It's an interesting question -- how big can you get and still successfully relate to the little guy?
INDIANAPOLIS — The day before he launched his campaign for governor, Rep. Mike Pence discussed what he said will be a strong grass-roots campaign.
What he wouldn't talk about were estimates he might raise close to $25 million in his bid to hold the governor's office for Republicans next year.
So can the big guy, the favorite candidate of the establishment, also claim grass-roots support and carry the mantle of the people? The Pence campaign thinks so.
Mitch Daniels was the last guy in the state you'd expect to mount a credible grass-roots campaign, but he did it with his RV tour of the state. There are a couple of big differences now, one negative for the grass-roots approach, one positive.
The negative, as the story notes, is the rise of the tea party and its focus on the "passionate, unfunded masses" rising up from the bottom and fighting the big guys. Those people put great stock in authenticity and don't much care for the usual campaign tactics or rhetoric.
The positive is the increasing importannce every election cycle of the Internet and social media such as Facebook and Twitter. "Grass-roots" isn't just about feel-good populism; it's also a way to raise money. The social media allow candidates to more easily tap into a lot of people and make small donations add up to big amounts. That's what Barack Obama did, and if Pence can raise a significant portion of that $25 million in small donations, it will take a lot of the edge of that "too big" perception.
