Republicans prepare to take aim at Obama

Republicans, who have spent years preparing to face Hillary Rodham Clinton, are now switching gears to also aim at Barack Obama — a tougher target.

Political analysts say the Illinois senator’s race, short record and charisma create obstacles for any Republican running against him for the presidency.

“A Barack versus GOP fight is incredibly more difficult and will come down to our candidate’s ability to excite the independent majority — something much easier to do when you are not from the party of George Bush,” said Republican elections strategist Brett Sciotto.

Mrs. Clinton, while tough to beat, at least would fire up the Republican Party base and fuel a conventional, party base-against-base campaign, said Bennet Kelley, a former Democratic National Committee official and founder of the Internet Law Center.

“Obama poses a greater threat to the GOP because he doesn’t provide the same fuel to the GOP base,” Mr. Kelley said.

The Republican Party’s opposition research machinery has been gearing up for four years for what it thought would be a difficult presidential campaign fight between their nominee and a well-known and well-financed Mrs. Clinton. The party’s press operation has been blasting the New York Democrat daily for months now, gleefully documenting her slide in the polls and her denouncing her Senate votes.

After Mr. Obama’s Iowa caucus win last week that shifted, and Republican National Committee attacks now include the first-term senator from Illinois, either alone or together with Mrs. Clinton. Yesterday that included linking Mr. Obama to an Illinois Democratic fundraiser who is on trial for fraud.

Switching tactics and strategy will mean fighting on uncertain terrain.

Just for openers, there’s the race issue. That will not make it any easier for Republicans, who may face charges of racism for any criticism of Mr. Obama, including the most obvious one — his lack of executive experience and relatively meager political experience.

“While it is hard to believe that in this day and age race would even enter a voter’s mind, it is a factor both sides will have to navigate carefully,” said Mr. Sciotto. “For the Republican candidate there may be a small percentage gain on Election Day that results from the unspoken, unacknowledged racism that is still present throughout the nation. I had a difficult time believing this still existed until I ran some campaigns in the South — it is still present, but rarely openly discussed.

“Obama would likely lose votes if he called attention to — or fueled — the notion that something a GOP candidate said was racist,” said Mr. Sciotto. “I think both sides will try to keep it from coming up.”

Another danger for the Republican Party standard-bearer, regardless of who it is, is thinking he can rely on Mr. Obama’s lack of experience to be the deal breaker with voters.

“Some think that Obama is a lightweight, and that voters will not see him as presidential material,” said Republican Party consultant Sal Russo. “The problem is that the same was said in 1960 about John F. Kennedy.”

Mr. Obama, like Mr. Kennedy, has a sparse record as a U.S. senator, “but the public looked beyond Kennedy’s Senate accomplishments in 1960 to a desire for change and new leadership — the same theme that Obama is preaching now,” said Mr. Russo.

Republican National Committee Chairman Robert M. “Mike” Duncan said the Republican Party is prepared to get the truth out about whoever Democrats choose.

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