As pointed out by Jonathan Chait in New York Magazine, some prominent Republicans are now worrying that the Obama campaign's Economic messaging has "dystopian" undertones--and that these undertones are uncomfortably effective in the current economic climate.
Obviously, campaigns always strive to convey confidence, with even the slightest hints of pessimism seen as potentially unleashing a self-defeating cycle of doom.
So this admission, from [Steven J. Law] the director of the Karl Rove–affiliated Republican Super-PAC “American Crossroads,” is unusual and telling:
Mr. Law said, Crossroads research suggests that Mr. Obama’s campaign has started to gain traction among critical swing voters by arguing that Republicans, including Mr. Romney, favor an “economic plutocracy” in which middle-class voters can no longer count on financial security, even though they work hard and play by the rules.
“His argument is: ‘The reason you feel bad is not because I’ve been an inadequate president but because the rules of the game are stacked against you,’ ” Mr. Law said.Calling it a “dystopian vision,” he added, “that narrative has some gravitational pull.”