You’re right. It’s tough when a candidate is up against a propaganda machine which defines him or her out of the gate, and that machine works because so many people just accept it uncritically.
It is to the Repubs’ enduring shame that they have let the Left totally control emessaging. I foresee an even bigger beating in 2014/2016 unless they get off their well-paid asses and address the problem. Elections are more and more being determined by what happens on your cell phone and pad.