Wednesday, January 10, 2007
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Smarter Than The Average Bear, Pt. II
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Posted by:
Dean Barnett at
8:28 PM
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Earlier in the day, a video made the rounds of Mitt Romney debating Ted Kennedy. In the 13 year old clip, Romney called himself a moderate Republican and took a pro-choice position (while tacitly admitting his personal problems with abortion). While I still think this is pretty weak-tea for Romney-bashers, when nothing is all you got you learn to love it. Andrew Sullivan, for one, ate it up.
I offer this post not to address the fundamental issues regarding Romney’s conservative nature. Been there, done that, will no doubt be doing it again. (He is, and I can prove it. More importantly, through his actions, Romney has proved it.)
But let’s not talk about that. Instead, please consider this post another chapter in how Mitt and his campaign are Smarter than Your Average Bear.
To offer his counterpoints in the blogosphere where this is a matter of conversation, Romney did a podcast this afternoon with Professor Reynolds and his better half. But wait – there’s more. While Romney was on the phone with the Reynoldses, his campaign filmed him. A short while ago, the Romney campaign posted the video of him addressing the 13 year old clip on YouTube.
This is not only rapid response, but intelligent response. You’ll be saying it too by the end of the campaign – Romney is Smarter Than The Average Bear.
Compliments? Complaints? Contact me at Soxblog@aol.com
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Despite the attacks from detractors on the right, Romney has climbed to the top of the charts on the GOP Bloggers hit parade. Check out their January poll and see for yourselves (www.gopbloggers.org/janpollresults.php).
Fully 89% of respondents rate themselves between 7 and 10 on a 1-to-10 scale of conservativeness, and Mitt Romney is the top choice of a plurality of 28% (versus 25.5% for Gingrich, 21.8% for Giuliani). What's more, his favorability rating as a candidate (a staggering +67.5% "acceptable" vs. "unacceptable" votes) is highest, too (versus 67.1% for Gingrich, 61.6% for Giuliani).
There may be a narrow band of conservatives who will sit home because Romney's not their perfect candidate, but most will see he'll make an excellent president and our votes will put him over the top at the Twin Cities convention.
The blogosphere is experiencing the Romney juggernaut long before the rest of the country will feel it. But they'll catch on. Mark my words. |
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about gay marriage or abortion. I am personally opposed to abortion, think Roe is bad law, but do not want to see abortion completely illegal (just greatly discouraged). I suspect the same is true for McCain, Guiliani and for that matter, George Bush. Yes a sizable portion of people want abortion completely banned--they probably make up about 25% of the population.
Bush is probably not personally anti-gay. He adopts a gay marriage amendment position becuase it plays to a narrow slice of the GOP base. That is why Romney is flip flopping on these issues too. Romney was more liberal in 1994 because he was running for Senate in liberal Massachusetts and he became more conservative at the end of his governor term because he was starting to run for President.
Does that make Romney fundamentally flawed? No, provided he is not completely selling out his convictions. Personally, I find gay marriage a zero threat to my marriage and my family--but I think if it is implemented it has to be through democratic means (by state legislatures or by voter inititives, not judges) and limited only to states where it passes. Barring something bizzare from the Supreme Court, I think any gay marriage amendment ban is wrong because it will not pass and it is better left to the states.
My fear about Romney is not that he will be elected President (he is by far better than the Democratic candidates and would probably be a decent leader), but that he cannot get elected in the general election. Say what you will but flip flopping will be used against him. I think John McCain is a stronger candidate on military matters and has a better chance to get elected so that is why I support him over Romney. |
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it feels like the powers that be have already decided that Romney is our guy, which ...is frustrating, though the more I hear about him the more I think he might be the best choice...
No, let's think about Santorum as the VP |
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His fundraising telethon, and now this interview, shows he's committed to openness and fairness, while his enemies can only denounce his religion and try to insist that he be limited to positions he took over a decade ago.
A campaign is a kind of contract. He was smart enough when running for Senate against Ted Kennedy not to hand him ammunition to fire back with. The idea that a candidate has to represent only one slice of the electorate isn't realistic or intelligent. And Romney understands that. I wish more conservatives did. The last election was decided by people who would rather be right than have influence.
His critics want to hang his 1994 positions on him, but as he says, Reagan wasn't always a Reagan Republican. To tell him he can't evolve over 13 years is not something most people would view as fair or desirable.
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The deftness of Romney's rapid response shows he is not a career bureaucrat, he is decisive, he has a team that moves quickly on his call. In short, he's looking like a high callibre executive.
Wow. All that and articulate, too. The race will tighten up when someone sets off McCain's anger nerve [on camera. It happens a lot, so I'm sure someone's gonna' play 'Gotcha'] and Romney stays cool as a cucumber. |
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to go in front of Glenn Reynolds and his wife and then post it on YouTube right away. I do like the quickness and nimbleness of that response (if George Allen was that quick the Senate would be split 50-50 and Jim Webb would be working on his next book).
But the explanation is weak. In 13 years I am wiser so I have changed my positions? That is true if you say something stupid when you are twenty, but Mitt was what--in his early forties when he said what he said.
Everyone has to compromise a little--that is part of representational government and a good thing, but you still want people with the conviction to hold a line. I know John McCain is that type of person that will hold an unpopular position because he believes its right. I know Bill Clinton is definitely not a person of conviction. I think Mitt Romney is a good man-but he seems a little to limber in explaining this away. |
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So this is our conservative candidate? No thanks. McCain will get the nomination anyway, so I guess it doesn't matter much. But Romney is starting to look like our version of Bill Clinton, minus the infidelity. |
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This gives me some hope that Romney might know something about carrying the ideological war to the terrorists, and to those Dinosaurs stumbling around in the dark at the Blackrock swamps. |
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