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..is to understand George W Bush's politics. Because they both think very similarly. First of all, when it gets close to election day, no matter how much they have screwed up in the past, grab a fistful of mud. It's not important what you have accomplished or not accomplished in the past. The trick is to slap so much mud on your opponent in the last two weeks of the campaign that no one can recognize who the Republican is running against. All Republican failures are forgotten.
With your fistful of mud, find a story about sex. Americans are obsessed with sex stories. That's why they approach "gay marriage" from a sexual standpoint rather than a human rights standpoint. They know what chain to pull with a large proportion of Americans. Sex is dirty.
They keep their opponents on the defensive. No matter if it is a Foley story, or Duke Cunnningham, or Abramoff, or any other assorted scandal, the focus is always on their opponent. That is their strategy and it works very well. They will attempt to find an adjective to describe their opponent in what appears to be a subtle putdown, but which in fact, is a slap in the face accusing their opponent of a moral failing. They are not just a "flip-flopper" - they are a "liar". That is their message. The Democrats are not just "cut and runners' - they are "cowards". That is their message.
So how do you counter such Machivellian tactics? Talk about the issues? Get real! Find some sex stories or moral failings of these Republicans and save them for the last two weeks of the campaign. Put them on the defensive and make them answer the charges. They are "flim-flam" men, which in Republican terminolgy translates into "thieves". They have stolen us blind.
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