The presidential campaigns bring us two new spots today as the weekend approaches and the two candidates attempt to set the narrative.  Let’s take a look at the challenger’s new ad first, “A Better Day,” in which Mitt Romney gives a positive vision of his first day as President, as well as a Morning in America vibe by arguing that a change at the top will signal that “the country is back on the right track”:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=yR6JM6eUOvw

It’s an effective ad, although not as much so as the original Morning in America ad, which stuck to a single theme.  It finishes on a high note, though, and for a 30-second TV spot at least says something about what kind of agenda Romney has for the next four years, whether one agrees with that agenda or not.  Furthermore, although one can infer criticism from Romney’s Day One to-do list, this spot never mentions Barack Obama at all.

In contrast, the Obama campaign released this 84-second spot that says nothing about its own candidate.  Instead, it just culls the hardest punches thrown in the Republican primaries in 2008 and 2012, but says nothing about its own candidate or agenda.  It also finishes on a rather ironic note:

Whereas “A Better Day” will end up on television sets, “Romney Economics” will only play on the Internet, thanks to its length.  Furthermore, while it attacks Romney on his record as governor, it explicitly consists of recycled arguments that Romney has already addressed — and surpassed to become the Republican nominee.  That’s the irony in the spot’s big argument climax: “It didn’t work then. It won’t work now.”  The same can be said about the arguments presented in the preceding 76 seconds, too, as the video itself makes plain.