Fresh off wins in Michigan and Arizona, the Mitt Romney campaign has put out a new web video mocking the Obama campaign for trying (and failing) to derail the former Massachusetts governor in those primary states.
The clip insinuates that Obama's reelection campaign put large sums of money behind anti-Romney efforts. (While affiliated groups did, the Obama campaign was not involved.) It also plays up the now infamous line from an anonymous "Democratic strategist aligned with the White House" that they'd have to pursue a "kill Romney" strategy unless the economy improved.
"Time to take the 'Kill Romney' strategy to the next level," an anonymous aide types in an email, ostensibly intended for another aide.
The spot is telling for two reasons. The first is the obvious pivot that the Romney campaign is trying to make from a heated primary battle to a general election contest. There's no mention of former Sen. Rick Santorum, Romney's chief Republican rival, in the spot. The second is the overt plea for cash. In both the text below the video on the Romney campaign's landing page and in ads that pop up while it plays, the campaign solicits donations. Having asked supporters to visit his website and help the campaign in any capacity during his victory speech last night, it's becoming more and more evident that Romney is strapped for cash.