On My Meter: Romney Kicked Butt

Frank Kurtz is doing his analysis now on Fox. I watched his meter during the debate - see Michelle's round up here. I didn't blog during it but watched through my own mental meter, as well. In those terms, Romney did what Huckabee did during the last debate - he resonated with the voters. Huckabee tanked - and it happened because of the format - which I agree with Michelle, was overly-controlled.

But the format displayed Huckabee's lack of depth on almost every issue. He did eh on the meter, but nothing close to Romney's scores on a consistent basis. In fact, no other candidate did that. Huckabee had nothing but pap to offer and it came through loud and clear. He even got a little angry at one point, I noticed it and so did the people in Luntz's group.

This was Romney's day. Listen, I called Huckabee in the first tier in the middle of the last debate. After this, watch for him to start his slide. Mitt got himself back on track and I would watch for it to start to show in the polls and in the coverage. From here on, Iowa and NH may be Romney's to lose. If nothing else, he laid the groundwork for a political surge.

Comments

[Sara]

I was watching those meters too and thought Romney won as well. Fred did well too. I have to say, though, that I've thought Romney won some of the debates in the past and the focus group picked someone else. Not today. They were in near 100% agreement, even though only a handful said they went into the debate supporting Romney. Now that did amaze me.

I have no idea why they let that whiny a$$ Keyes in there. I was forced to work for him the first time he ran for Senator in Maryland. We worked our butts off on orders from the GOP State Party, but he lost and then turned around and blamed all of us who worked so hard. I walked out on the post-election gathering absolutely livid. He could have won, we got him the vote in every predominately white voter county, but it was Baltimore City and Prince Georges County, predominately African American, that turned their noses up. He lost big in those two very populated counties. I guess they already knew what an ingrate he is.

[joeb]

I am liking Fred more and more. A really good long profile of Fred Thompson in the Washington Post today. A good old boy who has plenty of common sense. Nixon said Fred was dumb as a stump but intelligence has never been a strong suit with our Presidents anyway. Pols dont need to be egg heads. Americans dont like intellectuals or egg heads. What they really want is a winning football coach.

[Cory]

Romney it is! That's who I will be voting for and this debate sealed the deal for me. I seriously hope that Iowans wake up before they throw their vote away to Huckabigot.

[Al in St. Lou]

Quite a few at NRO are calling the debate for Fred, and I'm, for one, glad to hear it.

[jj]

Romney? You people are nutty. This guy can't win, no way. Can he carry the South? Can Republicans win without the South? That's what I thought. A vote for this guy is a wasted vote. He can't win the South and he can't win. Enough said.

[IslamoLlama]

ALLEN KEYS IN '08!

YOU CAN DO IT!

[Kaitian]

I personally think that Romney and Thompson should form an alliance in the primary season. Thompson makes a great parliamentarian which I'm sure he loves doing and the Vice Presidency would be great for that opportunity.

jj, you've been trolling Riehl for some time and I do remember the comment regarding Riehl yesterday that you said the blog now sucks. Why are you still here?

[Wahoo Willie Sez:]

"He can't win the South and he can't win."

What makes you imagine Romney can't win in the south?

[jj]

What's it to you, Mormon operative?

[Kaitain]

That's a great example of trolling right there jj. Afterall, you use any slander to hit anyone while defending Huckabee here. You're basically trying to promote Huckabee here because you know he's the best defeatable candidate against the Democrats. Afterall, why are they holding their attack campaign against Huckabee unlike the other candidates that are running for the nomination? Not to mention, why are you accusing me of being mormon? I'm not period. Yet you claim I am because that's your trolling habit. Slander, accuse, etc on this site. Dan would be in his right to ban you from this site because you do nothing but attack Dan and all his posts.

[seekeronos]

I think Fred handled himself quite well. Curiously, I find myself willing to accept a Romney/Thompson ticket in that they could balance each other, and much better than the speculative Rudy/Huckabee ticket.

Romney/Thompson could pull in the centre-right and the deep south, which generally has reservations against "damnyankees". Romney's machine and money coupled with Fred's experience with foreign policy and inner workings of congress/senate would be a good pairing.

Plus, it could give Thompson brand recognition for a run in 2016.

[JustADude]

Any body want to explain why that focus group has a guy as a member on it who is a regular contributor to Americansformitt.com by the name of Nathan Burd

????????

[Wahoo Willie Sez:]

seeker: Mitt would do better in "the deep south" than Fred will because to many Southrons, Fred is a Scallywag then there are our new nieghbors "thedamnyankees" who will vote for Mitt. The old "devil you know" syndrome.

For those of you uneducated in Southernese. A "yankee" is a tourist from anywhere north of Cape Hatteras (Virginia is no longer a southern state) who comes down for a golf weekend, a little sea food and goes back where he came from. A "damnyankee" moves in next door and regales you with tales of how wonderful things are in the north.

[joeb]

Yankees love to retire to the South that they have been criticizing all their lives. "I have never heard of anyone retiring to the North". Brother Dave Gardner said that.

[jj]

Kaitain, really I think it beneath myself to address your stupidity, but indulge me just this one time.

