Juan Pablo Rivera Garza
Blogs Editor
This coming Wednesday the first Presidential Debate will be held at the University of Denver. It focuses on domestic policy and it will be an extremely important event in the election. It is no secret that President Obama holds a significant lead against Governor Romney in both the popular vote and the electoral college. This is a make-or-break moment for both the Obama and Romney campaigns. Elections can easily be decided in one debate – Reagan’s 1980 victory has been credited to his superb debate performance against Carter – and both campaigns are very aware of this. Here are a couple of things each of the candidates needs to accomplish:
President Barack Obama:
-Appeal to Blue-Collar Voters by focusing on Auto Bailout and support for manufacturing. (Very important in Michigan, Wisconsin, and Ohio)
-Hammer at Governor Romney’s career at Bain. (The President’s attack ads on this subject have worked very well so far)
-Explain how he has succeeded economically as President by using the same argument Bill Clinton made for him at the Democratic Convention.
– Highlight the negatives of Governor Romney’s administration in Massachusetts.
-Make the Governor look like an out-of-touch plutocrat.
-Do not appear smug or arrogant (i.e. 2008 Democratic Primary debate against Clinton)
Governor Mitt Romney:
-Point out the deficiencies in the President’s economic policies (8%+ unemployment and a weak recovery)
-Emphasize the lack of budgetary or deficit reduction success in the President’s 4 years in office.
-Demonstrate the charming and funny side of his personality that his close friends say he has.
-Deliver a couple of zingers at the President, comparable to the ones President Reagan used against President Carter in the 1980 debates.
-Needs a breakthrough performance that will reintroduce the American people to him in a positive light (especially to alleviate his dismal favorability ratings).
-Hold the line against the President’s accomplished debating skills.
Stay tuned after the Debate on Wednesday for a scorecard on the candidates performances!
