Rove to Kerry: Would you Like Some Pepper on your Debate?
John,
Nice job on the debates. You make me proud. The "other Karl" must be rolling in his gravitas right now.
But there's much work ahead. You need to take advantage of an interested press and start leveraging the "press points" that have the media so abuzz. You need to take advantage of what made you win, and what made "W" lose. I can see you're already doing this, but what you might not know is that you're not doing it well enough.
Remember: you're still the challenger, John. You need to continue punching even when it looks like your opponent took a serious hit. I know in Massachusetts you give your opponent time to get back up and gather himself for the next round. Very nice sentiment, but not this time.
Think of it this way: the debate did not end at 10:30 on Thursday. Actually, the real debate just started, with the first hour and 1/2 of the debate being televised on Thursday. For the first time during this race, the press is interested in the debate of ideas, and every time you speak in public from now until Nov 2, you are in a one-on-one debate with "W." Remember this, and repeat it to yourself every morning, afternoon, and evening for the next 30 days.
Now for the fun part: Whenever you say something about Iraq being a diversion, pepper the statements with catchy phrases that get back to the popular moments of the debate:
and every time you bring up Osama Bin Laden...
And, last but definitely not least, use some of W's oft-repeated phrases against him:
You get the point, and to a large extent, you're already doing this. But you need to do it harder, faster, and with even more bite. Use the current - yet fleeting - press interest to your advantage, John. Leverage the nation's interest in W's flubs. Leverage this interest in your new "legitimacy" as a competitive challenger for President.
And remember that for the next month, you are not in a race, you are locked in a debate full-time.
Nice job on the debates. You make me proud. The "other Karl" must be rolling in his gravitas right now.
But there's much work ahead. You need to take advantage of an interested press and start leveraging the "press points" that have the media so abuzz. You need to take advantage of what made you win, and what made "W" lose. I can see you're already doing this, but what you might not know is that you're not doing it well enough.
Remember: you're still the challenger, John. You need to continue punching even when it looks like your opponent took a serious hit. I know in Massachusetts you give your opponent time to get back up and gather himself for the next round. Very nice sentiment, but not this time.
Think of it this way: the debate did not end at 10:30 on Thursday. Actually, the real debate just started, with the first hour and 1/2 of the debate being televised on Thursday. For the first time during this race, the press is interested in the debate of ideas, and every time you speak in public from now until Nov 2, you are in a one-on-one debate with "W." Remember this, and repeat it to yourself every morning, afternoon, and evening for the next 30 days.
Now for the fun part: Whenever you say something about Iraq being a diversion, pepper the statements with catchy phrases that get back to the popular moments of the debate:
"...and as I'm saying this, I can see my opponent's eyes rolling right now."
and...
"...even though President Bush would rather sneer at the problem rather than fix it."
and...
"...and after the looks I got in the debate, now I know how our allies must feel... what with being constantly sneered at every time I say something that contradicts his little fantasy world of spin."
and every time you bring up Osama Bin Laden...
"...and it's actually very comforting to know now that President Bush actually does know who attacked us on September 11th. I was getting worried there for a bit. But I'm glad he could figure that out for himself. I just wish he accepted the truth before he plunged us into a deadly, costly, war that has absolutely nothing to do with bringing Bin Laden to justice."
And, last but definitely not least, use some of W's oft-repeated phrases against him:
"President Bush apparently needed to share with us what hard work being President is. I don't know about you, but I'm a little discouraged that he's complaining about how much work it takes to be President of the United States. I promise to you -- Americans in every state, no matter what your politics -- that I am ready to work as hard as humanly possible for America, every single day of my Presidency. And you will never, ever hear me complain how hard I'm working for you."
You get the point, and to a large extent, you're already doing this. But you need to do it harder, faster, and with even more bite. Use the current - yet fleeting - press interest to your advantage, John. Leverage the nation's interest in W's flubs. Leverage this interest in your new "legitimacy" as a competitive challenger for President.
And remember that for the next month, you are not in a race, you are locked in a debate full-time.
posted by Jon a.k.a. "Our Karl Rove" at 11:17 AM
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