In what has already become a daily firefight with the mayor, Clinton's team is trying to show that his reputation as a moderate Republican who cleaned up a rotting Big Apple is either not accurate or not relevant to representing the state in the Senate. Clinton's team asserts that Giuliani, with his autocratic style and quickness to anger, will in time be a more polarizing figure to New Yorkers than Hillary Clinton. If this battle of personalities can be won or fought to a draw, the theory goes, New York's political terrain would favor her. There are almost 2 million more registered Democrats than Republicans. Presidential election years can bring 2 million more people to the polls, many of them lower-income voters who tilt Democratic.
All successful campaigns promote a combination of issues and personality.
But the first lady's team in recent weeks, according to Democratic sources, has been beset with friction over finding the right mix. Democratic sources say that in speeches for both Clintons he regularly insists that specific phrases and policy nuggets be included because they poll well with swing voters. This race is going to boil down to who is best at representing New York in Washington, D.C., and that in turn is going to boil down in large measure on personality. Another issue that Hillary Clinton's team brooded over at length was what role President Clinton would play in today's announcement. Yesterday, the White House announced that he would not have a speaking role.