Play Until The Whistle Blows

Democrats are feeling pretty good about themselves.  By every historical measurement their candidate should be packing up the Resolute Desk.  A struggling economy, 8+% unemployment, rising poverty, an unwinnable war, American troops being murdered by their partners, protests in the Middle East…would normally serve as the obituary for an incumbent president.

Yet remarkably their guy is leading in the polls.  In fact his lead is growing.  His favorability is high.  And for the first time in this campaign he is no longer trailing his challenger on the number one issue in the eyes of the voters...his handling of the economy.

How does this happen?

It happens when your opponent is a flawed candidate counseled by an incompetent campaign staff.  From a tepid convention, to omitting the troops in his acceptance speech, to the ill timed and unbelievably uninformed news conference amidst the murder of our Libyan ambassador, to public infighting among the staff to calling the 47% of Americans who don’t pay taxes slackers who fail to take responsibility for their own lives…Mitt Romney has done everything in his power to hand the president a second term.  He has single handedly managed to do the one thing the president could not do himself.  He has managed to make the narrative about everything and anything but the number one issue in the eyes of the voters…the president’s handling of the economy.  The struggling economy is the president’s Achilles heel and Romney hasn’t come close to hitting it.  Instead of talking about economic policy and the president’s record we see Romney appearing on “Live with Kelly (Rippa) and Michael (Strahan)” debating the qualities of Snookie vs. Honey Boo Boo.  For the record, Romney chose Snookie.    

Mitt Romney and his campaign have performed so badly that prominent conservatives have joined Democrats in piling on.  Bill Kristal, George Will, Peggy Noonan, David Brooks and Rush Limbaugh have joined a host of conservative politicians in blasting the competency of the campaign.  And since every campaign is by its very nature an extension of the candidate; this scathing criticism falls at Romney’s feet.  This was the guy who was supposed to be the “fixer.”  If anything need fixing its Romney’s campaign.

So given the current course of the campaign…why shouldn’t Democrats be felling pretty good.

Because as someone once famously said:  “It ain’t over until it’s over.”

In spite of the comedy of errors emanating from the Romney campaign; Mitt Romney is still very much in this.  There are 48 days left until the election and 48 different things might happen that could alter the current trajectory of this election.  There are still three debates to negotiate.  We have no idea of the effect that new voters ID laws in 37 states will have on voter turnout.  And if Israel attacks Iran will we be drawn into another war?  Any of these things…and hundreds more could alter the face of this election.  If you don’t believe us check out the affect recent events in the Middle East have had on the opinions of likely voters. 

Two weeks ago the President’s handling of foreign policy was approved of by 54% of likely voters.  Even though the president had no control over the release of a distasteful video; and had no control over the radicals who stormed the embassies and murdered four Americans; his 54% approval rating on foreign policy dropped to 49%. 

If you played organized sports you were always taught that you never let up until the whistle blows.  You never stop playing until the final out is recorded.  If you slack off…if you let up…you might get hurt…and you might lose.  Democrats would be wise to heed that advice.