comMITTed to Romney!

Bill Keller, who really hit the Media’s radar screen during the primaries with his infamous quote about Mitt Romney is being investigated by the IRS according to EarnedMedia.Org in a story referencing the original article in the NEW YORK TIMES.

I thought his remark was way off base and apparently the IRS does as well. It will be very interesting to see how the case develops.

~~John Cronin~~

http://www.earnedmedia.org/wdc0624.htm

MEDIA ADVISORY, June 24 /Christian Newswire/ –

The New York Times has broken the story that Bill Keller, founder of Liveprayer.com with over 2.4 million subscribers to his Daily Devotional and host of the Liveprayer TV program, is under investigation for possibly violating his tax exempt status in speaking out last year against former Republican Presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s Mormon beliefs. Keller, who was the first Christian leader to speak out nationally against Romney’s beliefs coined the now infamous phrase, “A vote for Romney is a vote for Satan.”

Keller maintains that he has done nothing to violate his tax exemption status and says his attorneys are confident the ministry will be cleared of any wrongdoing. Keller stated, “I have every right to educate people on spiritual matters and deal with the pressing spiritual issues of our day, even those that transcend into the political arena. Unlike many Christian leaders, I have never, or ever will endorse any candidate for public office and have never told people who to or not to vote for.” He has recently been in the national news making the case that the Democratic nominee for President, Senator Barack Obama is not a Christian.

New York Times story from Tuesday, June 24, 2008: http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/06/23/challenging-the-irs/

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It’s almost as if Robert Novak is an avid reader of this website. My jaw almost hit the floor this morning as I read his column in the Washington Post.

He has touched on the very points that we have collectively made here. The main point being that McCain was the major beneficiary of Huckabee’s divide and conquer strategy. At one point early in the primary season, Mitt Romney appeared ready to run the table. He was in first or second place in 6 out of 7 of the first primaries. Even as a strong supporter of Mitt Romney, I had to shake my head in wonder. Coming from a virtual unknown to such a commanding lead within the space of a year was an awesome accomplishment.

But then something very strange started to happen. Social conservatives who are very “family values” oriented, who are solidly pro life and who favor a strong military and a smaller, simpler government, abandoned the candidate who supported all those positions in favor of a glib, but shallow candidate with zero foreign affairs credibility and zero economic credibility.

If what Robert Novak writes in his column is true, then these poor souls have not learned a single, solitary lesson from their disastrous experiment in Presidential politics. They are still true believers in the man from Hope.

I don’t know about anyone else, but I am getting sick of hearing the empty platitudes about “Hope” and “Change.” I will wait for 2012 when we can start talking again about “Experience” and “Competency.”

~~John Cronin~~

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article
/2008/05/11/AR2008051101786.html

McCain and Huckabee were friendly rivals in this year’s Republican competition, sharing contempt for Mitt Romney. Indeed, McCain would not be where he is today had Huckabee not mobilized born-again voters to upset Romney in the Iowa caucuses. All of Romney’s efforts to overtake McCain in conservative Southern state primaries were stifled by Huckabee’s success in those contests. Huckabee quickly endorsed McCain once he clinched the nomination. They bonded publicly in Little Rock on April 24 during McCain’s tour.

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http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2008/04/25/
mccain-and-huckabee-together-again/?mod=WSJBlog

Slouched in one of the two captain’s chairs, Huckabee used his time with the press to take a thinly veiled jab at another former opponent, Mitt Romney. “You know for me, the fortunate thing is I don’t have to go around and unsay anything I said during the campaign,” he said, earning another chuckle from McCain.

So, Pastor Huckabee didn’t have to “unsay” any thing he said during the campaign. Could that be because he didn’t have anything to say worth saying in the first place?

As for McCain, Huckabee added: “We had a very civil relationship. I thought it was significant that I felt like the two of us who ran, frankly the two most civil campaigns in the entire Republican primary ended up the last two on our feet.”

Pastor Huckabee, by the end of the primary campaign, you weren’t on your feet, you were on another area of your anatomy, the part we use when we are seated. I honestly don’t think a very distant second, when all the viable candidates except McCain had withdrawn from the race, qualifies as being “on your feet.”

Romney dropped out of the race on Feb. 7. Despite his slim chances, Huckabee held on until March 5, when McCain secured the nomination.

Huckabee “held on” until he got his Hollywood agent and was offered a book deal.

