The late Dean Barnett (Wow, a year and four days ago Dean passed) - anyway, Dean and I disagreed on somethings, but he was an honest guy. He was a very big Romney guy. He had met him, driven him around a bit, as I recall, but whatever he saw in Mitt, I think he was right in that Romney is a pretty solid guy. However, timing in politics is everything.
Romney's taking a beating over his, to some degree, non-position on Hoffman - Scozzafava. The mood of the country in 2011/2012 may play a big part in Mitt's chances. Possibly hard to imagine now with NY - 23 taking place, but if things here really continue to fall apart and people grow extremely nervous, they might want a steady hand in 2012. If, on the other hand, there's tremendous energy and a desire to really shake things up, they might just go rogue. It's far too early to know how things will look to the electorate then by then.
My biggest concern with Romney as a campaigner is that he has looked to lack the ability to really attack head on, and he lacks a certain fire, along with the ability to truly connect with the folks. He's a nice guy. And up against someone like Obama, a nice guy just might always finish second, which is as good as last.
Yeah, Mitt, that does speak "a certain amount of volume." It says that you're willing to campaign for a gubernatorial candidate who has had the Virginia race in the bag for months -- but not make a controversial, yet, dynamic decision in a race that would have significant ripples across the country. Palin (and Tim Pawlenty quickly following the former Alaska governor) recognized where the base's train was going and quickly got on board. Romney missed the train -- and missed the opportunity to take a significant role in a tough internal ideological debate that his party is undergoing. Even if Romney endorsed Scozzafava (as former Speaker Newt Gingrich did), at least he would have made a principled decision and could have articulated his reasons for it.
Instead, he looks completely wishy-washy.
This article sums him up perfectly. A shiny guy in a shiny suit with shiny hair, but not one you'd want on your side in battle, because his suit and hair might rumple. He's just not my cup of tea.
NY23 - Palin 1, Romney 0
Posted by: Liberty Jane | Saturday, October 31, 2009 at 02:48 PM
Not a fair or accurate assessment to say that Mitt backed McDonnell only after he had it in the bag. He hooked up with Bob as soon as Bill Bolling decided to stand aside and let Bob run unopposed in the primary. (Bill was Mitt's campaign chair in VA in 07/08. As soon as his commitments to Bill in the race were resolved, Mitt began a constant support in both time and fund raising for both campaigns. This occurred at the same time Obama was winning the election and people were writing eulogies for the GOP. Far from being in the bag, we were nearly in the ground.
This is not to say that Mitt went way out on a limb. He had relationships with good people, who would be good candidates, whose values were closely aligned with his, in a purple state. But to tag him as a johnny come lately would be willfully inaccurate.
Posted by: Ric P. | Saturday, October 31, 2009 at 03:39 PM
Definitely not the right man for the job.
Posted by: Fuzzy | Saturday, October 31, 2009 at 03:47 PM
I think Romney might feel he has a political obligation to support, or at least not oppose the "official" Republican candidate. Not saying anything at all was probably the only politically correct thing he could do at this point. Now that Favabeans is out of the running, he would be open to supporting Hoffman if the mood strikes him to do so.
Posted by: crosspatch | Saturday, October 31, 2009 at 06:13 PM
If ObamaCare is an issue in 2012, then how will Romney transcend RomneyCare that was its prototype? Most likely, if that turkey passes Congress, there'll be hell to pay with the voters. Romney can't surf that wave.
Instead, he'll be the rich white heir from the Financial Sector that caused all our economic woes. The Democrats will run a Class Warfare campaign against Romney just like Jennifer Granholm ran against Dick DeVos in Michigan. Class warfare will turn all the negatives of a bad economy against the rich guy. If you want to know what Obama will do in 2012, study what Jennifer Granholm did in 2006.
The Democrats will lose class warfare against a Reaganite, but win against a Rockefeller Republican.
Posted by: Steve Poling | Sunday, November 01, 2009 at 01:59 AM
GOP, Sirs/Madams, unless you have another Palin rabbit to pull out of your hat in 2012, I(and another third of the voting public, among the Indies, AKA "conservatives") will not be assisting you or attending to your words.
Gallup a few months back said GOP affiliation remains unchanged at 27%, despite Donk losses.
Posted by: gary gulrud | Sunday, November 01, 2009 at 08:56 AM
Mitt Romney is not conservative. Romney, Mike Huckabee, and Sarah Palin won't get the nominee in 2012.
Posted by: anonymous | Sunday, November 01, 2009 at 09:49 PM