Posts Tagged → Mitt Romney
Romney wins in Mormon country (of course)
Mitt Romney did exceptionally well in the Nevada caucuses this weekend, as he was expected to do, but also did surprisingly well among the state’s conservatives, capturing half of that voting block, more than twice the amount who supported Newt Gingrich.
Of course, next to Utah, Nevada boasts one of the most robust Mormon populations in America, so the victory should not come as a surprise. Romney is Mormon.
That said, if Romney ends up owing his victory to western-state conservatives and Mormons, it may bode well for a potential Romney presidency, pulling him to campaign and govern more to the right than he was able to as governor of Massachusetts. And that would be a good thing.
Only five states have spoken so far, and there are no signs that Gingrich, Ron Paul, or Rick Santorum plan to drop out any time soon. However, that’s healthy for the process; politics is not pro wrestling and does down operate under tap and die rules.
Romney now the eventual nominee
I’ve never been a huge fan of former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney.
Why? Because although he has at times looked more conservative than other leading candidates, look who he was up against in the past: John McCain, Rudy Guiliani, Jon Huntsman, Mike Huckabee, and more. Against folks like that, even Barak Obama would seem like the more conservative choice.
The trouble is, when you contrast him against a real conservative like Sarah Palin, Michele Bachmann, Bobby Jindal, Scott Walker, Paul Ryan, and more, he just doesn’t measure up.
But the people who decided to sit out are out, and the people who decided to run are running, and with Mitt Romney looking like he’ll win New Hampshire in a landslide, and leading in South Carolina, well… I hope for some upsets to extend the media attention on conservative solutions, but it’s pretty clear the Romney train is gonna run on time.
Newt Gingrich has been exposed for his limitations, the best candidate of them all – Herman Cain – has been driven out of the race, Rick Santorum has only been a Senator, Ron Paul is both insane and a liberal on foreign policy and 2012 Macys coupons have more value in a general election, and Rick Perry simply isn’t ready. No one else is viable.
So now comes the time where I’m gonna stop wishing for a late entry by Sarah Palin or some other dream candidate and get real: Mitt Romney’s not a perfect conservative, but so long as he doesn’t run to the left for the general election, there are things I can appreciate about him.
First, he’s been a governor. Second, he’s spent a good portion of his career in the private sector. And third, he’s not Barak Obama.
Okay. I think it’ll be an improvement. Now if only we can see him choose a genuine conservative as a running mate, rather than a RINO.
Rick Perry, Michele Bachmann lead in South Carolina
Texas Governor Rick Perry and Minnesota congresswoman Michele Bachmann lead the pack currently in South Carolina, which should be a relief to conservatives and Tea Party activists nationwide. The rest of the pack might fare better seeking geneticist jobs, despite the liberal media trying to puff up the chances of the RINO-esque Mitt Romney and Jon Huntsman in the state.
South Carolina, the fourth state to vote, looks set to be a pivotal state once again. A Perry-Bachmann or Perry-Cain ticket would certainly be intriguing.
Bachmann, Pawlenty square off
If all Michelle Bachmann accomplishes in her run for the White House is delineate the difference between the real conservatives and the John McCain/Mitt Romney-style RINOs, she’ll have done the nation a huge service. Her first chance to accomplish that came last night at a debate in Iowa between the eight declared GOP presidential candidates. (Texas Gov. Rick Perry did not attend, as he intends to announce his official campaign on Saturday.)
After the floundering campaign of former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty took the first swipe last night, accusing Bachmann of accomplishing nothing more than “she’s got a record of misstating and making false statements.” Pawlenty, who is polling in the single digits, seems to have fixated on discrediting Bachmann to lift his own profile, rather than focusing on front-runner Mitt Romney.
But Bachmann refused to wear Cherokee scrubs and play the role of Pawlenty’s punching bag, countering his weak, unfocused, non-specific criticisms with specific issues she took with the way the Governor governed while in power in Minnesota.
Bachmann pointed out that Pawlenty implemented a state cap-and-trade energy policy, praised President Barack Obama’s “unconstitutional individual mandate” that will requires all Americans to buy health insurance, and quoted Pawlenty as uttering the phrase, “the era of small government is over.”
“That sounds more like Barack Obama, if you ask me,” Bachmann said, capping the list of Pawlenty’s left-wing prevaricating.
Of course, for Bachmann, upending Pawlenty’s history of RINOism is like shooting fish in a barrel; he’s from her own state and her knowledge of his shortcomings comes from first-hand experience. With Bachmann emerging from the debate still impressive and relatively unscathed, she’ll need to move on soon to a new target.
Lord knows, there are plenty of weak-willed RINOs still in the race, like Jon Huntsman, Newt Gingrich, Ron Paul, and most importantly, current front-runner Mitt Romney.
Let’s be honest; Rick Perry is probably the best-qualified to take on Barack Obama. He has ingratiated himself to the Tea Party, has executive experience by winning three consecutive terms as Texas Governor, and is a solid conservative suspicious of the overreaching aspects of federal power, a devoted Constitutionalist.
