Golpear y repetir

El Wall Street Journal nos presenta un amplio perfil del combativo Steve Schmidt, el hombre que hace unas semanas tomó el control de las operaciones ordinarias de la campaña de John McCain. Sus órdenes: golpear y repetir el mensaje. McCain's Message Get Makeover

(...) Mr. Schmidt specializes in the combat that dominates today's political culture -- the minute-by-minute, talking point-vs.-talking point battles that fill a 24-hour news cycle. His formula: a tightly controlled message delivered repeatedly and with almost military-like precision.

This week presents just the latest in a string of challenges. With Sen. Obama on a high-profile trip that includes Iraq, Afghanistan, Israel and Europe, Mr. Schmidt had to devise counter-programming that would at least keep Sen. McCain in the mix.

His answer so far: National-security comments aimed at getting Sen. McCain into the Obama coverage, and a provocative television ad that directly tries to pin the blame on Sen. Obama for today's high gas prices on the grounds that he opposes increasing offshore drilling. The campaign also blasted out a Web video criticizing press attention to Sen. Obama's trip. "The media is in LOVE with Obama," the Web site says, displaying a mock valentine.

Some of Mr. Schmidt's campaign changes are easily visible: Sen. McCain now speaks in the round, surrounded by voters, not staid backdrops like in the June 3 event, when an ugly green banner got unwanted attention. But most critical has been shaping a clear, concise message to hammer each day.

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