IOWA: TIME TO GO POSITIVE? [Brian Kennedy 10/24 11:21 AM]
Don’t be surprised this week if the tone and tenor of the campaign here in Iowa changes dramatically. For nearly two years John Kerry and his allies have trashed President Bush in all 99 counties. The President joined the fight this summer and as a result is in position to put Iowa’s seven electoral votes in the GOP column for the first time since the Reagan landslide of 1984. For the better part of the last six months, with the notable exception of Ashley’s Story, you cannot turn on the TV without being slapped by ominous warnings about the dangers of voting for the opposition. But when it comes to wooing the undecided voter in the heartland, all of this negativism may hurt more than help. Remember the 2002 Minnesota Senate race and Paul Wellstone’s funeral? On the eve of that election, Tom Harkin and Hillary Clinton turned the funeral into a 90 minute Bush Bashing infomercial. A few days later, the undecided voters broke for Norm Coleman and Walter Mondale’s short lived comeback turned out as successful as his foray into Presidential politics. The 2002 experience reminded me that at the end of the day voters want to feel good about the candidate they support. It’s a good lesson to those who are considering how to woo those last undecided voters in Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin.