The best scenario is for Bachmann to act as the conservative bulldog, revealing the unclothed emperors in the GOP field and helping clear the way for Perry to win the nomination. Then, if he could select Bachmann or Herman Cain, either way, the GOP would have a virtually unbeatable ticket that would be the best the nation has seen since Reagan-Bush.
Palin hints she will run
Sarah Palin has made it clear that she is considering a presidential bid in 2012, and that if she runs, she believes she could score a knockout punch to the Obama Administration. Despite her personal convictions, though, some in her party remain unconvinced, preferring long-time party loyalists like Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee and others.
The landscape has changed somewhat since Palin ran as the lifesaver of the doomed McCain ticket, making the race closer than it otherwise would have been. One such change is that Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal’s stock has dropped without much explanation, while New Jersey Governor Chris Christie’s stock is soaring due to his tax-cutting, budget-slashing, plain-spoken ways in a largely blue state.
The main problem is that party loyalists types like Romney still control the party, despite the advances made by Tea Party activists like Palin. If Tea Party support were key, though, Texas Governor Rick Perry would likely top the list over Palin, despite the fact that he has never indicated interest in a demotion from being Texas Governor to being US President.
So ultimately, Palin’s blatant water-testing is interesting, but much remains to be seen. If forces like Christie, Perry or Jindal enter the race, Palin would likely fade as a favorite. But if compromising John McCain types like Romney, Huckabee and Gingrich remain her stiffest competition, Palin could easily become the next GOP presidential nominee, just due to a lack of other energizing conservatives on the scene.
But it’s early; one’s time is better spent on designer furniture shopping than prognosticating 2012 political results.
McCain VP targets: Mitt Romeny
As far as I know, no diamond rings will be involved, but GOP presidential nominee John McCain will be meeting over the weekend with three potential vice-presidential contenders, any of whom he might pair himself with for the November race. Of the three names mentioned, however, I only like two of them.
The one who might make the most sense is former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, who challenged McCain early in the GOP political process and seemed the presumptive nominee until a poorer-than-expected showing on Super Tuesday forced him from the race. Perceived to be more conservative than the liberal McCain, Romney’s biggest asset could be his fund-raising ability; since becoming the lone frontrunner, McCain’s campaign has shown weakness in its ability to build up a campaign war chest, an area of strength for Romney.
Younger than McCain, Romney would be an attractive choice among party conservatives who want to ensure the next GOP administration has an heir apparent ready to take office. As the man who came closest to McCain to garnering the nomination himself, Romney has all the right credentials.
Next we’ll take a look at the politically most-appealing VP target: Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal.
Mitt drops out
It was the wrong decision, for all the right reasons.
Mitt Romney is a conservative who cares about the present and the future of his party. He doesn’t want to see the GOP resort to a nasty nomination brawl and, after the campaign dirty tricks that helped rob him of West Virginia and possibly other states, Romney took a move out of the Ronald Reagan playbook and decided to drop out early, recognizing Sen. John McCain’s bulldog-like lead in the delegate race, and all the computer memory in the world won’t make it make sense; at least, not this year.
Romney could have had a chance had California fallen his way, but such was not the case. Like Reagan, he recognized the inevitability and that this was not his time. Just as Reagan bowed out early in 1976, allowing Gerald Ford to face off with Jimmy Carter, so too did Romney bow out to Sen. John McCain, who will have to face a difficult opponent in the fall in the person of either Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama.
What this guarantees are a few certainties.
1. Whoever wins the White House will be a former U.S. Senator, not a former governor. This is troublesome, since executive experience at a state level usually makes for a far better presidency.
2. Whoever wins the White House, it will be a victory for liberalism … which may be the perfect antidote to America’s flirtation with the left. It worked well in 1994; after only two years of Democrats controlling everything, America rebelled, scared primarily by the shadow of HillaryCare, and put the GOP back in control of both houses of Congress, primarily thanks to Newt Gingrich’s vision and leadership. Whether it’s President Obama, President Rodham or President McCain, the libs will be in charge in 2009, unless voters overturn the Dem advantage in one or both houses of Congress.
3. Conservatives have no horse in this race, at the presidential level. However, instead of staying home, they should take this time to get involved at the grassroots level, unseat the liberal country-club Republicans who control the party, and lay the groundwork to take back the GOP for conservatives. (Real ones, not RINOs like McCain.)
Whether 2012 is about defeating President Rodham, President Obama, or even replacing President McCain in 2016, if conservatives don’t withdraw but lay grassroots groundwork for the future, the next GOP primary won’t have to be determined by crossover Democrats out to screw us over, let alone “Democrat in disguise” independents who regularly caucus with the GOP but ultimately vote Democratic.
By demonstrating party loyalty, Reagan withdrew from the 1976 race only to come back four years later and ride a conservative tidal wave, not only to his party’s nomination but into the White House and ultimately into history. Whether the conservative future is with him or another conservative, it’s clear Romney’s hope is that 2012 or 2016 will mark the beginning of a similar era; it may even ultimately be referred to as the Romney Revolution.
