collision of hope and change with reality and cynicism has left some battered, and there has been some internal strife. But remarkably little in public, and the campaign leadership of David Plouffe and David Axelrod is still in place. And they are starting to do what they do best: run campaigns, not governments. They've been campaigning since January 20, 2008. Campaigns at this stage are all about a small group of voters, journalists and operatives paying attention to small tremors in the political seismograph. The Obama team has made sure to send negative waves and greatly affected Romney's readings. Now, they will do the same to Newt Gingrich. Axelrod is also back to doing what he does best: framing the campaign in the most negative possible light for the eventual opponent. No, really? But this is an admission from an associate. I have known David since 1984, when he managed Paul Simon's defeat of Charles Percy, and I was part of the media team. David may be the best in our party in drawing the devastating contrast. David is a passionate romantic, and Obama is the political love of his life, and the difficult last few years don't seem to have dulled his ax. Yesterday, he was in rare form at a journalists' breakfast. "The Republican Party has split into two parties," David told the crowd. "The tea party and the martini party." Calling Gingrich the "Godfather of gridlock," David went on to say that Gingrich has revived despite being "sort of left for dead at the checkout counter at Tiffany's." Maybe the reelection will be more fun for Obama and Democrats than we thought. It sure beats governing. I'm sure it'll be fun for them. Great sport, watching the Country die. Posted by: Bobby 2011-12-11 |
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