It is beginning to look like a child’s game but this is a serious business. President Obama and his reelection team have a formidable fight in their hands as they put together the strategies to defeat presumed Republican Party candidate Mitt Romney. Obama campaign strategy is to first and foremost define who is Romney and then let American voters make the decision not to vote for Romney. But the efforts Obama’s people are making are being undercut continuously by unexpected utterances coming from Democratic Party leaders. The most visible of them all is the former President Clinton who is working with President Obama for his reelection.
Former President Bill Clinton is a gifted politician, the best you can get in the business of retail politics. By pressing the skin and with his charisma he knows how to make a lasting impression on the average working class voters, those people that are the base of Democratic Party.
President Clinton was on Piers Morgan show on CNN and was commenting on the business record of Mitt Romney, his words: “I don’t think we ought to get in a position where we say this is bad work. This is good work. There’s no question that in terms of getting up and going to the office and, you know, basically performing the essential functions of the office, a man who’s been governor and had a sterling business career crosses the qualification threshold.”
After that many people were so much surprised not for praising Mitt Romney’s business achievement, which Mitt Romney may deserve but for the sterling endorsement he gave to Romney.
The word, that word "sterling" is powerful; it sends the message that Romney is the "man" that can get the economy accelerating because of his private sector experience. That might be the case, but nobody knows for sure. Moreover, the Republicans should be the ones making the case for Mitt Romney not Bill Clinton and Democratic Party doing it for them.
The Republican’s Mitt Romney presumed strength is on his record as the founder and operator of Bain Capital. The equity investment entity made so many deals by financing and propping up failing companies; then turn around and sale them for huge profits. Obama argument was that in most cases, Bain Capital made deals at the expense of the workers to the advantage of investors. When you take away this point of view from the table, Obama has less to run on.
Many people are becoming concerned and are probing on what is going on between Obama and Clinton including popular Slate magazine which recently wrote : "Recently he has been on the wrong end of at least three different statements he has had to clarify–defending Bain Capital, testifying to Mitt Romney’s "sterling" business career, suggesting the country was still in a recession, and suggesting he favored, extending the Bush-era tax cuts. Clinton is doing such good work for Mitt Romney that he now appears in the Republican nominee’s press releases. Even Sarah Palin praised Clinton last night, in an effort to make President Obama look way out of the mainstream."
Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee (DNC), did not agree with "sterling" attribute to Mitt Romney’s business record. Speaking in an interview with Piers Morgan on CNN she said, "Certainly, everyone is titled to their opinion, including President Clinton,” but on "sterling" description, she continued "No, I don’t agree with President Clinton on that point," Wasserman Schultz said. "In fact, Mitt Romney is basing his entire candidacy on his experience in the private sector and the application we have in government to Mitt Romney’s ‘sterling’ private sector experience is when he was Governor of Massachusetts."
But Clinton is not alone in this act; other few influential Democratic Party members are joining the trail and are beginning to sound like they are closet supporters for Republican Party Mitt Romney. A rising African American star in Democratic party, Mr. Cory Booker, Mayor of Newark New Jersey speaking recently on NBC Meet the Press said that Obama’s campaign running a commercial critical of Bain Capital is "nauseating."
"Nauseating?" What a wrong choice of word? Cory Booker was supposedly a surrogate for President Obama campaign team and should have known better. If he feels that way, then the house of Democratic Party is in trouble. Even the former elected Tennessee politician Harold Forda, also an African American supported Cory Booker on his pronouncement on Bain Capital.
A former Pennsylvania governor Ed Rendell, who supported the wife of President Clinton, Hillary Clinton for presidency in 2008 did underline President Obama with his latest comment: “I think the president was hurt by being a legislator only" and this he will probably enhanced the message of Miitt Romney election team that Obama lacks the business experience to handle the economy.
Are Democrats ready for prime time or do they want to lose the election even before the Election Day? Or maybe we are all reading too much meaning to a strategic formulation in making. Whatever the case maybe, there must be a perceived resemblance of unity among Democratic Party stalwarts to enable them to win the coming presidential election. Obama re-election team should realize that a much penetrating effort is needed to rally around their constituency, even before making the pitch for the independent voters.
Emeka Chiakwelu, Analyst and Principal Policy strategist at Afripol. Africa Political and EconomicStrategicCenter (Afripol) is foremost a public policy center whose fundamental objective is to broaden the parameters of public policy debates in Africa. To advocate, promote and encourage free enterprise, democracy, sustainable green environment, human rights, conflict resolutions, transparency and probity in Africa. http://afripol.org. strategist@afripol.org