~~John Cronin~~

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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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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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For many weeks now, I have been saying that all the candidates are out of money except Governor Romney. Giuliani, McCain, and Huckabee are all effectively running on fumes right now. All of them have barely enough money to get some ads up in Florida, except Huckabee. After Florida, then what?

But the bigger question is why is Huckabee staying in the race at all? Almost his entire support is the narrow base of evangelical voters. But of them, he struggles to garner 50% of all evangelical votes and cannot even break 10% of all non-evangelical voters. His support is far, far from anything called broad-based. His support is about as narrow as one can get. This Sunday, he will probably continue to keep it narrow by giving a “non-political” sermon (or two, or three, or four) for a hefty fee of $25,000 each, “sacred funds” that, oh by the way, go into his political coffers. That is really a great way to broaden your support!

One last editorial comment before we see these great excerpts. Did any of you catch Huckabee’s reply to the South Carolina flag dispute the other day? He said something to the effect, “If someone came into my state of Arkansas and told me what to do with our state flag, I would tell them where to stick the flag pole!”, and he said it with a broad smile and a laugh. When he wants to be the Baptist minister, he knows how to turn on the humble charm. When he wants to play the shrewd, crass politician, he can easily change course in his language. Language unbecoming any minister of Jesus Christ.

Why are not more Americans able to see through the facade we call Mike Huckabee?

Anyway, check out these quotes. Why is Huckabee still running in this race? Who is he kidding? By staying in the race with such a narrow support base, he is just exploiting those few supporters who are willing to give him money, either directly into his political coffers, or by dropping it in their Sunday church plate.

FLORIDA PRIMARY — Huckabee skimps on Florida for Georgia — Posted on Mon, Jan. 21, 2008 — BY MARC CAPUTO — mcaputo@MiamiHerald.com

“No television commercials. A small and hastily arranged Florida rally. No clear travel schedule. Mike Huckabee is running the most unorthodox campaign of the major Republican candidates. While his opponents blanketed Florida — the biggest primary yet — on Monday, he opened and closed the day in another state, Georgia. … Political observers and Huckabee’s political opponents say it’s all proof that he’s writing off Florida, where he’s not scheduled to campaign Tuesday and where his opponents appear to be out-fighting and out-spending him. Some even speculate that he’s now running for a vice-presidency slot. But Huckabee said reports of his political death are as exaggerated as they are old. ‘’We plan no Mickey Mouse operation in Florida,’’ he said. But he also noted that ‘’no one’’ will have the race ‘wrapped up’ in Florida.”

Or what about this next quote? Apparently, some of Huckabee’s most ardent supporters have finally seen the light with this man:

Washington Prowler — Huckabee Broke — By The Prowler — Published 1/22/2008 12:08:32 AM

“Less than a month after a huge upset victory, and promises that fundraising would be ramped up, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee is asking his senior staff to keep working for him without pay, while lower level campaign staff are seeing their salaries cut dramatically or eliminated altogether. ‘The goal is to get a leaner, meaner campaign structure moving into Super Tuesday,’ says a senior campaign adviser. But many of those being asked to take the cut are refusing, and walking away, leaving the campaign with holes to fill. ‘The money simply hasn’t come in at the rate that we expected,’ says the aide. ‘Florida is a $7 million commitment that we can’t meet, and if we did, that leaves us exposed for Super Tuesday, where we have a lot of states and a lot media buys. We had to make tough decisions.’”

Hopefully, as Huckabee continues to barely get 35% of the evangelical vote and hardly any of the non-evangelical vote, somebody will tap him on the shoulder and tell him the truth. In my opinion though, Huckabee’s ego, greatly enlarged by his Iowa evangelical win, will not allow him to quit the race.

~ Vic

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What the heck is John McCain trying to do now? What do they call it when you (or your surrogates) out and out try to change history from what actually happened? I call it flat-out lying. Unfortunately, there are Americans who have just started to pay attention to the race who have no real clue about John McCain’s actual record. Many of those Americans will actually believe what he and his buddies tell them in the press.

One thing is for sure; McCain has a lot of guts to blatantly lie like this. By simply not answering the actual history as to how McCain voted against the tax cuts, his advisor is cunningly able to convey an erroneous message to voters that McCain has always been for the tax cuts. There are so many places where McCain is on record as being against the tax cuts.

I sure hope the MSM will expose his cunning, shrewd attempts to deceive. Check this:
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One thing about John McCain, he has chutzpah! In Spanish, the phrase would be: “!Sin verguenza!”

