I watched the Netflix documentary “Mitt” last weekend. As someone who voted for the former presidential candidate, and is therefore predisposed to liking him, even I was rather surprised by how affable and funny he was behind-the-scenes. His critics often portrayed him as socially awkward and a bit stilted. But I don’t think that was the case, although his team could have probably done a much better job of introducing the ‘Real Mitt Romney’ to voters.
To my surprise, Romney was remarkably keen about his own shortcomings as a presidential candidate, in part by praising his immigrant father’s professional successes while conceding he was “born on third base,” and in part by recognizing his long history of flip-flopping. He even refers to himself at one point in the film as perhaps “a flawed candidate.” Maybe so. But it’s hard to see how any other Republican presidential candidate in 2012 was more deserving of the American presidency than he was.
In any case, re-watching Candy Crowley in the film butting in during the second presidential debate is deeply infuriating. Not only was she dead wrong, but apparently it was agreed upon before the debate that interjection of any kind by the moderator in favor of one candidate or the other was strictly forbidden. So why did she violate those terms? Here’s Governor Romney on the Hugh Hewitt Radio Show recently explaining his frustration with her (via HotAir’s Ed Morrissey):
Ed’s probably right that the debate itself didn’t affect the outcome of the race. There were many factors for why he lost. But millions of people did see that exchange live. Thus it didn’t matter that Romney was later vindicated months later; the damage was done.