Zac Byer: Prix Fixe Politics — the GOP Primary Redux

Good morning, and welcome to another offering of Prix Fixe Politics!  I hope your brackets aren’t yet busted, and that you’ve enjoyed our first few weeks of spring.  In the meantime, here is today’s meal…

 

Appetizer:  I thought we could step away from politics for one meal and try something interactive.  Here are five qualities of life that, frankly, all sound ideal.  However, only one takes top billing with men, while one takes the top spot with women:

 

How well do you know American men and women?  If you’d like, reply to this e-mail and send me your guesses — one for each gender.  I’ll keep track of how everyone does, and in the next e-mail I’ll announce which two choices are truly what Americans want most in 2012.  For one of the winners which I’ll select at random, a drink’s on me next time I’m in your city.

 

Main Course:  It’s nearly time to break out the Bon Jovi, as Romney is nine delegates shy of being “halfway there” to the magical 1,144.  This is new territory for Romney — in 2008, he suspended his campaign only two days after the February 5 Super Tuesday contests.  Granted, he’s assembled a team of advisors that looks similar to, albeit larger than, his 2008 staff; however, the whole cadre is still learning the ropes of a frontrunner’s ring.  The industry term is pivoting.  For instance, if you decide to run for President in 2036 and a very old Wolf Blitzer only wants to ask you about where you stood on the Iraq War in 2003, you’d be well-advised to pivot off the question into a broader discussion of your foreign policy agenda for the 2030s and 2040s.  This past Wednesday, the day after Romney’s big win in Illinois, top advisor Eric Fehrnstrom tried to pivot but broke a cardinal rule:  Never actually talk about pivoting.  Fehrnstrom compared Romney’s candidacy to an Etch-a-Sketch, saying they could shake up the campaign as they look ahead to winning moderate voters in November.  Like him or not, with George W. Bush you knew what you were going to get.  Same thing for Senators like California’s Barbara Boxer and South Carolina’s Jim DeMint.  But Romney still must overcome the notion that he is as inconsistent as the 2012 Philadelphia Eagles.  He loses a modicum of trust each time he or one of his staffers makes such a comment…and the way things are shaping up, Romney is going to need all the trust he can get if he wants to become our next President.   

 

Dessert:  As gas prices rise, so do Americans’ blood pressure rates.  It’s an issue that touches all of us — rich or poor, West or East Coasters, 20 or 80 years old.  And it’s bound to drive the presidential campaigns deep into summer.  Whether or not the President can actually do anything about gas prices, President Obama is on the defensive here.  He recently called for expedited construction of the southern portion of the Keystone XL Pipeline, and he just finished up a multi-state swing in which he discussed energy policy.  The President can — and should — talk about gas prices.  There’s no avoiding the problem, as the American people come face-to-face with it when we go to the pump each week.  But if there’s little or no price improvement at the typical inflection month of September, expect Romney to create a separate stump speech dedicated strictly to energy. 

 

After Dinner Drink: “Wake Up” – We’ve had mothers cry when we show them the ad below, and many have said that they’ve had similar thoughts about their children’s future.  I think broader cost-of-life, passing-the-debt-buck themes can help Republicans win back ground with women voters they’ve ceded recently.  And that’s what the Romney campaign has asked Mitt’s wife Ann to focus on in her speeches and introductions of her husband.  She’s an effective surrogate, and you can expect to see much more of her in the coming months.  I wouldn’t bet against multiple versions of this ad either.