http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/01/us/politics/bain-attacks-make-inroads-for-president.html?_r=1&hp
With that cash influx, Mr. Romneys team is preparing a new advertising campaign that will aggressively portray Mr. Obama as a craven political figure, rather than the transformative leader he pledged he would be. Aides said they were considering more ads with Mrs. Clinton or her husband criticizing Mr. Obama.
Mr. Romneys aides said in interviews that their strategy depended on keeping their candidate close to Mr. Obama in the polls until at least the Republican convention at the end of August. They hope to begin to pull away then with a relentless case that Mr. Obama has not been up to the job of fixing the economy and that Mr. Romney has the experience and the knowledge to lead the nation to recovery.
They have studiously avoided getting drawn into what they have called side issues. And at times they have limited Mr. Romneys media appearances, even after the health care decision, which conservatives believe will help motivate voters who now see electing Mr. Romney as the only chance of undoing the law.
Mr. Obama, by contrast, has put other big issues in front of the nation on his terms, most notably same-sex marriage and illegal immigration, displaying the advantages of incumbency, energizing crucial voting groups and moving public attention at least temporarily away from jobs.
Weve got to make sure people fully appreciate Mitt Romney is not some safe alternative, said David Plouffe, a senior adviser to the president.
To drive home that point over the past few weeks, Mr. Obama has gone on an advertising binge, spending more than $12 million during a single week in mid-June, according to a Republican group that monitors advertising spending.
According to the independent media tracking firm CMAG, between early April and late June Mr. Obama spent at least $40 million and Mr. Romney at least $10 million, with outside groups like Crossroads GPS and Restore Our Future making up the difference for him.
In the most recent NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll, 33 percent of respondents in swing states said that hearing or reading about Mr. Romneys business record had made them view him more negatively, as opposed to 18 percent who said it made them view him more favorably.
As you start to put together a general election campaign, its when an incumbent president should be at his strongest, said Stuart Stevens, a senior Romney strategist. Theyve been preparing for this moment for three and a half years, and weve been in a primary until very recently.
Its going to be very close, Mr. Plouffe said in an interview. Were not looking for and dont expect seismic movement.
