The Mittness Protection Program

[nogravity]

According to Romney campaign spokesman Lenny Alcivar, Mitt Romney plans on going the Sarah Palin route of avoiding real journalists and only communicate their campaign messages through online websites such as briebart and drudge.

I would have to say that if this holds up it should be an even a worse campaign blunder than McCain picking Palin. First of all, he's already preaching to the choir and secondly, even through the far, far right is loud, it's not as big as they think it is.

Here's the whole article:

http://thinkprogress.org/election/20...iacy-websites/

[Marley23]

They've been doing this for four or five months now. Romney doesn't want to speak to the press and doesn't think he needs to. I think in part the campaign believes they can succeed just by avoiding offending enough people because Obama is so unpopular. I don't think either strategy is going to work.

[Rhythmdvl]

I thought he did an interview with News max. Aren't they a bastion of deep analytical tinkling and practiced oblongivity?

[elucidator]

Originally Posted by Marley23

They've been doing this for four or five months now. Romney doesn't want to speak to the press and doesn't think he needs to. I think in part the campaign believes they can succeed just by avoiding offending enough people because Obama is so unpopular. I don't think either strategy is going to work.

It might, it just might. Mittens is kinda gaffe prone, so keeping him isolated from the press becomes somewhat workable by default, all the stuff he won't be saying that could fuck him up. But it does tend to concentrate his appeal strictly to the base that gets all their news/views from Fox, Drudge, Breitbart and NewsMax. Those people will vote, and they would vote for a yellow dog before they'll vote for Obama.

Also, it softens reaction. That vanishingly small portion of people who haven't already made up their minds won't be responding negatively to the stuff he says to Drudge because they don't pay any attention. Still, the very fact that he avoids the press makes a non-statement statement. His base will interpret that as avoiding the malignant liberal media, but most everybody else is likely to think of it as chickenshit and/or dishonest.

So the question boils down, as it always does to: just how fucking nuts are we?

[John Mace]

Most people don't watch the network talk shows. I doubt very many will notice.

They'll see him in the debates, and in commercials, and that's what they'll use to make up their minds.

[nogravity]

So the question boils down, as it always does to: just how fucking nuts are we?

I would say really, fucking nuts. This biggest thing is - will the moderate repubbies and independents even realize that he's not talking about any of his positions but just letting the viral (or is it virulent) right wing media push forth what they want their readers to read?

[nogravity]

They'll see him in the debates

Do we even know he's going to debate Obama?

[Ludovic]

If he lets Obama do it all by himself, it'll prove that he's no match for Obama the master debater.

[Marley23]

Originally Posted by John Mace

Most people don't watch the network talk shows.

He doesn't make himself available to the press in general, in fact. It's not just going on talk shows.

Originally Posted by nogravity

Do we even know he's going to debate Obama?

Yes, there will be debates.

[John Mace]

I predict there will be, as usual, 3 debates. And one more for the VP candidates.

[Voyager]

Originally Posted by John Mace

Most people don't watch the network talk shows. I doubt very many will notice.

They'll see him in the debates, and in commercials, and that's what they'll use to make up their minds.

That's true, but if he goes on one and screws up, or gets pressed by hard questions, the clip quickly goes viral.

I agree that he will debate, but it will be interesting to see how he does one on one without protection on the right. In the primary debates no one ever accused him of being too conservative and reactionary.

[Wesley Clark]

I don't see why it matters, post citizens united pro-Mitt and anti-Obama ads will blanket the country. Mitt doesn't need to appear on the news.

[conway]

Originally Posted by Voyager

I agree that he will debate, but it will be interesting to see how he does one on one without protection on the right.

It won't be interesting. The debates are always boring and bland as the candidates generally just recite their talking points without bothering to answer a question. I have a feeling Romney will adhere to this strategy even more than McCain did.

[Simplicio]

Originally Posted by Wesley Clark

I don't see why it matters, post citizens united pro-Mitt and anti-Obama ads will blanket the country. Mitt doesn't need to appear on the news.

The effect of political ads are overstated. Especially against a well known opponent like Obama. Everyone already knows how they feel about Obama one way or another, an ad with a bunch of grainy black and white pictures and an ominous voiceover isn't going to change their view.

