What the heck is going on with Lee Fisher’s campaign?

I don’t get it.  Here we are a few weeks from the beginning of early voting and here’s what I’m seeing:

• Daily e-mails about the Fisher campaign’s schedule.
• A teleconference with volunteers signing up to do GOTV/early voting calls.
• Daily press releases and statements like reactions to Obama’s Oval Office in Iraq.
• Rumors of record-breaking fundraising substantially higher than we seen in his campaign before?

None of which I’m used to seeing from the Fisher campaign.  Doesn’t Fisher read Slate or Politico?  Doesn’t he know that he’s supposed to be running a bumblin’, fumblin’ campaign?  This well honed, message focused, political campaign isn’t what’s supposed to be going on.

The Fisher campaign is for real.  The only question is did they get their act together in time to still win in November.

One of the best things to happen to Lee Fisher is that John Collins isn’t his communication director anymore.  Collins ran a poor communication shop.  He blacklisted us, even after the primary, was not engaging, and frankly impossible to get any useful information.  Fisher’s new communication director, in her second week, shows a new sheriff is in town.  And I’ve heard more Fisher in the past week than I think I did all summer.

Look at Fisher’s statement on his reaction to the President’s Oval Office address last night:

“I honor the incredible sacrifice our servicemen and women have made throughout this war, and I support President Obama’s responsible withdrawal of troops from Iraq.

We should now move quickly to draw down our troops in Afghanistan.

We must continue to ensure that Afghanistan is not a safe haven for terrorists, and the time has come to undertake a more targeted mission to hunt down Al-Qaeda wherever they are hiding, whether it be in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, or elsewhere.

I wholeheartedly agree with the President that our central focus needs to be on reviving our economy and creating jobs.”

Fisher wants to end our effort in Afghanistan.  A position that a sizeable majority of Ohioans agree, but Portman does not hold.  It’s also the position that Jennifer Brunner staked out before any other candidate was willing to.

That, in an of itself, was major news, and smart politics.

Those who are counting Lee Fisher out are missing a major story.  His campaign is better off that it’s been since Day One.  Will Rob Portman still have a sizeable monetary advantage?  Probably, but Lee Fisher is going to have the money necessary to run an effective campaign. Despite MILLIONS in paid television ads in his favor, Rob Portman has made no movement in even Rasmussen.  He’s tossing millions under a muddy, spinning wheel and getting no traction.  I’m starting, for the first time, to get a little bullish on Fisher’s campaign.

You’d think someone in the political media world would note that.  But then again, what do I know?