I’ve been thinking about the upcoming Presidential debates and have realized Mitt Romney has a problem. He’s a horrible debater. I’ve been looking over the videos and news articles after each primary debate and am left with the same conclusion: Mitt Romney has very few shining moments. And even if you remove his gaffes (10,000.00 bet, self-deportation) he was sorta just there, blending into the background, trying not to say too much and avoiding specifics on everything. Basically, his strategy was to simply make it through the night.
And while basic survival was his debate strategy it wasn’t his only primary strategy. Here’s the way it went. Mitt struggled through the debates, rarely being declared the winner – and even when he was crowned it had more to do with one of his rivals slip-ups than anything he did. Overall, Mitt Romney went into the primary debates with one goal: Do No Harm.
And what did Romney’s “Do No Harm” strategy give us? A lackluster, vague debater who came across as a guy counting the minutes until the debate ended.
But Romney’s debate strategy was twofold. First, do no harm and struggle to make it through the night. Second… after the debate, unleash the SuperPacs and go after the primary opponent who “won” and destroy them. Watching Romney play the affable guy on the debate stage followed by flooding the airways with ads against his opponents designed to eviscerate was a bit disconcerting. Sure, that’s politics, but it’s worth noting that Romney didn’t win the Republican nomination by winning the debates. It’s also worth noting that Romney benefited by crowded primary field. The sheer number of people on the debate stage allowed Romney to take much needed breaks.
That won’t be the case when he goes up against President Obama. Romney will have to respond to every question, and spewing bumper sticker policy like “I’m For Freedom” isn’t going to cut it. He’s going to have to get specific about his policies. He’s going to have to explain his plan for Medicare/Health Care/Abortion/Taxes. Which is another reason to expect Romney to sink deeper into the political gutter – flirting with Birtherism was just the beginning. Everyone needs to buckle up.