Romney accepted the endorsement of Massachusetts Citizens for Life, though his aides labored to blur the distinctions with Kennedy, who years earlier had dropped his opposition to abortion and become a leader on abortion rights. Asked at the time how the two candidates differed on abortion, Romney's political consultant Charles Manning said, "It's tiny nuances."

About a month before the election, Kennedy launched his most devastating attack. On the airwaves, he strafed Romney with tough ads designed to turn his greatest asset of business success into a vulnerability.

Romney's Bain Capital had bought a paper company called American Pad & Paper, or Ampad, which then bought an Indiana plant and laid off workers, cut wages, and reduced benefits. The workers began striking. Seizing on Romney's candidacy, they brought their complaints to Massachusetts.

Romney was on leave as Bain Capital's chief executive when the cuts occurred, but he struggled to rebut the charge. His polls numbers began to drop, with more voters describing him as a cold-hearted businessman.

Romney remained within striking distance, down 44 percent to Kennedy's 49 percent in a Globe poll in early October. Then came the first televised debate.

Expectations were low for Kennedy, seen as past his prime, and high for Romney, the telegenic upstart. But with his booming voice and fiery tone, Kennedy came out swinging. Although Romney had some effective parries and Kennedy occasionally tripped on his words, Romney appeared overmatched on stage with a legend.

Kennedy laid into Romney on Ampad. "I don't know why you wouldn't meet with the strikers with that flimflam deal of yours out there in Indiana," he snorted.

When Romney charged that Kennedy had benefited from a no-bid real estate deal, the senior senator thundered back with the full weight of his family's history behind him. "Mr. Romney, the Kennedys are not in public service to make money," he said, delivering a rehearsed line to wild applause. "We have paid too high a price in our commitment to the public service of this country."

A post-debate poll found Kennedy with a yawning lead, 56 to 36.

By the end of the campaign, Romney began to heed his father's advice and loosen up. But it wasn't enough. Mitt Romney had allowed his opponent to define him.

On Election Day, as Gingrich helped the GOP capture both houses of Congress for the first time in nearly half a century, Kennedy crushed Romney, 58 percent to 41 percent.

After a year spent surrendering control to others —consultants, voters, even his father — Romney wasted no time in returning to his more comfortable position of being in charge. The morning after the election, he held a meeting at Bain Capital.