It's also why Rove is calling the Obama strategy "gutter politics"--he would know, it's right out of his playbook.
I know what the MSM narrative on Rove is, but can you quote some of "his playbook" as evidence?
[modify:] Or give some examples that can compare with what Team Obama is doing to Romney?
Sure.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A3222-2004May30.html"Three-quarters of the ads aired by Bush's campaign have been attacks on Kerry. Bush so far has aired 49,050 negative ads in the top 100 markets, or 75 percent of his advertising. Kerry has run 13,336 negative ads -- or 27 percent of his total. The figures were compiled by The Washington Post using data from the Campaign Media Analysis Group of the top 100 U.S. markets. Both campaigns said the figures are accurate."
"From the president and Cheney down to media aides stationed in every battleground state and volunteers who dress up like Flipper the flip-flopping dolphin at rallies,
the Bush campaign relentlessly portrays Kerry as elitist, untrustworthy, liberal and a flip-flopper on major issues. This campaign is persistent and methodical, and it often revs up on Monday mornings with the strategically timed release of ads or damaging attacks on Kerry, including questioning medical and service records in Vietnam and his involvement in the peace movement afterward. Often, they knock Kerry off message and force him to deflect personal questions."
Remember all those clips and surrogate jokes about Kerry on waterskis, Kerry speaking French, Kerry's Botox treatments, ect. ect. And note how many misleading characterizations were in those ads as reported by the article.
Driving up an opponents negatives through misleading attacks is an old political tactic, and it's certainly older than Rove. But he did use it. And Obama's team is certainly using it now.
