Over the coming months pundits will slice and dice polling data,
census information and the unemployment numbers of soccer moms
to see whether President Obama has a clear path to victory.
While I agree it's important to understand the electoral math,
and it appears that the 2012 map will be smaller for the Obama
camp than 2008, the data is irrelevant without the story.    The
path is the narrative.  Just how does a campaign create a
narrative? Well one way to do it, if you like to lose, is
through data. Facts and figures are great; unless that's all you
give people. How often have you seen people inspired to tell
their neighbors to vote for someone after a riveting speech
about the inner workings of the GDP? Other than my former
Finance professor I think the answer is never.  Political
Scientist Michael Jones, who studies narrative in politics said
it well:  "[Some politicians] are stuck in this Enlightenment
reasoning kind of thing, thinking that if you take the facts to
people about a particular policy it w