[cjwils3]

Originally Posted by Sigaba

This analysis overlooks the ability of a modern incumbent president to use the bully pulpit to frame the narrative of his first term. For example, in 1916, President Wilson's campaign for re-election centered around the failures of previous Republican policies as well as the fact that he'd kept America out of the Great War. In 1984, President Reagan framed his campaign as a referendum on the Carter presidency. In 2004, Bush the Younger made a specific, but coded, reference to the Carter administration.

So while Governor Romney might prefer to address the current president's record, sticking to that plan will hardly be "safe" if the incumbent uses the bully pulpit to change the narrative and Romney does not adjust his approach.

I most certainly agree that Romney cannot simply point the finger at the current administration. Of course he has to win over and energize the conservative base of the GOP while reaching out to independents and swing voters. Yet, for many voters in this election season, it is going to be a denounciation of the policies of the Obama administration, instead of being fond of Romney (which a considerable amount of conservatives seem not to be). I think it's feasible to argue that that is a major reason why Nixon was elected in '68....because the majority of the country had grown to despise the LBJ-Hubert Humphrey government, and not necessarily because they preferred the former Vice President. And one could argue the same for Carter in '76 because of the lingering disgust over Watergate and Ford's pardon of Nixon.