MANCHESTER, New Hampshire (GWW)—The outcome of an election, such as this presidential contest, can have much to do with which candidate or ideology best defines itself as the solution to the issues of the day. With the importance of the economy only increasing with every passing month, both remaining candidates have been attempting to define themselves as the solution.

When one candidate finds himself behind in national polling and in general perceptions, it may be time to redefine or redescribe oneself. Sen. John McCain, R-Az., has been through this reshaping several times in this campaign alone. Last spring, his campaign started up the bus for a five-state Service to America biography tour, revisiting the places he cites for making him the man he is today. This tour, along with his first post-primary ad buy, moved the campaign into general election mode.

Sen. McCain had the "chance to reintroduce himself without the clutter of actually having a political opponent at the moment," wrote ABC News' Rick Klein in April.

By July, some cited the campaign for being "halting and disorganized in its daily messaging;" the staff structure was tweaked "in part to provide a psychological lift to McCain among Republican insiders and political reporters," Klein and Teddy Davis wrote (both of whom I worked with at ABC News). And a year before that most recent staff shuffle, the campaign was almost counted out due to financial issues, and underwent a significant restructuring.

Leading up to tonight's debate, expectations are set high for the Arizona Republican -- and some are asking if Sen. McCain needs to redefine himself in terms of the most recent economic scenario.

"It’s time for John McCain to fire his campaign," William Kristol, editor of the Weekly Standard, wrote this week in his New York Times op-ed page column.

"What McCain needs to do is junk the whole thing and start over," Kristol continued. "Shut down the rapid responses, end the frantic e-mails, bench the spinning surrogates, stop putting up new TV and Internet ads every minute. . . . [L]et McCain go back to what he’s been good at in the past — running as a cheerful, open and accessible candidate. Palin should follow suit. The two of them are attractive and competent politicians."

Redefinition, or reintroduction, does not mean that one is incapable of handing a different issue landscape; it simply means that the language used in the past does not relate a candidate's strengths to the current issues. Kristol and others argue that Sen. McCain needs to do a better job defining and refining -- and return to his charismatic connection with voters.

On the Saint Anselm College campus, students set expectations high for Sen. McCain in tonight's final presidential debate. It is the candidates last chunk of free air time on the networks (almost 45 minutes each, if CBS' Bob Schieffer is a stickler for the rules).

"He needs something new," independent voter Caroline Bishop '11 said Tuesday. "They both need a new edge."

"I think that he needs to remind people that we need a president who has experience and knows how to be the commander in chief," Republican Emily DeJulio '10 said. "I feel like that is an urgent and important issue for this election."

"A reinvention this late in the game is not likely to find traction in time for the election, and it might make him seem even more erratic," Brian Kelly '10, who intends to vote Democratic, said. "Though I won't be voting for him, I must admit John McCain is a good if not great Republican candidate, the problem is it's a bad time to be a Republican."

Although it may be a "bad time to be a Republican," students agree that attacks may not be the best campaign strategy.

"I think he can chill on the attacks a little to be honest," Bishop said.

"Neither can he afford to go more negative, as his favorability ratings in the polls have been plummeting since they went on the attack," Kelly agrees.

Republican Matt St. John '09 says that McCain has to hold his ground in this campaign.

"It's Obama's election to loose," St. John said.