Political strategists Carville, Hughes debate the campaign

LAS CRUCES —  With the waning campaign season as a backdrop, dueling political strategists — Democrat James Carville and Republican Karen Hughes — held nothing back while holding court Thursday on  Washingston gridlock and the presidential race.
Where both seemed to agree, during a morning session of New Mexico State University’s Domenici Public Policy Conference, was the view that Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney faces an uphill battle to unseat the incumbent, President Barack Obama, particularly after a rough few weeks.
“We have made the case that President Obama’s policies have failed. We have not yet made the case that people should vote for Mitt Romney instead, and that is what the last 50 days of the election will be about,” said Hughes, a strategic adviser to President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2002 and later a State Department undersecretary for public diplomacy.
Carville, a sharp-tongued Louisianan who was a central figure in President Bill Clinton’s 1992 campaign, responded, “If there’s any evidence that Mitt Romney has any skills to run for president, I’ve yet to see it.”
Minutes later, Hughes said, “The electorate is disillusioned by President Obama and his failure to deliver on what he promised. Republicans still have a very good shot at winning the election.”
Carville followed that by saying Romney was an accomplished businessman with a solid academic background who had been a “credible” governor of Massachusetts. But, Carville zinged, “He is a horrible candidate. He can’t make his case.”
Carville said the Romney campaign is “bleeding” and, to right itself, needs to “create another story.”  Romney, Carville said, should not answer any more press questions, for instance, about a video secretly recorded at a Florida fundraiser in May and revealed by Mother Jones magazine. It shows Romney dismissing many Obama supporters as people who do not pay federal income taxes and rely on the government.
“If you (Romney) are retooling your message two weeks after the convention, that’s not a good thing,” he said.
Moderator Sam Donaldson, an ABC news veteran and a New Mexico native, said that earlier in the campaign season, he believed 2012 would be a “Republican year,” given the woes caused by the nation’s still struggling economy. He asked Hughes, “Why are we in such a tight race?”
“We are a divided country,” Hughes said.
During the hourlong session  Carville repeatedly said the Republican party needs to broaden its appeal beyond a largely white base to be successful in the future.
Hughes said “the leadership of our party” is diverse, citing, among others, Gov. Susana Martinez and Texas Senate candidate Ted Cruz.
Carville said the “proliferation of news sources” on the Internet was a factor in sowing divisions among voters, because many Americans seek out media outlets or websites to confirm their beliefs, rather than challenge themselves with hard information.
“People use information for validation, not information,” Carville said. “They use it like a drunk uses a lamp post.”
Prompted by a question from Donaldson, Carville said many Americans have developed a preference for political candidates with no experience in governance and no temperament for compromise. “Politics is the only endeavor . . . where we demand that (candidates) don’t know anything about it,” he quipped.
“It’s a pretty ugly environment,” Hughes said. “I am someone who believes that public service is noble and respects statesmen like Sen. (Pete) Domenici. . . . The process is only as good as the people we are able to attract to the process. And right now, the process does not look very inviting or very pretty. And, frankly, people ask me: Would I run for office? No, I know too much about it.”
Both political players cited major factors contributing to the political divisiveness plaguing the country.
Carville said primaries produce general election candidates who cater to the most active and extreme wings of their parties.
“Ask yourself about anybody in Washington: What are they more afraid of, getting beaten in the primaries or getting beaten in the generals? . . . . The percentage of people in Washington today who are more afraid of losing in the primaries than the general election is at an all-time high.”
Hughes cited a lack of leadership, a criticism she hung on Obama.
But Hughes also said the decade-ending redistricting process, which often produce districts with electorates that favor one party or the other, has also contributed to candidates who are more partisan and less likely to be willing to compromise.
“You don’t have a competitive environment,” Hughes said, with Carville agreeing.
Carville said every state should have open primaries, in which voters of any affiliation can cast a ballot, to force candidates to “broaden his appeal.”