Obama, Romney Craft Stories as General Election Gets Under Way

As the general-election season kicks off, President Barack Obama and former Gov. Mitt Romney (R-MA) will be looking to weave competing narratives out of the same set of numbers, analysts say.

While crucial undecided voters most likely aren't paying attention yet, the campaigns and their affiliated Super PACS are testing out approaches in key swing states. Romney, the presumptive Republican nominee, should focus on the economy, said Larry Sabato, director of the University of Virginia Center for Politics. Sabato said the president has a tougher task. "He has to use his ads to convince voters that they are better off, even when they may not feel they are. Selective use of economic data is key," he said. "Obama must stress the positive -- remind viewers of his domestic and foreign-policy accomplishments in his first term." President Obama should also go negative, Sabato said, defining Romney as a change for the worse.