My Conversation with Karl Rove on the Three Requirements to be President in 2012

Today as I was waiting to catch a plan to DC to talk to some people about education policy I ran into Karl Rove waiting to catch a flight. He was in town recently for the Livingston County Republican Party' Lincoln Day Dinner, which also attracted such notables as Attorney General Bill Schuette, State Senator Joe Hune, State Representative Bill Rogers, State Representative Cindy Denby, blogger Wendy Day, and many others.

Knowing that Mr. Rove is a friendly and verbose guy, I sat down with him for a minute and asked him his thoughts on the upcoming 2012 race for the President. According to Karl Rove, in order for Republicans to beat Obama and retake the White House the GOP will have to nominate a candidate who can do 3 things:

1. Write a narrative- articulate their vision of the world, their views on policy, where they have come from and where they see our nation going, and explain why voters should vote for that person over anyone else
2. Seize the moment- there will time a come in every campaign when the candidate will have to stand up and take command of the situation- Reagan did it in a debate with HW Bush, W Bush did it in a debate with McCain, Obama did it in a debate with Clinton- at some point the candidate will be challenged and will have to rise to the challenge and show voters that they can fight
3. Unite the nation- this election will not be about Republicans turning out to vote but rather about getting Democrats and independents to cross over and vote for a Republican who strongly articulates Republican views. Obama campaigned as a moderate force of change and bipartisanship and won (turns out that was a bold faced lie though) and Reagan had Reagan Democrats- our next President needs to be a uniter and not a divider.

Karl Rove is a pretty smart guy and came to these conclusions after talking with many other pollsters and consultants, so let's run with these ideas for a minute. Let's take a look at the top contenders for the GOP nomination and speculate if they meet all three criteria:

• Sarah Palin- she is writing a narrative (TLC show, book, etc) and is tough and strong, but is just too divisive (because strong women who love life and liberty represent a threat to many on the left and lingering sexism in other groups)
• Mitt Romney- he is trying to write a narrative (he has a book out- anyone read it?) but his vision is muddled by his support for Romneycare, he was unable to seize the moment last time he ran for office and looked timid and unsure at times, but he does have the potential to be a uniter (competent, moderate, measured, experienced, etc)
• Newt Gingrich- he has a narrative and a vision, he has been able to sieze moments in the past (1994), but he is not a uniter- his personal life, his writings, and his personal style divide people too much
• Rudy Giuliani- he needs to develop a narrative and a vision- yes, we all remember him from 9/11 and from his work in New York, but he needs to move beyond that and become something more, and I don't know if that is possible, he obviously can seize a moment (9/11), and he could unite America around the memory of 9/11- but can he do more than that, I wonder
• Tim Pawlenty- he needs a national narrative and vision, something that will catapult him to the Presidency, he probably could stand up and be tough and have a moment, and I get the feeling that he could unite America behind him if only he could tell a better story- he comes off as cold and distant
• Donald Trump- he doesn't have a vision, although he will have moments of toughness (you're fired!) and America could unite behind him (change and hope and stuff)
• All others- I simply don't know enough about them, which means they haven't articulated a strong vision, they haven't had a moment, and I have no idea if they can be a uniter

Let me know your thoughts- who do you think meets Rove's criteria for being the next President of the United States?