Dan Balz asked me the same 8 questions he asked to John. Here are the questions and my responses:
Q1: Will the campaign be relentlessly negative to the end?
A: I expect so but I’m no expert on this.
Q2: Will Romney’s choice of a vice presidential running mate make any difference?
A: Maybe 2% in the VP’s home state.
Q3: Is the president hostage to the economic news between now and November?
A: Yes.
Q4: Do Romney’s wealth and business record make him more or less electable?
A: More, in the sense that it should help him raise money.
Q5: With the conventions back-to-back, will either candidate get any real bounce in the polls?
A: Who cares? Bounce in polls is irrelevant to the election.
Q6: Which campaign is likely to have the advantage in money?
A: I haven’t been following, but I assume the Republicans.
Q7: How important are the debates likely to be this year?
A: As much as usual. Debates and other such events are not about knockout punches; they’re an opportunity for voters to learn more about the candidates’ positions.
Q8: Which groups of voters do the two campaigns care most about?
A: A campaign cares about two sorts of voters: (a) those who are likely to vote but are undecided (these are the people the campaign tries to persuade), and (b) those who are only possibly going to vote but if so their votes are highly predictable (these are the people that one campaign or the other tries to turn out to vote).
P.S. I took a look at John’s replies and we seem to be saying just about the same thing (unsurprisingly), with his responses providing more context.