The first debate is over, the post-debate spins are quieting down, and the campaigns are working diligently to set up the narratives for the next round.
After hundreds of millions of dollars spent on negative attack ads by the Obama Team, it appears the debate performance by Mitt Romney was enough to deconstruct months of the false narratives. I think this segment from Charles Krauthammer encapsulates the Romney gain effectively.
In my opinion President Obama failed miserably because he was unprepared. Not actually unprepared in the sense of debate policy prep per se’, but more along the lines of unprepared to face the consequences for his own policy failures being called out on him.
President Obama has been living in a bubble of idolatry for years. He is never pressured by the media or anyone around him. The current administration is filled with professionally “excused”. They can make up an excuse for anything, and they are all rabid ideologues.
One of the central characteristics to being an ideologue is the need for “echo-chambering” yes-peeps to surround you. That’s what Obama has in both the White House team around him, his inner circle, and his appointed cabinet membership.
When you combine that lack of diverse opinion in challenging the chamber, with a media who refuses to challenge the information coming out of the chamber, you have a perfect storm. A President unused to being challenged, and hopelessly without retort.
Also, President Obama is really not that intellectually smart. He never has been intellectually smart. He has no idea how to think about downstream consequences for upstream activity. He is lacking a basic understanding for the type of consequences only experienced in the real world of living downstream from government activity. He does not understand the “cause and effect” of policy.
It is virtually a given that he will attempt to do what he does excel at, only do it better. What Obama does know well is the Alinsky methodology in optic selling: Ridicule, Isolate, and Marginalize the opposition. So it is certain his campaign will continue in this direction.
Big Bird (PBS funding) will be an aspect to the “Ridicule“. Romney’s financial success will be the aspect of “Isolation“. And personal disparagement, belittling, and calling Romney a ‘liar’ will be just some of the aspects to “marginalizing“. We can see it unfolding right now. It’s simply how they roll.
Questioning the manipulative unemployment numbers is equated to “birtherism” by Team Obama – Ridicule.
Attacking the rich, doubling down on class warfare, and bleating “economic patriotism”, the guise of “fair share”, by Team Obama – Isolation.
The “war on women”, the disparagement about the 47% comments, and the accusations about being detached from understanding the stresses of the common man (garbage collector) are all aimed toward – Marginalizing
The next 30 days will be Ridicule-Isolate-Marginalize, Repeat. Media cycle, after media cycle, after media cycle…. While blitzing the airwaves with paid negative advertisements.
It really stinks to be living in Florida, Virginia, Ohio, Wisconsin, Nevada and Pennsylvania right now. Because those states airwaves, more than any others, are filled with the constant drone of negativity from Team Obama.