comMITTed to Romney!

Romney 48%…..Huckabee 3%……Now that the electorate has had 6 months since Super Tuesday to weigh the relative merits of Romney vs. Huckabee, Romney is beating Huckabee like a rented mule.

~~John Cronin~~

{{{{DRUDGE POLL}}}} WHO WILL BE MCCAIN’S VP?…

GIULIANI

2% 348
K. B. HUTCHISON

18% 2,460
HUCKABEE

3% 454
LIEBERMAN

4% 614
PAWLENTY

7% 952
ROMNEY

48% 6,728
DARK HORSE

17% 2,390

Total Votes: 13,946

[Editor's Note: Intrade 10 AM Central time.....Romney 71.0, up 26 points]

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We are almost down to the wire on the Veep Sweepstakes. The McCain campaign has certainly milked this for all it’s worth. Like the rest of us on this site, I am hoping McCain does the common sense thing and picks Mitt Romney. Not just so we can have bragging rights, I truly do not care about that. I do care about the country. I worry about what this country will be like after four years of an Obama presidency.

IMHO, we are on our way toward national bankruptcy if we don’t stop the profligate spending. Both parties are guilty of this and I leave it up to our readers to make the judgment about where the bulk of the blame lies. One thing I do know is the mood of the voters in this election. You hear it from people from all walks of life, from both sides of the political spectrum. The mood of the voters can be summed up in one word. Anger.

I won’t attempt to publish a laundry list of grievances, you know them as well as I do. But the anger that ordinary voters feel towards the political class is higher than at any time in my memory.

Obama has proven to be an old line machine politician from the southside of Chicago, just like we were told months ago, when his idolization was in full bloom among an electorate that yearned for a new style of leadership from a new style of politician. His choice of Joe Biden, who is by all accounts an affable and likable man, but a unimaginative and “safe” pick who has done nothing to boost the political fortunes of the man who would be President, speaks volumes about the governing style of a future President Obama. It doesn’t say new, it says business as usual.

I don’t see any of the positive “change” that as been talked about so much in this election cycle. I see the same dreary old tactics that the Dems have been slavishly following since the days of FDR. The politics of envy, of class warfare, of “the little guy” pitted against the “privileged few.”

The Dems look like they will limp out of Denver fractured and frustrated. Frustrated with the internal battle for the nomination, that has left them bruised and battered as a party. I just hope against hope that McCain & Co. don’t shoot themselves in the foot by naming some obscure Governor as Veep because he is so “well liked” by McCain personally. Or by naming an obscure woman, because she is a woman. How condescending and patronizing is that? I have in mind Sarah Palin, a woman who probably will be a force in the Party eight years from now, but not in this election. Or Kay Bailey Hutchison, whom I like, but she will not fare well in a debate with Joe Biden. Or Meg Whitman, a very successful and accomplished businesswoman, but if you asked 100 American voters at random who she is, how many could tell you? Three, two, bupkis?

That is why I view the end of the Veep Sweepstakes with some dread. If McCain fumbles the ball this early in the first quarter, what will our prospects look like as the seconds on the scoreboard count down to zero?

Obama has played it safe. To me, he appears more like a man who is trying not to lose than one who is trying to win. If McCain picks Romney and lets Romney be Romney, playing it safe ain’t gonna work.

Governor Romney will elevate the rhetorical level and will bring the right balance of intellectual and emotional appeal that a winning ticket must have. The McCain campaign must make specific, nuts and bolts recommendation for it’s view of where the country should go over the course of the next four years and Romney will be unsurpassed at that, but it also must connect with the voters on the emotional side as well. When Romney waxes Reaganesque, when he defends the sanctity of life, talks about the preeminence of the American family, that America’s best days are not behind us, but ahead of us and that this country can achieve astounding things when the creative power of Americans is freed from the heavy hand of government, that is when he resonates with the majority of voters.

We will know, in about thirty six hours, if we will play offense or defense for the next two months.

~~John Cronin~~

http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/08/28/america/28repubs.php

WASHINGTON: Senator John McCain has decided on his running mate, two Republican strategists in contact with McCain’s campaign said Wednesday. He is expected to reveal his choice at a rally at a basketball arena in Dayton, Ohio, at 11 a.m. Friday.

McCain’s decision is known only to his small inner circle of advisers, no more than three or four people, who have refused all public discussion on the matter. Republicans close to the campaign said that the top contenders remained the same three men who have been the source of speculation for weeks: former Governor Mitt Romney of Massachusetts, Governor Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota and, possibly, Senator Joseph Lieberman, independent of Connecticut.

