The fundamental problem Clinton’s campaign strategists are facing right now is the fact that...
When people get to know the real Bernie Sanders, they like him
It is the KEY reality which has enabled his campaign to continue to grow in strength, to the point where he has been able to:
- overcome long odds to tie Hillary in Iowa
- surge to a powerful win in New Hampshire
- overcome the huge advantage she once enjoyed in Nevada
- begin closing the huge advantage she once enjoyed in South Carolina
- raise all the money he needs to be able to match/dominate her in ad buys
The formula for success has not really been all that complex.
From day one, most people have either had no opinion at all about the man because they know nothing about him, or they have acquired a somewhat negative image of him based on certain disparaging comments they’ve heard made about him.
But once his campaign acquired enough donations to be able to get his message heard in Iowa and New Hampshire, he was able to replace the dismissive/negative ‘rumors of Bernie Sanders’ they had been hearing with the inspiring reality of Bernie Sanders.
It is from this simple prime directive that all of his success has flowed.
The Clinton campaign’s response to this success has been to try to hold on to her support by attempting to create a negative image of Bernie in the minds of Hillary-leaning Democrats.
Now there can be little doubt that negative campaigning can be very effective in helping to win elections. If it wasn’t so effective, politicians wouldn’t employ it.
But negative campaigning is only effective if:
- the allegations that are being made are accurate, or if
- the innocent target of the negative attacks does not have the $$ to be able to defend herself from the accusations with ad buys.
Bernie has been able to continue to grow his campaign in spite of Hillary’s utter reliance on negative campaigning at this point because
- he is not actually guilty of the misrepresentations that are being made of his agenda/history/integrity, and...
- he has the money to be able to replace the rumors with the reality of his true character
If you are not actually guilty of the attacks that your opponent has made about you AND you have the $$ to be able to defend yourself in the next contested states, then your opponent’s attacks are actually a blessing.
It is indeed a gift from the political gods for it gives you a special opportunity---with the media’s attention focused on you---to correct the misperceptions and in so doing define both yourself and your opponent in ways that are favorable to you.
That is what we have been seeing up to this point.
Now I’m not sure why the political geniuses who are advising Hillary Clinton were not aware that this was the risk they were taking.
Or perhaps they were, but they simply hoped---in their desperation---that Bernie would not be able to raise enough money to answer the slander and turn it against his attackers.
But guess what happened?
It now appears that the Clinton team’s Plan B was always going negative against Bernie.
Plan C?
Apparently naval-gazing in defeat.
Time to make another donation to the most important cause of our time?