Supposedly the reason the press was so favourable to Bush II was that he was very good at making himself accessible to them. And McCain of course, must've been one of the top most regular guests on Sunday morning news programs before his Presidential run. So there's a history of being open to the press helping a candidate.

I suspect the reason Romney is dodging the press is because his own positions are such a muddle (just in the last few days, he's been confused on whether he supports the Dream Act or not and been contradicted by most of his own party on whether the Mandate is a tax or not). Having to reconcile his historical positions ( and I expect his own, relatively moderate present views) with the ever more Conservative GOP have left him without much of a strong, clear, platform. On Fox he can get away with just railing against Obama, but on other news shows the hosts will press him to expound his own positions.

[elucidator]

Originally Posted by Simplicio

...and I expect his own, relatively moderate present views...

I share this impression, but no longer know exactly why I do. Lately, he is offering chapter and verse from the Batshit Bible, but he used to be a very flexible, moderate sort of Republican.... Or was that the fake, and this Romney 2.0 the real Romney?

Or is there one? Has he become, over the years, simply the Candidate? Nothing more than a green-screen special effect whereby you can project your own values on the screen and have those values reflected back to you?

Who is this guy, anyway?

[Chimera]

The only thing more ironic would be if he chose Tim "my ideals are negotiable and intangible" Pawlenty as his running mate.

The world will have never seen a ticket with such inconsistency of values and emptiness of character.

[theR]

This helps me understand the comment Rupert Murdoch made on Twitter. It says something when a supporter thinks Romney needs to hire some pros for his campaign.

Met Romney last week. Tough O Chicago pros will be hard to beat unless he drops old friends from team and hires some real pros. Doubtful.

https://twitter.com/rupertmurdoch/st...93140245807104

[Wesley Clark]

Originally Posted by elucidator

I share this impression, but no longer know exactly why I do. Lately, he is offering chapter and verse from the Batshit Bible, but he used to be a very flexible, moderate sort of Republican.... Or was that the fake, and this Romney 2.0 the real Romney?

Or is there one? Has he become, over the years, simply the Candidate? Nothing more than a green-screen special effect whereby you can project your own values on the screen and have those values reflected back to you?

Who is this guy, anyway?

Was he moderate when running in GOP circles in the past? I can understand him acting moderate when running as governor of MA or against Kennedy in the senate, he wouldn't stand much of a chance in new england with the persona he is developing now. Did he show moderate opinions when around more conservative groups though?

I tend to think Romney is more of a pragmatist and business interest guy who really doesn't like the politics side of things and just says whatever he needs to get elected so he can get to work.

[Ludovic]

Originally Posted by Wesley Clark

Was he moderate when running in GOP circles in the past?

SEVERELY moderate. Or maybe I'm just misremembering things.

[Marley23]

Originally Posted by Simplicio

Supposedly the reason the press was so favourable to Bush II was that he was very good at making himself accessible to them.

.... what? Are you saying he did this as a candidate? Because as president, he rarely made himself available to the press, and the press corps did not like it at all. And yes, McCain was a constant presence on Sunday morning talk shows and once referred to the press as "my constituency." Before 2007 or 2008 he had a very good relationship with the press.

[Ludovic]

Originally Posted by Marley23

.... what? Are you saying he did this as a candidate? Because as president, he rarely made himself available to the press, and the press corps did not like it at all.

The foreign press liked him due to his availablity. Wasn't afraid to get hit with the hard questions. If they were the voters, he'd be a shoe-in.

[Simplicio]

Originally Posted by Marley23

.... what? Are you saying he did this as a candidate? Because as president, he rarely made himself available to the press, and the press corps did not like it at all.

During the 2000 primary and General campaign. Almost every indepth story about candidate Bush would mention how he'd wander to the press section of the campaign bus and shoot the breeze with the reporters, how likable he was in casual settings like that, etc, etc. It was pretty clear that it was a press strategy that worked for him.

[gamerunknown]

Originally Posted by Ludovic

If they were the voters, he'd be a shoe-in.

Depends on whether or not they'd have to live in the theoretical Bush + journalist state, or merely report on it from time to time.

[nogravity]

Romney's now flip-flopped on this issue and is going to hold interviews with CBS, NBC and ABC today presumably to discuss the I didn't work for Bain but I only said I did so I could run for Governor.