Romney remained the most talked-about possibility on Wednesday among Republican Party officials and on cable television, not least because of the theory that he would help McCain win Michigan, a crucial state in this election and where Romney’s father served as governor.

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While Michelle Obama is speaking in prime time tonight…

“Cindy is not here today and I’m sorry she’s not,” said McCain. “She’s on her way to the little country of Georgia.”

McCain has been a staunch supporter of Georgia in that country’s clash with Russia, and sending his wife there underscores his commitment. It also could deflect attention from Michelle Obama’s convention speech in Denver as the Obama campaign seeks to introduce the family to voters

Cindy McCain shows that both she and here husband are ready for Prime Time!

McCain has the experience necessary to be our Commander and Chief. Obama on the other hand not so much.

[See MSNBC]

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Here’s another story ( with more details ) on the plan to have Mitt Romney and Rudy Guiliani crash the Democratic Convention in Denver, Colorado next week. I have to tell you, I LOVE THE CHUTPAS. We Pubbies have got a nerve, don’t we?

I think it was a brilliant move and Rudy and Mitt can dish it out with the best of them. Doesn’t hurt to have 15,000 reporters and their crews milling around with Sony mini-cams at the ready.

Woo Hoo!! Can’t wait for the fireworks to begin!

~~John Cronin~~

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080821/pl_nm/usa_politics_denver_republicans_dc

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - When Democrats gather in Denver next week to nominate Barack Obama for president, they’ll be joined by such uninvited guests as Republicans Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney.
The two former presidential candidates will be among two dozen or so Republicans in the city hoping to get their party’s message out during a week dominated by Democratic festivities.

Their slogan? “Not Ready ‘08: A Mile High and an Inch Deep,” a play on the nickname for the high-altitude city in the western United States.

Republican presidential candidate John McCain, Obama’s rival for the November 4 election, is expected to keep a relatively low profile that week, though he is scheduled to appear as a guest on “The Tonight Show” talk show on Monday.

His surrogates will set up shop within walking distance of the Democrats’ convention hall, hoping to catch the attention of the 15,000 reporters gathered there.

“With all the hype of the actual convention and all the Obama fans gathered in one spot, we’re going to get beyond the glitz and the celebrity and talk about the facts of his record,” said Matt McDonald, a McCain staffer overseeing the effort.

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More buzz in the national press about a possible announcement (we are told within the next 48 hours or so) regarding Sen. John McCain’s selection of his running mate. If it’s Mitt, Obama just got some world class competition.

I was doing some neighborhood canvassing this past Sunday for Dr. Bob Onder’s Congressional campaign and the two hottest topics were: 1. Illegal immigration (voters want the borders secured) and 2. Energy prices (voters want domestic drilling started, yesterday). As we Mittheads know, Gov. Romney is pitch perfect on these issues as well as many others and his coming onboard right in the middle of Obama’s World Apology Tour would change the campaign calculus dramatically.

~~John Cronin~~

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20080722/D9233BT80.html

ROCHESTER, N.H. (AP) -

Yet another town-hall meeting isn’t doing the trick. Neither is dropping in on a former Republican president. So just what can John McCain do to draw attention away from his showy Democratic rival? Pick a running mate, perhaps.

Speculation swirled Tuesday that McCain might name his vice presidential partner within the next few days - right in the middle of Barack Obama’s overseas tour.

McCain aides were not helping tamp down the speculation with their comments, often made late in the afternoon, of “no announcement today.”

But what about tomorrow? Or where? On Tuesday, McCain campaigned in New Hampshire, not all that far from a lakeside summer home of vanquished GOP rival Mitt Romney, a former Massachusetts governor. Romney was nowhere to be seen. Well, it wasn’t really that close to his lakeside home.

One member of the audience told McCain he seemed like a very “forgiving” man. “Have you forgiven Mitt Romney?” he asked the senator.

Amid laughter, McCain said, “Mitt has been of tremendous help to my campaign. … He does a better job for me than he did for himself.”

Last Sunday, McCain was in the Bronx at a Yankees game with another former rival, one-time New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani. “You hear all kinds of stuff,” Giuliani later said, “but I’m not thinking about anything but helping to get him elected.”

The campaign is also not very open about where McCain is going next, keeping scheduling matters close to the vest. And that adds to the frenzy.