~ Vic

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According to the MSM……If Romney doesn’t win Iowa, he’s toast………If Romney doesn’t win Wyoming, he’s toast……..If Romney doesn’t win New Hampshire, he’s toast……..If Romney doesn’t win Michigan, he’s toast………If Romney doesn’t win Nevada, he’s toast……If Romney doesn’t win,…… oh, never mind, but you just wait until he has to face the Democrats in the Fall.

Sure.

Updated delegate count:

Romney——72

And now it’s on to Florida and let’s win there!

~~John Cronin~~

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Governor Romney’s Remarks on his Win in Nevada

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Here’s another example of why Rush Limbaugh is the undisputed King Of Talk Radio. Rush has the platform to say to 20,000,000 people what we conservatives talk about with friends and family.

~~John Cronin~~

Rush Limbaugh.Com

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1955389/posts

This is Disa in Redmond, Oregon, I’m glad you waited. Nice to have you on the EIB Network. Hello.

CALLER: Hi. I’m glad to be on. Hey, I am livid over that comment I just heard that guy say. First of all, Romney is a sincere guy, and, you know, the media hates him, and that is clear. It is a miracle he is doing as good as he’s doing right now. I have heard over and over again, “He didn’t win Iowa, he’s out. He didn’t win New Hampshire, he’s out.” It is a miracle. He has gotten first and second in everything. It is a miracle he’s doing what he does with them against him like that. Okay, he can turn things around. He is one of the sharpest guys I’ve ever known. This man can analyze — he goes to a company, what does he do? He analyzes it, he says, “Okay, what’s going wrong, why isn’t this company working?” He sees what’s wrong. He cuts the waste and he increases productivity. Okay, this guy is amazing. If this guy wins the Republican nomination, he’ll take us to the White House, and no one else will, because, you know what, McCain is not a conservative. Huckabee, he should be a vice presidential candidate for the Democrats, okay? He’s a nice guy, but he is a liberal, okay, they can get some of the religious vote if they take him as a vice presidential candidate. I’m sorry. Am I getting too excited?

RUSH: No. I love women who are excited, especially when they’re talking to me.

Below is an example of Rush cutting through the liberal fog to call them out on their attempts to manipulate this election.

CALLER: — the real thing is, I like him.

RUSH: Disa.

CALLER: Yes. Sorry.

RUSH: No, no, no, no, no. Don’t apologize. Your instincts here are exactly right. I want to go further. I want to tell you what this is really all about to help your blood pressure levels. The media, in propping up Huckabee and McCain, I don’t care if they’re Republicans or Democrat Drive-Bys, they’re trying to destroy the conservative movement. This is why they are salivating over the possibility that Huckabee might have gotten the nomination. They think they could take out two of their biggest enemies in one election, conservative Christians and the evangelical vote, and they would love that. I’ve had a number of these Drive-Bys confirm that to me. Same thing with McCain. They just despise conservatives, period. They despise conservative leaders, people that have a chance to lead and govern with conservative policies, because the big target of conservatives is Big Government, and that’s God to these people! We’re going after their savior. Liberalism, if you look at it like a religion, God is their temple, abortion is their sacrament. And conservatives go after both of those things. And they’ve got to be destroyed. So, of course, they’re going to prop up a guy like McCain. Of course, McCain’s gone out and tried to make the Drive-By Media his base, not Republican voters. It’s no surprise to me McCain didn’t win Michigan. Republicans aren’t going to vote for him. The two primaries where he came close and won, independents and Democrats are voting.

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http://www.time.com/time/politics/article/0,8599,1704390,00.html

By: Michael Duffy and Karen Tumulty

Whenever I am tempted to cool my anti-MSM rhetoric, along comes a screed like this one from our friends over at TIME/CNN. They describe Gov. Romney as a “strange, inauthentic collection of market research, body parts and DNA……assembled in a lab by the party’s mad scientists.”

I am sure they would spin this as a spoof of MR, or as political satire that they wouldn’t expect those of us who live in fly over country to fully appreciate, but I view it as some of the last gasps of the “Dinosaur Media” as it slinks into oblivion. What does this kind of writing say to the voters of Wyoming and Michigan who just propelled “the Frankenstein monster of the 2008 Republican sweepstakes” to sweeping victories in their primaries? No wonder the main use of their publications now is to wrap fish and to line the bottoms of birdcages.

