Why did President Obama win?

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In your thoughts now as we see you know all of these swing states come -- Colorado -- -- that was supposed to be made that one that was leaning Romney.

They are I mean there wasn't one that was in question at least thus far.

That went for Ronnie and and what does that what it means -- Well it it is it is seeming to go back to the conversation that whereas before it suggests that the polling taken over this all of these many months.

Was more accurate than -- -- and when you saw if you take Ohio for instance he's going look at the polling.

Starting from Election Day and go back to April and today.

There were two or three holes serious holes where Mitt Romney surged into -- lead.

In eventually ended up with President Obama winning all of the others so I think this was a case where when Mitt -- We went to he'd get rid of tough campaign I think he really classy campaign -- -- mark.

He obviously had many people working for him.

Who devoted their lives to doing this spent a lot of time doing nothing but that's for the past year and ultimately.

Came up short I would argue in part because his campaign -- -- didn't provide enough of a contract for.

Let me follow up you on that you say he ran a classy campaign.

And there's been so much talk about a negative campaign that was run by President Obama and if you look at the -- in the -- -- the -- that's clear.

What does this mean for future elections that we now have nothing but negativity because -- you know that does that.

-- it did tonight proved that that works you know did too good to try to be above border classy -- you put it it didn't pay dividends for Mitt Romney and.

Well look I mean I don't matter wanna sound pollyannish about it Mitt Romney -- -- a tough campaign -- I -- he made plenty of difficult -- attacks about on president.

-- violence some of which from.

You know were questioned by factors -- so it was a tough campaign but there's no question that that.

President Obama's campaign starting very early before Mitt Romney was the Republican nominee.

Knew that they were going to try to run by being aggressively.

Ideological liberal appealing to the base and defining the Republicans as extreme and out of touch.

And that's what they did they did it early -- defined him as Carl Cameron suggests there will be second guessing about whether the Romney campaign should have responded earlier but there's no question.

It's inescapable.

That that work in this instance.

-- -- what Romney should have.

To find himself I think that's the biggest mistake that they'll look back and realize and and remember.

There was a lot of conversations about wise Obama's spending all this money and he would you know he's actually running out of money for a little while.

And it was because they just decided we're gonna -- in early on we are just gonna bombard people and define Mitt Romney was a blank slate basically.

And and the other thing is if you remember that right now in the United States are few things that are less popular than sort of Wall Street people.

He's not a Wall Street person but they convince people that he kind of wipes and -- So then Romney comes in any -- it sort of and do all of this money comes into the debates -- she doesn't really good job so I think that tactically that was a really really bad mistake and I I think that they.

Are great people on the campaign but that the Obama campaign tactically it was -- -- campaign this is no question in my mind that that's true.

Let me just answer your big question first -- -- but I wanted to respond to this conversation in the -- -- your question is that.

Latino voters and black voters in bigger numbers turned out.

And fit the models that the polls had did not -- the models that the Romney campaign had hoped for.

And young voters and women voters came back again to fit the 08 -- with gender gap reappeared.

In all those ways what we're seeing I think is a new kind of politics.

You look back in American history I think what has driven us.

But a lot large measure large parred the last part of the twentieth century.

With the blue collar white vote.

And that's what drove I think Republicans to -- -- coming from 68 forward most of the time.

I think we're in a new phase now that's going to be defined by the emergence specifically about Latino vote.

And the kind of -- nation that Republicans.

Demonstrated towards Latinos -- terms of immigration reform did not pay off with -- you can talk with Jeb Bush the former governor of Florida Baptist he just sees it as self destructive and hurtful.

And again lack of outreach now you've just let me just add in here I don't think that the Romney people.

Our have totally clean hands here I think just last week when they were saying -- Jeep was gonna send jobs to China -- -- you know that's just not right.

I think that makes a difference and I think that you know when you look at the attacks that the Romney campaign -- present mom.

This was a hardball campaign.

I mean both sides were throwing their.

The dirt -- -- -- -- -- this this confirms your point I think had to do with the finding Romney's early as that being guy.

But the question is how does the Republican Party responded they say -- you know what we weren't conservative enough.

-- You know what we're gonna have to change the way we do business.

-- when you look at the map -- we called the heat map that's right behind me and that's to be different counties throughout.

The country and where they stand Republican or Democrat -- there is just a ton of red.

On that map the blue Democrats the yellow these are counties that are within 3%.

Percentage points.

You talk about this the country and where it is and what kind of campaign.

Winds.

And are we going to now be for ever.

Dealing with ten battleground states that we could just start at the beginning of a campaign.

And just dump all kinds of money in ten battleground states and and that's it five.

The number about arrested was -- what -- twelve with a little bit larger -- time but essentially it's the same after the Republican for -- -- and I think you know the question in all of this believes it is.

Could Mitt Romney with a different campaign have won this election.

Given the conditions in the country I think it.

Going to be it pretty hard to say that this was not a winnable election for the challenger for the Republican challenger and I would look to the very things that my colleagues here.

Which is they let the president.

Define him they left unanswered the attacks on him really effectively answered on him into the -- capitalist if you will.

And they let it let that hang out there and it left it all to him the candidate.

To try to undo at all and he went a long way toward doing that we think about it in his performance in the first debate more than any more perhaps -- -- others.

And he came pretty close.

But in the end it looks like he was kind of behind all the way.

And -- was never able to over now we're gonna -- the recriminations.

Was the party too far right was a pretty too far left the demographic factors that one pointed to -- absolutely real.

And the Republican party's gonna have to ask itself if the hard -- position admit we're only assuredly took.

During the primary season to try to win this election hard -- law and order position on immigration.

Is in the long on a winning position for the Karl Rove and George H.

W.

Bush never thought so.

And others don't think so well and so when they're saying that well Mitt Romney wasn't conservative enough that some certainly -- say.

You have to point to that issue is one that may be a a short term and the long term loser for them Politico.

It looks now that this president will be reelected.

With fewer electoral votes than he won the first time price first present to start ever to be reelected with fewer electoral votes than the first time.

And probably a popular vote total that is very very close.

The split being very narrow which will -- -- will certainly add to the feeling among a lot of people this is a winnable election.

Right now it stands at 1141000.

Separating the two candidate that is popular vote believable that -- smaller than the margin by which George W.

Bush won Ohio.

In this in the end in 2004.

Grown and raise your -- talking date -- Romney leading.

With Romney leading in very popular vote yeah.

In -- my prediction for this election was that President Obama again would win the battleground states win the Electoral College vote.

But he might lose I thought he would lose the popular vote and that tells you something about.

We are you say we're polarized but I think you know what you look at that map behind you were describing it -- A lot of that is you know very small population you look where the big populations are where college educated where the economy growing that's where the -- it.

Now if if Mitt Romney.

-- to win the popular vote it'll be fun to see.

Whether we have an outbreak of shoe on the other foot disease in which it is the Republicans who -- suddenly decided the way the Democrats did in 2000 this Electoral College has got to work out.

I don't remember California was I have a measure passed wind which meant that that whoever won the popular vote -- would get all California for -- I love it remember that that the Electoral College is never going to be given out by Republican -- -- just -- -- we -- it would be all right reversal from Darrel yeah.

This thing all right coming out of -- look at that we're gonna think at 34 -- we're gonna take a look at.

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Why did President Obama win?

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