[EDITOR'S NOTE: HERE ARE TWO WEBSITES THAT ARE REPORTING THAT MITT IS McCAIN'S CHOICE FOR VP RUNNING MATE. I CAN'T VERIFY WHETHER THE REPORTS ARE TRUE OR NOT. THIS IS MEANT STRICTLY AS A FYI.]

http://nyformitt.blogspot.com/

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By Anna M. Tinsley and Jeff Claassen

Star-Telegram Staff Writers

Some North Texans don’t have to file their tax returns to get big refund checks in the mail.

Dozens of area residents who donated to the campaigns of Republicans Mitt Romney and Rudy Giuliani are getting some of that money back.

After ending their presidential bids in February, Romney and Giuliani began returning $84,920 and $53,200, respectively, to Tarrant County donors, according to a Star-Telegram analysis of Federal Election Commission data.

“It’s a very interesting action on the part of Mitt Romney and Rudolph Giuliani that their people sent back donations they didn’t use,” said Allan Saxe, an associate political science professor at the University of Texas at Arlington. “It’s a noble action on their part.

“Once those donors get that money back in the mail, it should make them feel very good about the candidates they originally supported.”

Candidates can legally use those donations for everything from paying campaign debt to funding bids for another federal office, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

With Giuliani and Romney out, presumptive Republican presidential nominee John McCain for the first time became the top money-getter in Tarrant County in both February and overall, the analysis shows.

McCain has raised $437,473 in Tarrant County during this presidential race — $211,087 in February alone.

That may be partly because at least five local donors who received refunds from Romney or Giuliani are believed to have donated the same amount or more to McCain’s campaign, records show.

One of those listed, lawyer Dee Kelly, said, “I gave money to McCain because I wanted to, not because I got a refund from anybody.” Kelly has donated to several candidates.

The other local donors could not be reached for comment Monday.

Presidential candidates who drop out of the race cannot use their campaign funds for personal expenses.

Under federal guidelines, they can either give the donations back within 60 days after dropping out or get donors’ permission to use the money for something else, such as a charity, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

“This shows that Giuliani and Romney were really pretty honorable people,” Saxe said. “Some people loan their own money to the campaign and then pay it back through donations. But they’re returning money, and they’re doing it quickly.”

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Hat Tip to Ranzel for bringing this excellent analysis to our attention. Mitt Romney is nailing down the Reagan coalition.

NEW YORK TIMES

Tags: Florida, John McCain, Mitt Romney

Does Mitt Romney have a victory to cling to in Florida? Joshua Trevino, vice president for public policy at San Francisco’s Pacific Research Institute (and one of the founders of the conservative blog RedState), breaks down the numbers on his personal blog.

“Mitt Romney is in a bad way,” Trevino writes. “He blew through $10 million in Iowa and lost; and outspent McCain eight to one in Florida, and lost that too. But for all this, Mitt Romney is not done yet and the reason lies in the breakdown of this evening’s Florida vote.” He continues:

CNN has the exit-poll numbers, and they reveal some surprising things:

* Romney won pro-lifers.
* Romney won the mainstream religious. (Huckabee won the very religious ­ less than one-fifth of the pool.)
* Romney won the Protestants.
* Romney tied Huckabee with Evangelicals.
* Romney won the pro-GWB voters.
* Romney is the primary second choice of Giuliani voters, Thompson voters …. and McCain voters.
* Romney won the immigration hard-liners.
* Romney won the upper-middle class, earning between $100,000 and $200,000 annually.
* Romney won the terrorism-oriented voters.
* Romney won the self-identified conservatives and the self-identified very conservative.
* Romney won the values-oriented voters.
* Romney won the white voters.
* Romney won the tax-cutting voters.

In short, Mitt Romney won the Republican Party’s idea of itself ­ and that, too, is a big deal. If you’re white, Protestant, anti-abortion, go to church on Sundays, think well of the President, want lower taxes, hate terrorists, make a good living, want to do something about immigration, and live in Florida, chances are you voted Romney. The question before Florida was whether McCain could win a closed Republican race, and now we know he can. The question now is whether he can win conservatives ­ and in Florida, he did not.

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Though I provide analysis below, I do not suggest I have answers to the questions I raise. But I do raise questions that I think are of critical importance and consideration; not just to this current presidential contest, but more importantly to America. These are questions I think nobody wants to discuss (see photo below).

Tonight (1/29), I have heard the term “lick their wounds” several times. That is not at all how I feel about the loss in Florida. It is fair to say, I believe, that America as a nation, has matured in its history to a point in which a woman or a black man can be elected President by a majority of both sexes and a majority of those of the white or black races. I believe that America has come of age to the point that the bigotry we call sexism and racism, though still engrained in some people, has been marginalized.

