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November 10, 2009
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Ear to the Ground

Welcome Back, Mitt?

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Posted on Mar 10, 2008
Romney
bloomberg.com

Mitt Romney could be headed back to political prime time now that conservative heavyweights, including The Weekly Standard, are pushing him as John McCain’s best bet for vice president. Romney’s economic know-how, it is argued, along with his popularity with the Bush wing of the party, makes him a safe choice.

Romney is also reported to be a favorite of Karl Rove, who is unofficially advising Team Straight Talk.

While he may appeal to social conservatives, so does the anti-evolutionist Mike Huckabee, who managed to wage a more agreeable campaign against McCain. Neither does much for independents, who still mourn the passing of maverick McCain.

(h/t: Political Wire)


Weekly Standard:

Romney has three other add-ons. He’s acceptable to conservatives and especially to social conservatives, who disproportionately volunteer as ground troops in Republican presidential campaigns. He’s unflappable in debates. With the downturn worsening, the economy may surpass national security as the top issue of the campaign. And after years of success as a big time player in the global economy, Romney understands how markets work. He could shore up McCain’s admitted weakness on economic issues.

Romney has allies in the Bush wing of the Republican party. President Bush favors him as McCain’s veep. Jeb Bush, the former Florida governor, preferred Romney over McCain in the primaries, but never endorsed him publicly. Karl Rove, the president’s political strategist, has hinted that he considers Romney to be McCain’s best running mate.

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By Kathryn, March 12, 2008 at 8:25 am #
(Unregistered commenter)

Attention all voters and parents, if you’d like a man in a dress teaching your children in school, or a woman with a beard, vote Mitt- check it out http://www.massresistane.org. Also google Boston’s Children’s Hospital Sex Change Clinic.

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By FG, March 11, 2008 at 1:51 pm #
(Unregistered commenter)

Fundamental Christians don’t want a Mormon?  Wow.  How sad. The majority of Mormons I know are honest, hard-working people who honor their families and their country.  Oh….and they believe in Jesus Christ!  How twisted is our country!?

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By P. T., March 11, 2008 at 12:23 pm #

The fundamentalist Christian types are already sceptical about John McCain.  It is doubtful he would put a Mormon on the ticket and annoy them further.

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By Richard, March 11, 2008 at 3:43 am #
(Unregistered commenter)

The Weekly Standard is delusional.  There are just as many social conservatives, if not more, who find Romney’s past record of promoting abortion on demand, the homosexual agenda, and gun control anathema to their values.  His current support for state “gay rights” laws and his opposition to the Boy Scouts’ policy protecting boys from exposure to boys and men involved in homosexual activity is proves he hasn’t flip-flopped enough for social conservatives…yet.

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By i,Q, March 11, 2008 at 2:28 am #

My friends, the scariest thing in this blurb is the allusion to Rove’s unofficial presidential symphonizing. Dirty Karl. (They ought to name an illicit sex act just that. Or the Impolite Rove-Around. “Were they just Roving in there? Now that’s disgusting.”  Something that makes bukaki look nice by comparison…)

Do you think that Rove might have a little powah of tha darkside left up his sleeve?

i wonder if people in general have had enough of that slimy stuff. i hate to draw the comparison, but i feel like Hillary called up Rove at 3 AM from her secret phone hidden in the sole of her stylish but practical pumps.

The thing is that an ad like the 3 AM ad is designed to conjure up that primal moment of doubt which is such an obvious play on the fear card. But maybe it’s a good and necessary thing. She plays the fear-mongering bit now, but once the populous and the media have deconstructed the whole experience down to the lowest common denominator, the next attempt at fear mongering will be less effective than the first, and at that point it might backfire overnight, which is what we’re starting to see be the narrative for this week.

Barack Hits Back. That’s the media’s desired headline and tone, but better for Barack would be this: Barack Stands Tall Above Fray. He got a good one in this morning after Billary insinuated she might offer him the VP. Hillaryous!

This whole campaign is hilarious. McCain gets almost no press and when he does get press it’s because he’s a crooked old man with too many negatives to be a real consideration for the job. Crazy Ol’ Coot. But he’s had a long life filled with lot’s of experience of the type that might make a person a smidge callous.  (What exactly is a smidge anyway? Seriously, if you know, please let me in.)

Hillary shames the press corps into changing their tone from “Yay!” to “Hold the Phone…” —ever the victim. You gotta give it to her though, when she plays that victim card, people just eat it up. It’s like they didn’t notice that every month or so (no insinuation intended) we have seen “That’s Not Fair” Barbie pour on the proverbial waterworks. Old Faithful. She did nail the celebration speech though. If you like snarky, “Ha hah!” attitude wrapped in retina-damaging shades of fuscia (It was like a pantsuit made out of Olivia Newton John’s jacket from Grease.) surrounded by downpours of red white and blue confetti, this was the night for you.

i thought Barack’s speech was good. It was so serious, i thought it felt like it was set somewhere in Gotham City (i kept waiting for the Bat-Signal to flash up on the side of the building). i was also pleased that he was almost stump speech free. He did go into a couple of stump speech greatest hits, but was mostly new. Which is what i think he has got to do at this point. He needs to go out there unscripted ad let Barack be Barck. i think he got a little bogged down by all of the assaults on his experience. But he should “engage to disregard” a negative attack, make a witty quip about how it’s cynical politics; we don’t have to be a slave to fear.; Hilary is merely doing things the way she knows how to try and get a result, but it may not be a result that ultimately is the best result .

So John McCain, yeah. “My friends, i am about to sincerely recite for you a speech cobbled together from several book reports, diligently written by the eighth grade daughter of one of my closest aids, and it goes a little something like this….”

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By i,Q, March 11, 2008 at 1:35 am #

Funny nonetheless. wink

Besides, someone’s got to plug in the cyborg so he can take that 3am phone call.

McCain’s secretary, heh.

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By cyrena, March 11, 2008 at 1:15 am #

Actually, I was expecting a McCain/Clinton ticket, as soon as Hillary loses the democratic nomination to Obama.

There is no better ideological/policy/position fit than that for a repug ticket.

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