Tipsheet

Democratic Enthusiasm Tanks

Not surprisingly, Republicans are far more enthusiastic about this year's presidential election than Democrats are . . . and Democrats are far less enthusiastic than they were in 2004 and 2008.

This is good news, obviously, for the GOP.  But it also means that Democrats from the President on down will be looking for any possible way to stoke voter enthusiasm.  Given that so little positive energy can be generated by a President whose tenure is a failure by virtually every measure, they will realize that they have to goose enthusiasm (and thus turnout) by appealing to negative emotions like hate, fear and envy.

At risk of being cynical, I predict intensified, repeated efforts to play the race card, portray Mitt Romney as some kind of monster, and demonize "the rich."  More Occupy-style rhetoric.  More attempts at class warfare.  In other words, more of the same . . . but even worse, because they're getting desperate with the apparent failure of the attacks on Bain (which are driving down Obama's favorability ratings with less apparent impact on Romney).

In that respect, at least, Obama will attempt to repeat the strategy forged in 1996 by Bill Clinton and his friends in the MSM, when a supposed "epidemic" of black church-burnings (with news reports later proved to be distorted and wrong) was used to great effect by Democrats to energize key parts of their base.

You read it here.