What about the bigotry of religious intolerance? In an enlightened age, it is known by all that bigotry of any kind is not acceptable. In this modern day, we don’t generally hear statements of bigotry in common language in ways that were pervasive as recent as the 1950s and 1960s. Religious bigotry was even out in the open at that time as evidenced by evangelical ministers that routinely and publicly denounced the idea that Americans might vote for a Catholic. Today, bigotry of any kind, as a matter of common discussion in mixed company, is simply unacceptable in today’s diverse age. As a result, we do not hear public discussion about religious bigotry. Does that mean that this form of bigotry has also been marginalized to the point America can elect a Mormon? I do not believe it has. In fact, I think it is still pervasive, if now private.

In the states in which GMR won the Silver, by how much did he miss the Gold? Usually around 5%, maybe 10%. Today, he missed the Gold by 6% in a very large state. Since I began to seriously pay attention to presidential politics for 2008 back in 2006, I have seen poll results showing that a fair number of Americans are unwilling to ever vote for a Mormon; anywhere from about 20% of those surveyed to 40% recently. Since I have always concluded that America has matured to the point at which religious intolerance has been effectively marginalized, I more or less dismissed those poll numbers as based on simple ignorance, not bigotry.

Then, as the early state caucuses and primaries became history, I started to see a trend that I saw repeated today in Florida. It is fair to say that a majority of Americans do not find McCain acceptable as President as evidenced by his votes of 35% compared to 65% to all others. But to understand whether bigotry is at work against MR specifically, we need to drill down into the numbers. Is it not also fair to say that the most conservative voters of all would not be generally attracted to McCain, who is a well-known liberal Republican, or at least a Republican that cannot be trusted?

[In order to keep this commentary from becoming longer than it is, I use only the initials of candidates’ first and last names and any time there is a number, it represents a percentage]

In Florida, among evangelicals, the votes were JM(30), MR(29), MH(29). We can conclude that the 29 who voted for MR are not bigots. My presumption is that the reason MH’s 29 did not go to JM is because they consider him way too liberal to represent their values and principles. But if MH were not in the race, would all 29 go to MR? As you think about that answer, if they would not all go to MR, why would any significant portion of them go to JM? Incidentally, as MH keeps smiling and telling the world he can be the nominee, he knows he cannot. He won exactly 4 of all non-evangelical votes; that is par for the course for him. Since day one in Iowa, there has never been broad support for MH. Why does he stay in the race?

White evangelicals voted this way: MH(31), MR(31), JM(28). I think it is fair to say that those who voted for JM would be the more moderate or less orthodox evangelicals, simply because they could have chosen an orthodox evangelical in MH, and they did not. If true, and MH were not in the race, would MH’s 31 go to JM or MR and why? Why would an orthodox evangelical vote for the more liberal, twice married, untrustworthy Republican when they have MR, whose values and principles are much closer to theirs by comparison?

Of voters who think abortion should be illegal, the votes were MR(35), JM(29), MH (21). These are very conservative voters. We know 35 are not bigots and since MR won the majority here, we know that a very high percentage of voters know him to be strong pro-life. If MH were not in the race, would most of his 21 go to MR or JM and why? Of voters who think abortion should always be illegal, the votes were MH(32), MR(30), and JM(26). These voters are even more conservative overall. If MH were not in the race, would most of his 32 go to the more conservative candidate MR? If they would not, why not? Why would more than a handful go to JM instead of MR? Could bigotry influence their decision to go to JM?

Voters that identified themselves as very conservative were MR(44), JM(21), MH(20). It is well known by now that MR is the most conservative of both JM and MH. That being the case, if MH were not in the race, would his ‘very conservative’ voters go to the known, more conservative MR or to the less conservative, more liberal JM? And why? Could bigotry influence their decision to go to JM?

Over at Evangelicals for Mitt, both Steven Muscatello and Nancy French think MH should do “the honorable thing” and drop out. Read their excellent arguments here and here. But think of the context of my rhetorical questions above and consider this. If RG could so easily see the vanity of continuing the race, knowing he could never win, why can MH not see it? Or is it that he sees it and has ulterior motives? Think of the irony. RG, the person many have derided as ethically challenged, drops out seeing the reality; there are no ulterior motives really. MH, whose supporters consider the most ethical and upstanding man in the race, who would consider himself the most humble among them all, plans to “win the nomination” to quote him. Right. And pigs will fly for the first time in February. We now have resounding proof that MH cannot garner more than 10% of all non-evangelical votes and he has only nearly received 40% of all evangelical votes in one state. Clearly, he has no broad support, unlike GWB did as an evangelical. So, his decision to stay in the race is based on what? Ego? Vanity? Love of the sport? Is he lying to us when he says he is not running for Pastor in Chief? Or does he want to influence his voters away from MR and if so, why?

