“Take the hit for a day or two,’’ Mr. Kristol advised.
But Obama advisers don’t believe the “hit’’ would subside so quickly. It would inevitably drag out, propelled forward by the hundreds of aides hunched over computer terminals in the campaign headquarters in Chicago.
“There’s never going to be enough that he’ll release to satisfy this,’’ the Obama senior aide said. “And the further he goes back, the more problematic it is for him.”
The aide added: “He’s now getting to the point where he can’t afford a week of torture. We’re in the middle of July. This stuff, if he was going to do it, he should have already done it.”
Candidates win by persuading voters they’re the best pick for the job. Eviscerating the opponent makes the choice that much easier. Team Obama is making the case with all the energy it can muster that Mr. Romney’s record at Bain Capital is a disqualifying piece of his resume.
They are readying more attacks centered on Mr. Romney’s early history at Bain Capital — how he raised the initial capital that got the enterprise up and running. If nothing else, that might soak up more time and consume more news cycles.
Justifying the line of attack, Obama aides say Mr. Romney is the one who placed his business experience at the center of his candidacy.
It’s not that simple, of course. Romney has invoked his private sector background in arguing that he understands the economy better than President Obama. But he has also talked about his record as Massachusetts governor and turning around the troubled 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. The 2,400-word prepared speech in which he kicked off his campaign a year ago included just two paragraphs on Bain.
What matters now, though, is the calendar. Another senior Obama adviser was asked: If an entire day on the campaign trail is spent debating the Bain years, is that a good day for the president?
“Yes,’’ he said simply.
But Obama advisers don’t believe the “hit’’ would subside so quickly. It would inevitably drag out, propelled forward by the hundreds of aides hunched over computer terminals in the campaign headquarters in Chicago.
“There’s never going to be enough that he’ll release to satisfy this,’’ the Obama senior aide said. “And the further he goes back, the more problematic it is for him.”
The aide added: “He’s now getting to the point where he can’t afford a week of torture. We’re in the middle of July. This stuff, if he was going to do it, he should have already done it.”
Candidates win by persuading voters they’re the best pick for the job. Eviscerating the opponent makes the choice that much easier. Team Obama is making the case with all the energy it can muster that Mr. Romney’s record at Bain Capital is a disqualifying piece of his resume.
They are readying more attacks centered on Mr. Romney’s early history at Bain Capital — how he raised the initial capital that got the enterprise up and running. If nothing else, that might soak up more time and consume more news cycles.
Justifying the line of attack, Obama aides say Mr. Romney is the one who placed his business experience at the center of his candidacy.
It’s not that simple, of course. Romney has invoked his private sector background in arguing that he understands the economy better than President Obama. But he has also talked about his record as Massachusetts governor and turning around the troubled 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. The 2,400-word prepared speech in which he kicked off his campaign a year ago included just two paragraphs on Bain.
What matters now, though, is the calendar. Another senior Obama adviser was asked: If an entire day on the campaign trail is spent debating the Bain years, is that a good day for the president?
“Yes,’’ he said simply.