Until he pulled into his home state of Michigan, Willard Mitt Romney was the Frankenstein monster of the 2008 Republican sweepstakes. The former Massachusetts governor at times seemed less like a real person than a strange, inauthentic collection of market research, body parts and DNA that had been borrowed from past GOP campaigns and assembled in a lab by the party’s mad scientists. Romney had the overpowering optimism of Ronald Reagan, the family values of Dan Quayle, the hair and handsome looks of Jack Kemp and the manners of George H.W. Bush. On paper, each piece of the Romney contraption was designed to appeal to a different part of the scattered GOP coalition. But the overall formula wasn’t working as expected. Romney placed second in Iowa and New Hampshire, despite pouring millions of his own fortune into the race. His rivals among the other candidates neither liked nor respected him, and that dynamic was beginning to show up in televised debates. Michigan would be where he regained his footing — or just got buried.

~~John Cronin~~

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Here are a few encouraging details from tonight’s contest, from the CBS News website:

According to CBS News exit polls, self-described Republicans made up 68 percent of the vote - and they supported Romney by a wide margin. Independents made up just 25 percent of the GOP primary vote today while just 7 percent were Democrats. In 2000, independents made up 35 percent of the vote while another 17 percent were Democrats.

The economy overwhelmingly topped the concerns of voters, with 55 percent of primary voters citing it as their top concern. The Iraq war ranked second, but lagged far behind. Just 17 percent said that was their top concern. Discussion of the economy dominated the Michigan contest in its closing days, as Romney sought to strike an optimistic tone about the future of a state which has seen some 76,000 jobs lost in the past year alone.

… Romney also won among late-deciding voters, indicating that his arguments may have won some supporters.

Takeaways? The GOP is supporting Mitt, and “it’s the economy, _______.”

Additional takeaways? Mitt sticking to his message seems very productive. Mitt gained a head of steam and connected with people, which he’ll need continue. Meanwhile McCain lost momentum as he had to defend his truth-distorting, sack of fibs mailer. In addition, earned media seems much better at conveying and building momentum than paid media.

And lest we forget, the big difference maker in Michigan was Mitt’s “no job left behind” theme, giving hope where the Washington insider offered only pessimism and job retraining. Now that Mitt’s found his stride I expect the good vibe and the connection he’s making with voters to continue.

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Congratulations to Governor Romney and his campaign team on a great win in Michigan tonight! As they say down South, he gave the competition a “thumpin’.”

It will be fascinating to analyze the exit polls to see just what the dynamics of the voting indicates. One thing that jumped out of the stats I saw was that among Catholics who go to church weekly, 41% voted for Gov. Romney. So much for Pastor Mike’s attempt to divide and conquer.

Here is the updated delegate count. MSM pundits, pay very close attention to these numbers. Try to keep them in mind as you sit down at your desk and place your fingers on your computer’s keyboard.

These numbers should be the reason why you should exercise a healthy discipline with yourself if you are tempted to write another column or blog calling on Gov. Romney to withdraw from the race.

The reason that Gov. Romney has not taken your advise is because HE IS WINNING!!

Romney…………42

Hunter……………1

~~John Cronin~~

“For of those to whom much is given, much is required. And when at some future date the high court of history sits in judgment on each of us, recording whether in our brief span of service we fulfilled our responsibilities to the state, our success or failure, in whatever office we hold, we will be measured by the answer to four questions: First, were we truly men of courage…..Second, were we truly men of judgment…..Third, were we truly men of integrity…..Finally, were we truly men of dedication?

We observe today not a victory of party but a celebration of freedom, symbolizing an end as well as a beginning, signifying renewal as well as change.”

John Fitzgerald Kennedy, Inaugural Address, Jan. 20, 1961

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Congrats to Mitt. A new front runner emerges (though a lot of good that label did Giuliani, Huckabee and McCain), after wresting Michigan from McCain. Current medal count after four contests:

Mitt: 2 golds and 2 silvers, even more popular votes and more delegates than anyone else;

McCain: less money, a donor list pledged as collateral for a loan, a gold and a silver (note theres’ no economic plan among his assets);

Huckabee: less money, fleeing evangelicals, diminishing hope in SC, a gold and two bronzes.

Let’s not forget: McCain took Michigan in 2000, was popular with independents in NH, took 44% of those classifying themselves as liberal in NH, but still ceded first to Mitt despite only one major Democrat on the ballot. This was a fantastic victory.

Let’s enjoy before hitting it hard in SC, NV and winner take all FL!

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