As many at this site have shown, MH revealed his stripes when he let slip his rhetorical Jesus/brother question in an interview. He also ardently campaigned in Salt Lake City to save the Mormons there from hell at the evangelical convention.

My opinion is that the frequent citing of 20 to 40 percent of all Americans unwilling to vote for a Mormon for President, the bigots are at the low end of the range. I may be naïve, but I do not believe that 40% of all Americans are religious bigots. Now, we know that when MR loses the Gold, the margin of loss is only 5% to 10%. That margin of difference is well below the 20% conservative estimate. Where are those 20% or so aligned? Are they divided among RG, MH, and JM? Are they mostly with MH or JM?

My conclusion is that the margin of victory that JM has enjoyed in any state, is a direct correlation to the reported bigotry still pervasive in America. If so, how does MR overcome this obvious bigotry, to win? These less than 20% “unwilling voters” are currently aligned with RG, JM, and MH, in some unknown mix. But knowing this does not help, does it? By definition, if they are bigots, MR will never be their choice. It cannot be argued that all 20% of these “unwilling” voters are in JM’s camp. Yet, it is he that is the beneficiary of their unwillingness to ever vote for MR. And clearly not all of the supporters left in RG’s and MH’s camp are bigots; but some are. So it is fair to say that if both RG and MH were not in the race, a fair number of their non-bigoted supporters would back the most conservative candidate in the race — MR. And why are the voters not following Rush Limbaugh’s advice to not vote for JM and MH?

So again, what is the motivation of MH to remain in a race he knows he cannot and will not win? Is his primary motivation to steer as many evangelicals to the Protestant JM, away from MR? If so, is that reason enough to not drop out of the race?

I think this issue is the 900-pound gorilla in the room with which nobody wants to make eye contact.

~ Vic

[Source of exit poll information above: CNN Politics]
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NOTE: Any comment left at this post that is primarily religious based or which contains vitriol, is antagonistic, or generally obnoxious, will be deleted without notice. Please set a standard of discussion that is productive and illuminating. If you have religious opinions, please leave them out of the discussion at this post.

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THIS POST IS PURELY FOR FUN. So, please don’t slap me around for putting up a piece that feels premature on the outcome of Florida. Maybe it is simply because I am a little nervous about tomorrow (I am writing this at 10:30 p.m. CA time) and just want to diffuse the tension with some humor. Whatever it is, just humor me for a moment.

I got a call from a good friend telling me to turn on the Hugh Hewitt show, so I was wrapping up at the office anyway, I jumped in the car just in time to hear HH introducing Rudy Giuliani. Here are some excerpts from the interview. I love HH’s interviewing style; he is able to get a lot of information very quickly:

HH: Mayor, the Los Angeles Times is reporting, and Drudge has picked it up, that you’re hinting at dropping out. I think that’s nonsense, but why don’t you deny it.

RG: I have said the same thing I have said for months, and it’s this. I have said this way back, I believe that the person who wins the Florida primary will be the Republican nominee. I started saying this, I don’t know, sometime in August, because it seemed to me that this is the lead-in to February 5th. And if somebody gets a nice win here, you’re going to have a tremendous advantage in all those big states that are coming up. So that…I repeated that today, so they assume that means…actually, I’m not sure I know exactly what they assume that means, but we’re in it, we’re going to win. I’m not conceding to anyone that we’re not going to win. And if they want to ask questions like well, if you don’t win, what are you going to do? And I have never, ever contemplated questions about if you don’t win.

And this snippet:

HH: Will you be at the Reagan Library on Wednesday to debate?

RG: I’ve got my ticket.

HH: (laughing) That’s not a yes or no, Mayor.

RG: I haven’t cancelled my ticket, although I’m not sure I travel by ticket anymore. But I have plans to travel to California, either on the red-eye, or early the next day. And having been on the board of the Reagan Library, I never turn down an invitation to go to the Reagan Library.

After I heard the whole interview, I discussed it with two friends. I asked them if they thought RG could actually quit the race if he came in a lousy third or fourth in Florida. They both thought he would not quit. I gave an opinion that he might. Why? When it comes to campaigning, he has a history of quitting.

