a Wash Post article that shows how Obama's campaign seems different
The article is guilty of more than false equivalency, it actually places more responsibility on Obama than Romney, which is absurd.
As I see it, the problem with previous Democratic campaigns has been that they would try to satisfy Balz's complaints, fair or not.
By contrast, I picture Obama sending this article around to his staff, with the instructions, "Please read this article and do everything you can to disappoint Dan Balz even more."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/a-most-poisonous-campaign/2012/08/15/16715a08-e6e7-11e1-8f62-58260e3940a0_story.html
President Obama, Mitt Romney running a most poisonous campaign
No one expected Campaign 2012 to be positive or uplifting. The countrys problems are too severe and the battle lines between Republicans and Democrats have been hardened by almost four years of conflict between the White House and Congress.
But what is most striking about the contest is not just the negativity or the sheer volume of attack ads raining down on voters in swing states. It is the sense that all restraints are gone, the guardrails have disappeared and there is no incentive for anyone to hold back. The other guy does it, so were going to do it, too.
Mitt Romneys selection of Rep. Paul Ryan (Wis.) as his vice presidential running mate seemed like an opportunity for both sides to pause and reset after one of the ugliest weeks of the year. Instead, this week has produced the harshest rhetoric and the angriest accusations of the campaign.
Vice President Biden triggered the latest round Tuesday with lines that, had a Republican uttered them, probably would have set off an even bigger firestorm. He told an audience in Virginia that Romney would unchain big banks if elected and then added, Theyre going to put yall back in chains.
(...)