Since Obama’s election everything is based on lowered expectations.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — President Barack Obama’s re-election campaign doesn’t want to talk about what the Democrat is doing to prepare for the fall debates with Republican Mitt Romney. But aides are readily setting expectations — and not surprisingly, they want to keep them low for Obama while raising the stakes for Romney.
“While Mitt Romney has done 20 debates in the last year, he has not done one in four years, so there certainly is a challenge in that regard,” Jennifer Psaki, Obama’s campaign spokeswoman, said of the president on Monday.
It’s hard to run or debate a failed record.
With Obama edging slightly ahead of Romney in public polling seven weeks from Election Day, the three October debates could be one of the Republicans’ best opportunities to break through with voters. But the high-profile events are just as crucial for Obama, who was an uneven debater during the 2008 Democratic primaries.
Obama’s ahead due to the polls that over-sample Democrats and under-sample Republicans and Independents.
In that way, some of the Obama campaign’s tactical lowering of expectations is also rooted in the truth. Aides say the structured — and time-limited — nature of the debates isn’t a natural fit for Obama, who often is long-winded when answering questions during news conferences or town hall-style meetings.
Not to mention his documented long-winded lying habits. Not to mention Obama won’t have the aid of someone punching in the words for him to say on the teleprompter.
Obama’s campaign purposely has been vague about how he is getting ready for the debates and aides refused to discuss details of his preparations publicly.