When RG ran against HRC for the senate, he quit. Granted, he had to deal with the major blow of cancer and his nasty affair that was all over the news at the time (I happen to think he used the cancer as an excuse to get the limelight off of him and his affair — is that too cynical?). Then, what does he do weeks before the Ames Straw Poll in Iowa when he was running strong? He quit! That was stunning. Then, Mr. McC-Amnesty thought, hey if it is good for Rudy, it must be good — “I quit too!” Then, when RG is polling rather strong in a few of the early states and competing (sorta), he quit those states and called it “STRATEGY.”

I will admit it. As I listened to the interview this afternoon, I heard a gentleman. We can all locate his flaws and find fault with him; no question. But in his Brooklyn way, he was gracious today. The guy is just getting pummeled every time someone sticks a microphone in his face! He is feeling the hammer at every turn these days.

So here is the question of the day. A sort of lottery or pool. I guess that is not right because nobody is keeping score. But how many of you think RG could actually drop out of the race before Tsunami Tuesday? Actually announce he is done before Feb. 5th? I don’t give it a high probability because I place a lot of stock in his very large ego and the fact that he has very little to lose to wait it out a week. If he finishes a lousy third or fourth though, and if he considers himself a true statesman, he might just quit. He has finished fourth-to-last in all of the early states.

I peg the probability at 35% that he quits before Feb. 5th if — and this is a very big if — he finishes Florida a distant third or fourth place. Remember, he already leads today in votes by virtue of the tremendous early voting that he lobbied for.

What say ye?

~ Vic

PLEASE CONTRIBUTE TO MITT’S CAMPAIGN ——> HERE (no amount is too small)

— Source Code = ECA064

AND THANK YOU!

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This rather sarcastic and ironic commentary comes to us from Leland Bruce of Orange County, California
_______________________________________________________________________

by Leland Bruce

Okay, I give up. Is anybody watching what is happening to the GOP? The media is well aware of the situation but is constrained to reveal the truth otherwise their implicit endorsement rises to the surface and thus it becomes imperative that the main stream media stifle in the most proper manner any momentum for the best qualified presidential candidate, Mitt Romney.

Sure, they do it on the Democratic side and even the conservative voices raise the banner, “Isn’t this just an anti-Hillary vote?” thus adding credibility to her candidacy, raising eyebrows that indeed her campaign is larger, deeper, founded, funded and more sustainable than any other candidacy under scrutiny. But please, do not allow any of the media outlets to breathe the same thing about Mitt Romney!

By insinuating that Mitt’s second place finish in IA to our media darling Mike Huckabee or his second place finish to the amnesty advisor McCain in NH is nothing more than an anti-Romney vote by the GOP and Independents would catapult him as the frontrunner and turn every GOP head that indeed the smartest, most articulate, most visionary, most principled candidate is actually the guy to beat! Heaven help us! We must do all that we can to submerge such a thought! But we are doing it for Hillary right? Of course we are! Her second place finishes are a result of the anti-Hillary victim vote, mere stepping stones and time of reflection as we persuade the public to vote for our candidates. So what should we call Romney’s 2nd place finishes so as to not cast him in the same light as our victim Hillary? Hey, let’s call it “devastating”, “unsustainable” and that his campaign is in “dire straits”! Can we do that? Of course we can, we’re on the home team and we’re playing at home!

We can’t have a ground swell of support for the candidate that is most qualified and most needed by a recession weary economy, out of control trade deficits, unstable valuation of the dollar, and poor public opinion in foreign countries. Hey, we can’t get behind this guy because he could beat our candidate if the people of the United States actually voted based upon their own opinion rather than the slurp sloshing from us. No, we can’t have that! We won’t have that! Hey, we couldn’t impeach Bush, what’s wrong with us? [click Continue Reading just below for Leland's entire commentary]

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Some interesting comments from one of the posters over at FREE REPUBLIC.

Seems like the Romney bandwagon is picking up speed.

~~John Cronin~~

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1960536/posts

Posted on 01/27/2008 5:37:47 PM PST by propol

First, Captain Ed explains his thumbs up…

Over the last two weeks, my focus has come down to Rudy and Romney. Both would make good Presidents. Mitt, however, has shown that he will fight in every state, while Rudy played a bit of rope-a-dope — and has apparently lost the gamble. Until the debate, I thought Rudy might have had the right idea, but Rudy still hasn’t come out of the gate in any effective manner.
Romney is not a perfect candidate. We don’t have any perfect candidates. In fact, I could still support Mike Huckabee without reservation in a general election against either Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton. I think, though, that Romney has the most staying power, the better argument, and the best resume of the remaining Republican candidates. I will enthusiastically caucus for Mitt Romney on February 5th.

