Too often, pundits are focused on whether a candidate best appealed to a demographic group like the middle class, rather than whether the appeal is realistic. For example, Ramesh Ponnuru:
Romney made the most focused appeal to middle-class voters on the basis of how his agenda would help them -- on energy, on health care, on jobs -- that he ever has.
The cynicism of some political media writers and pundits is astonishing. Our discourse is poisoned by analysts who evaluate politics strictly based on superficial style instead of a realistic evaluation of whether Middle Class Policy will work. We know that conservative policies have been crushing the middle class for 30+ years. It doesn't matter what a guilty Republican candidate says in a debate -- what matters is whether the policy statement makes sense and works.