Republican strategists suggest Romney to deliver 'knockout punches' at presidential debate

Washington, Sept. 30 (ANI): Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney should approach the presidential debate on Wednesday night with a prizefighter-like strategy, a mix of fancy footwork with a few knockout punches, Republican strategists have suggested.

In a neck-and-neck race with President Barack Obama, but trailing significantly in several battleground states, Romney is pressed to close those gaps with less than six weeks remaining before Election Day.

According to Fox News, Republican strategists have, over the past few days, called for Romney to take the offensive.

"I think he's going to have to perform solidly," Juleanna Glover, an Ashcroft Group founding partner and former Dick Cheney spokeswoman said, adding: "But he's also going to have to provide some humor as well as the knockout punch."

"He's got to be aggressive. He's also got to appear emphatic," John Weaver, a former adviser to Senator John McCain said, adding: "Those things are not easy to achieve at the same time."

According to the report, like other Republican candidates transitioning into a general election, Romney will have to find ways to appeal to the general electorate, compared to the 2012 primaries in which conservative candidates such as Rick Santorum and Minnesota Republican Michele Bachmann appeared to force one another to the right of each other.

As proof of the debates' importance, both campaigns have worked furiously over the past several days to create the perfect framework for the first debate Wednesday.

"I don't know how to raise or lower expectations," Romney said, adding: "The president is a very eloquent, gifted speaker. He'll do just fine. I've never been in a presidential debate like this and it will be a new experience."

Glover said managing expectations for such a debate and "heralding the opponent" are really matters of common sense. But failing to do so would be political "malpractice" on the part of either camp.

Glover argues that no matter how many well rehearsed lines Romney might have that could add to the "lexicon of American politics"-and the right setup lines to precede them-some perfect opportunity might just come down to serendipity, the report added. (ANI)