1. You, as in you, can be an operative without being a Mormon. I don't care if you are a Mormon or not. Got it.
2. I haven't slandered anyone. I'm not going to take the time to look up the definition for you, but be assured I have not slandered you or anyone on this blog.
3. I'm not trying to promote Huckabee, bud, I just think that outright lies and silly allegations ought to be countered. I'm like that.
4. This is Dan's blog. He owns it. He can ban me anytime he wants to. But I have been on Dan's blog long enough to know that Dan values free speech, and allows quite a lot of latitude in the comment section of his blog. But again, just so you know, Dan CAN BAN ME anytime he wants to. He OWNS this blog.
5. And it is an outright lie for you to accuse me of "promoting" Huckabee because I want the weakest candidate to have to face the Democrats. You can't know what my motives are, but just so you know, I'm not promoting Huckabee or anyone for that particular reason.
6. And nowhere have I tried to silence anyone who disagrees with me, as you are trying to silence me by suggesting to Dan that he ban me.
7. Hypocrite is the word that comes to my mind when I see your nick.
8. If you don't like my comments, no one is forcing you to read them.

Did you get all that? I'll not waste any more of my time on you. Adios.

[TheSpartan]

"Yankees love to retire to the South that they have been criticizing all their lives. "I have never heard of anyone retiring to the North". Brother Dave Gardner said that."

They don't retire to "The South" they retire to golf communities in FL and AZ. I've never heard of anyone retiring to Chattahoochee or the Okie Fanokie swamp.

[joeb]

Yankees are now all over the entire South(read red states)from North Carolina all the way to South Alabama and Gulf Shores. Draw a line from Daytona over to Tampa. Everything north of that line in Fla. is Southern. Everything south of that line is Northern. Transplanted Yankees are the worst at becoming professional Southerners.

[TheSpartan]

How do you become a "professional Southerner"? Remove your teeth? Suffer a head injury to lower your IQ? Marry your sister? Buy a confederate flag?

[seekeronos]

"--- How do you become a "professional Southerner"? Remove your teeth? Suffer a head injury to lower your IQ? Marry your sister? Buy a confederate flag? ---"

Hillary made a fairly decent stab at it (erm, Vince Foster pun not intended) with her southern drawl and helping Bill do his thang in Arkansas, although I'd say a good majority of Southrons still consider her to be a something of a carpetbagging harpy from Chicago.

Then she turned around and tried to be a "professional New Yorker" (although she really didn't need much coaching on that, being a damnyankee from the start).

I'd call her a Scallywag, but seeing as she wasn't a Southron from the beginning, it might not stick very well.

Speaking of Scallywaggery, I'd hope that in Fred's case, people (and Southrons in particular) would move beyond issues of display of the Stars & Bars and the CSA Battle Flag (proper name of the "Rebel Flag") debate question, or any other perceived concessions against any other real or perceived Southron concerns, as Fred (and the other candidates) are competing to be the president of each and all of the many United States.

My take on the (CSA) flags is that it is fine to display in an unofficial context, and that while some can take it for a symbol of opression, etc. etc. -- in fact, it is a source of pride and a part of the heritage of a nation which once stood up against a power it no longer wished to belong to.

History being what it is though, the CSA was returned into the USA, and it is now the US flag that represents us all.

And as far as symbols of oppression go - the Federal flag was a symbol of that same oppression against blacks and American Indians for some 90 more years than the for four years the CSA existed: the Emancipation did not cause the Secession and the Civil War, but rather, was a result of it.

[joeb]

Seek tells it like it is. Thanks for all your posts. You seem to be the brain around here.
Now here is how Yankees and DamnYankees become Southerners and even Professional Southerners after they have been transplanted to the sunny Southland.. They become fans of the SEC football conference and stop thinking that that weak conference that Michigan and Ohio State belong to is any good compared to the all mighty SEC.
Remember the Sun Belt rules now. The rust belt is gone to China. Since we got air conditioning in the South we have been on the rise. AC saved the South.

[Wahoo Willie sez:]

"How do you become a "professional Southerner"? Remove your teeth? Suffer a head injury to lower your IQ? Marry your sister? Buy a confederate flag?"

Well with more dental schools per capita than the rest of the nation, that would be foolish. Of course the first PUBLIC unversity system in the country is in the south. Incest is more prominent in Maine than in West Virginia, so maybe I marry your sister. Dont buy a Confederate flag. I will give you one and a rifle rack for your pick-up. Must be your mind that is "spartan" in the "very basic" use of vernacular.

joeb: I agree that seeker is a wise one, but certainly you know that it takes at least three generations for yankees to begin going native. He is also correct that more oppression has occured under the stars and stripes, than ever occured under the Army of Northern Virginia battle flag or the CS Naval ensign. Most people wouldn't know the "stars and bars" if they were smacked in the head with it.

[joeb]

And Spartan here is a little known FACT. The first state supported college for women in the USA was in what state?
Mississippi is the correct answer.

[Wahoo Willie sez:]

"Mississippi" Now Joe, isn't that the state that was pretty much leveled by Cheney's ninja hurricane? Yet seemed to respond quickly to the emergency, requiring very little help from big brother? I mean of course as opposed to it's neighbor to the west...the one run by demonrats for over a hundred years. Yeah, the one who elected the first black congressman.

[joeb]

Wahoo Willie: Yes that is the one. Despite dire predictions of more and larger hurricanes because of global warming there have been NONE in the last 2 years. Go figure.