Many political pundits believe Mitt Romney was an overwhelming favorite to defeat Obama. If you recall, unemployment remained very high, the Iraq and Afghanistan wars were still raging, and many people blamed Obama for the perceived poor overall state of America.
Romney was an incredibly successful businessman, former governor of Massachusetts, and ran the 2002 Olympics in Utah. His resume spoke for itself.
So what happened?
Many point to the following speech as the beginning of Romney's downfall:
Indeed, after this video was leaked, Romney's campaign numbers did begin to fall, and of course He went on to lose the election by a wide margin.
This clip, however, is part of a larger challenge faced by candidates today. In prior years, candidates could feel comfortable speaking to private groups without fear of their comments being leaked to the general public.
Candidates often tailor their respective message to particular groups. In this case, it's a group of high net worth individuals in favor of lowering taxes. Every candidate since the history of time has played this game of tailored messaging.
However, it's different today. Everyone has a smart phone, and individuals are constantly monitoring (and snapping) each and every word. Candidates have to be much more careful about their messages and tone, regardless of the audience.
All in all, this is a good thing as we move forward. Yes, candidates have less privacy, but shouldn't we all hear each and every message they have. Running for President is hard, as it should be, but let's have sunlight into all the words they speak!
I certainly do not think that this video helped his campaign! I think the attacks from both parties got really nasty towards the end. Nonetheless, many political analyst believe that it was the Hispanic vote that did him in. If this is the case, then perhaps his defeat had to do more with his "self-deportation" ideals rather than the 47% comment.
ReplyDeleteHi, no doubt this was one of many, but I choose this one as it was the first real chink in his armor that went public. I agree with you on the self-deportation comments as well, but if you listen closely, most candidates still don't have a clear position on immigration.
ReplyDeleteI recall this as being a wake-up for candidates, their first realization that you can't expect privacy anymore even at a private event. And then there is Donald Trump, who does not care what he says...
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