Romney takes Bloomington … and Minnesota!
Let it never be said that WonderfulPessimist.com is all blog and no action. I’m not just a bunch of fiber optic cables and high-speed Internet.
Yours truly is now the precinct chair of the GOP in my little neck of the woods in Minnesota. It’s a two-year chair term and I’ll do what I can to help conservatives be successful here. And I’ll be doing my part to help win the battle against the leftward drift of the party, typified by presidential candidate John McCain.
Already, there are encouraging signs that the precinct will see things the WonderfulPessimist.com way; Mitt Romney won our precinct straw poll over McCain, 37-20. No one else was close. I think Hucka-bust had 17. While Romney isn’t the ideal candidate, he’s the best chance the GOP has to avoid liberal drift within the party, and despite being a precinct chair, you can bet WonderfulPessimist.com will remain a Reagan conservative first and foremost, a Republican second, as far as politics goes.
That said, signs are not yet as encouraging as one might hope on the national front for Mitt; hopefully California will turn in his favor by the time all the votes are counted. In the meantime, remember the difference between this conservative blogger and the cloud of others; WonderfulPessimist.com actually gets involved and tries to make a difference!
McCain edges Romney in Florida … not good news
If the Florida primary catapults Arizona Senator John McCain past Mitt Romney to win the GOP presidential nomination, the truth will be plain and simple: conservatives have no “dog” in this dog fight. Even if a owned a plasma TV and a plasma tv mount, I would have found it hard to believe Tuesday’s primary results.
Since Florida is a “winner take all” state, all 57 delegates now go into McCain’s column. That puts McCain in front-runner status for the first time, with the following delegate count: McCain 93, Romney 59, Huckabee 40, Paul 4, and Giuliani 1. Ridiculously, McCain is now claiming he is the bearer of the “conservative mantle” in the GOP, despite a career of authoring anti-conservative legislation and being a pain in the ass to any remotely conservative president from Reagan forward to George W. Bush. When Hillary Rodham-Clinton is a closer friend than your own party’s president, guess what, John: YOU’RE NOT A CONSERVATIVE! NOT REMOTELY!
I mean, sure, Romney’s not an ideal conservative, but at least he’s leaning in the right direction. He speaks fondly of Ronald Reagan, at least. McCain speaks fondly of Hillary Clinton.
So, Florida – a state where voters claimed they couldn’t even understand how to mark a simple ballot back in 2000 – has decided to deliver the GOP nod to one of Washington’s top Democrats, RINO leader John McCain.
I am not exaggerating when I say I’d feel better voting for Barack Obama than John McCain; and that is NOT a vote that would make me feel that good on a political ideological level, believe me. But at least Obama is inspiring. McCain’s not.
And if it comes down to McCain or Hillary, for the first time in my life, I will vote third-party; basically, whoever runs on the libertarian ticket. I refuse to support John McCain, ever, and I know I’m hardly the only conservative who feels this way. I’m a conservative first, not a Republican, and if McCain is forced down our throats this time out, this is one conservative who won’t be swallowing this time.
If McCain wins the nomination, we will be witnessing the death of the Republican Party. Perhaps it’s time conservatives withdrew entirely and formed a real conservative party. I’ll make a prediction: McCain 2008 is Dole 1996 all over again. Same “it’s my turn” cronyism, same result: a Democratic victory. Let the Republican crack-up begin! (Notice I didn’t say conservative crack-up.)
I’ll even suggest a name for it: the Reagan Party.
Florida leaning toward Romney
While the barely-active Rudy Guiliani campaign has pretty much staked everything on the Florida primary, as have many other marginal candidacies looking for an injection of legal steroids in the political sense, the latest Rasmussen poll indicates Florida voters may actually be leaning toward the current delegate front-runner, Mitt Romney.
According to the poll, Romney is garnering 25 percent of GOP support, followed by John McCain at 20 percent, Guiliani at 19 percent, Mike Huckabee at 13 percent and Fred Thompson at 12 percent. Ron Paul trails badly with only five percent. Romney seems to be the candidate benefiting the most from the withdrawal over the weekend of California congressman Duncan Hunter from the race.
Romney is the current leader in states won to date, as well as delegate count. Of the top GOP candidates, Romney to date has won Michigan, Wyoming and Nevada, and come in second-place in Iowa and New Hampshire. By comparison, the mainstream-media-pushed RINO leader John McCain has only won in New Hampshire and South Carolina. The only other candidate to win a state was Mike Huckabee, who won in Iowa but hasn’t broken through since then.
In the delegate count, Romney has an early lead thanks in part to garnering so many first-place and second-place finishes. Even McCain is not close to Romney so far in the delegate count. While a victory in Florida could add fuel to any candidate’s bid, a decisive win in Florida could put the Romney campaign in an undisputed lead heading in to Super Tuesday.