Then we see former Thompsonites coming into the Romney fold, most notably Liz Cheney…

ORLANDO, Florida (CNN) — Vice President Dick Cheney’s daughter Elizabeth Cheney is joining Mitt Romney’s presidential bid, his campaign announced Sunday.
She previously stumped for former Sen. Fred Thompson of Tennessee who dropped out of the race last week.

In a statement released by Romney’s campaign, Cheney said the former Massachusetts governor “has distinguished himself as a leader who can guide our country with a clear vision for overcoming the threats we face today.”

And then this morning I’m watching the McLaughlin group today and it’s Romney, Romney, Romney. Nobody is behind McCain. It’s truly amazing to see the Republican chattering class rally like this, but there it is nonetheless.

And sure, McCain is securing some good endorsements, but the institution as a whole is getting behind Romney because they think he can be a “change” agent, whereas McCain can’t. They think he’s effectively taken this message away from Obama, and I guess we’ll see if they’re right in the coming weeks.

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Republicans of Florida:

Please do not take anything for granted. I know some people are showing that Governor Romney way win your primary. That is far from either true or certain; at all.

Remember, Governor Romney is running against:

1) Two people with INCREDIBLE name recognition: Rudy Giuliani and John McCain. Both have been known worldwide for years, even a decade or more.

2) The mainstream media. John McCain is their candidate. The New York Times even endorsed McDarling.

3) The Washington, D.C. establishment withing the Republican Party. Any idea why so many fellow bureaucrats from Congress have recently endorsed McDarling? Because they don’t want DC to change. Governor Romney will not only change DC in a big way, it will be the biggest improvement of the federal government in 100+ years.

So please, do not take anything for granted. Please, please, take one or two of your neighbors to the polls Tuesday and vote for Governor Romney and send a signal to the Washington, D.C. establishment, the MSM, and to RG and JM! Don’t listen to anything in the media that indicates Gov. Romney is going to win. Please vote and take someone with you.

AND THANK YOU,

~ Vic

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Interesting article focusing on the voters being able to cut through the media fog.

~~John Cronin~~

http://www.webcommentary.com/asp/ShowArticle.asp?id=gaynorm&date=080126

WEBCOMMENTARY.COM

BY: MICHAEL GAYNOR

The Republicans’ Florida debate demonstrated that the strong winner, Mitt Romney, has developed Mittmentum and is on course to election in November, despite the Clintons and some religious bigotry.

The United States of America’s next president won’t be its first president of Italian ancestry (as Rudy Giuliani hopes), because the Republicans won’t nominate a person who does not share the Republicans’ traditional pro-life, pro-personal morality values; or the first former prisoner-of-war (as John McCain still yearns), because now he’s too old for the grueling job and previously he was too inclined to break with most Republicans and join with Democrats (McCain-Feingold, Kennedy-McCain, Gang of Fourteen); or the first Baptist minister (as Mike Huckabee prays), because he’s not up to the job, he’s not the best choice and one president born in Hope, Arkansas was one too many.

But there WILL be big change.

The next president will be the first female president, or the first half-black president (Barack’s mother was white and ignoring that is…not right), or the first Mormon president.

Much of the media really would prefer Obama versus McCain, and have been broadcasting, reporting and editorializing accordingly, but the politically adept Clintons will do whatever it takes to win the Democrat nomination.

Nevertheless, in the end, enough Republicans will refuse to succumb to religious bigotry and reject a monagamous Mormon who shares their basic values for a man who divorced his first wife and married a rich, much younger divorcee whose family could support his political ambitions.

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The following excerpts of the transcripts from the Hugh Hewitt show were taken from here. Hugh Hewitt interviewed Newt Gingrich, former Speaker of the House.

Several people in this blog have asked about who Governor Romney should choose for Vice President, should he be the Republican nominee. I have said many times that very few first term Presidents in the last 75 years did not include either the Prez or VP from a southern state (maybe one).    Gingrich is definitely very bright and though he has baggage, his conservative credentials are outstanding. Here is his answer as to whether he would consider the Veep job:

HH: Mr. Speaker, a lot of people would love to see you in the number two slot on the ticket. Are you open to that?

NG: Well, Ronald Reagan once said that he was hoping that Gerald Ford would not ask him in 1976, because a citizen would have a very hard time turning it down as part of their duty. And I always thought that was a wise admonition. And so I can’t quite imagine a nominee foolish enough to offer it, but I would have to consider it seriously if somebody did.

And what is Gingrich’s opinion about Governor Romney, Mayor Giuliani, and John McCain? Their chances?

NG: John McCain is John McCain. He’s a very stubborn, very self-righteous, very indignant guy who really believes what he believes, and frankly, if you don’t like him, that’s your problem. And yet he’s also courageous and hard working and has great integrity, and is a true patriot. And so, he’s…and it really helped him in New Hampshire, because that was exactly the kind of cantankerous personality that kind of fits the New Hampshire tradition.

HH: But you know, Mr. Speaker, in your book, Real Change, one of the things that really resonated with me on Page 89, you call for cheerful persistence for change. And you cite FDR. And you know, that’s so crucial to governing, and I don’t think Senator McCain has any cheerful persistence for change in him, does he?

NG: I didn’t…listen, you asked me what I would advise each of those three guys, and I told you what I’d advise them. Look, I’m not defending any of the three. Each of them has great strengths, each of them has great weaknesses. That’s why no one has broken loose yet. And Florida become really important in part because either McCain or Giuliani has to win Florida to keep the nomination open. If Romney wins Florida, I think he’s on the way to becoming the nominee.

So, Florida. What do you think about Florida? Is Governor Romney going to win Florida? Those are big delegates down there! Remember this: No Republican has been elected President without winning Florida.

I say win!

~ Vic

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Debate night! (It is still “tonight” for me no matter what the date says. It is about 10:30 p.m. California time as I sit down with some thoughts about the debate).

First, my initial reaction to the overall debate for Gov. Romney was that I was stoked! (an odd idiom of great meaning to Southern Californians)

Second, there was a sense of momentum I felt from beginning to end of the debate. I expected the other candidates to gang up on Gov. Romney and they didn’t. Trying to take my bias into account, I thought Gov. Romney fully dominated the debate. No question in my mind AT ALL. He dominated in a gentlemanly way. Following are brief comments made to Gov. Romney by each of the candidates at the breaks or after the debate. [these occurred to Cindy and me as the debate went on]. I’m sure our guesses here were not too far off reality tonight:

Senator McCain: “Hey Mitt, I know people think I hate you. A little straight talk okay? Look, I’m not real fond of you, true. But can I be your VP? Please? I will introduce you to my general buddies in the Marines. By the way, what the heck were you talking about in that one answer you gave about the economy? Run that by me real slow and please use language that any ASU student could understand.”

Governor Huckabee: “Off the record, when my son hanged that dog, it was already dead. Did I tell you he earned the Eagle Scout award? How many of your sons are Eagles? For what it is worth Mitt, every Sunday when I give my sermons to earn a little money, I always tell the pastors and their parishioners to stop the whisper campaigns against you. Yeah, I know I could give a public speech on religious tolerance, like you did, and denounce religious bigotry publicly, I just think that I can be more effective behind the scenes to fight bigotry. What do you think of the Razorbacks? They are right up there with those Cougars! I know you always surround yourself with only the most intelligent and successful people, but do you think you could find a spot for me at the consulate on the western border of Ireland, the home of my ancestors? That would be swell.”

Mayor Giuliani: [looking up at Gov. Romney, simultaneously squinting and looking surprised] — “Hey Mitt, can we have lunch next Wednesday? I have some time open on my calendar that day. I would like to get a few tips from you on a couple of my companies that are struggling right now. But more importantly, I ran out of money today and I will be bowing out of the race. I want to get your thoughts on how best to convey that message to maximize my long-term speaking engagement value and preserve the legacy I have as Hero #1 of September 11th. I think I might be able to help deliver New Jersey for you in the primaries and general — I have some connections. What d’ya say?”

Congressman Paul: “Mitt, do you think anybody listened to me tonight? I wish I were you”

In all seriousness, how great was Governor Romney tonight? I realize it may now sound a little trite to say this, as everyone has been saying it for weeks, but Gov. Romney really seemed presidential. All the others on that stage almost appeared to be in his shadow.

Since I have seen Gov. Romney speak so often, I have a habit now of looking at the others around him when he speaks. Again, trying to eliminate my bias, the others seemed in awe of Gov. Romney tonight. I kept thinking to myself, each of the candidates were telling themselves things like, “Wow, he has this thing nailed…” — “I wish I knew half what he knows!” — Etc.

By the way, none of this above is gloating. Absolutely not. There is a long road ahead. Gov. Romney has a long way to go to the nomination and a lot of hard work. He has not won Florida and it might be very tight. We all need to do what we can to help get the vote out and influence fence-sitters, FredHeads, and Huck’s followers that are just now awakening to the reality he has no message and no broad-based support.

It is a little bit of celebration — INDEED.

~ Vic

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