Posted on 02/08/2008 8:46:14 AM PST by shortstop
Mitt was brilliant.
Yesterday, talking to those conservatives, dropping out of the presidential race, he was absolutely brilliant.
His speech left himself, the party, the conservative cause, the front runner and the country better off. Amid the broken pieces of his own campaign, he defined the importance of his opponent's campaign and provided a rationale for party unity – including conservative support – that was convincing and unmatched.
Oddly, the guy who has stopped running crystalized the weakness of the Democratic candidates and the priority of Republican obligation. It's not about who's the real Republican, he said, it's about who's the real American.
Instead of lapsing into the self-pity of conservative sour grapes, he said there were bigger fish to fry. His remarks established the primacy of conservative values in preserving the essential American culture, but then went on to say that patriotic duty carried an obligation even greater than the principles of conservatism.
He said we were at war.
He said there was a philosophy afoot in the world – a mutation of religion – that was a literal, physical threat to American security and sovereignty. He said fighting that was more important than fighting his opponent.
And he said that the Democrats would endanger the nation.
He said that the Democrat contenders both lacked the capacity and commitment to defend America against militant Islam.
And he was right.
In all the squabbling at the Democratic debates about who will pull out how many troops how fast, there is an undercurrent of appeasement and equivocation. You can wrap cut-and-run up with ribbons and bows and it's still cut-and-run.
And all of a sudden the November election had form and substance. It's not a case of our liberal versus their liberal, an election that can be sat out in protest or spite, it's a high-stakes contest to keep America safe.
One side will fight and the other side won't.
It's not about Iraq, it's about America. It's about which party's philosophies and candidates will hunt down and kill any mother hummers who dare raise a hand against this country. It's about if you're not for us you're against us.
It's about American families being able to sleep peacefully in their beds at night because leaders with some stones stand ready to snap the necks of anyone who dares disturb them. It's about earning respect in the world, not currying favor.
Mitt Romney made the case for John McCain better than John McCain has. He also made a case for Republican unity at the very moment the loudest Republican voices were doing just the opposited.
John McCain didn't have to woo back conservatives, Mitt Romney did that for him.
Mitt Romney also derailed Mike Huckabee.
When the No. 2 guy pulls out, it makes a continued campaign by the No. 3 guy seem pretty pointless. Further, it leaves Huckabee – who stayed in the campaign merely to help McCain against Romney – suddenly the only opponent of his master. If there is going to be a war of conservatives against McCain, Huckabee has just become its default leader.
Which must horrify a man who hopes his kowtowing to McCain will buy him the vice presidency.
In political terms, Huckabee has been trying to torpedo Romney for months – and Romney just returned the favor, in spades.
It was a brilliant speech.
Mitt Romney implicitly rejected the flawed philosophy of multiculturalism – by defining American culture and describing its necessity. Multiculturalism – one of the hydra heads of the cult of political correctness – says that all cultures are equal. Mitt Romney said that American culture is superior.
He specifically pointed at assaults on American culture – from welfare to out-of-wedlock births – and said that patriotic Americans have an obligation to fight them, personally and politically. He called for a moral and cultural improvement to our conduct.
He said words that had the conservatives cheering.
He said words that, had they been more broadly heard over recent months, might well have made him the Republican nominee. The most common reaction of listeners seems to have been, “If I'd known that's who Mitt Romney was, I would have voted for him.”
Mitt Romney preached the conservative, constitutional, American gospel.
And he did it better than anyone else has in a couple of decades.
He would be a powerful champion of a John McCain candidacy.
He would be a bridge to conservatives.
He would be a great vice president.
Mitt Romney was brilliant.
He gave an outstanding speech.
Here's hoping John McCain was listening.
He said that the Democrat contenders both lacked the capacity and commitment to defend America against militant Islam.
And he was right.
I still don't know. I've got a whole lot of thinkin' and decidin' to do before November. I just don't know.
Anyone know where I can find the text of that speech?
If Mitt had given this speech a week ago, we may have had an entirely different result on Super Tuesday.
Whatever, McCain can’t win.
In all the debates, Mitt was the candidate who most eagerly attacked Hillary as being unfit to lead the country in a time of war. Remember the “General Hillary Clinton” dig? Mitt is a patriot.
It is time that McCain “reach across the aisle” and name Romney as his Vice Presidential running mate. Why waste the time keeping people guessing?
The speech was truly billiant and Reaganesque. I think that most people just did not know who Mitt Romney was. I researched the man and I liked what I found out. I made my choice for him on my own research, not what the media told me.
Romney for V.P..
Romney:
Older thread - http://www.freerepublic.com/%5Ehttp://www.primetimepolitics.com/primetime/site/page/full_text_of_speech/
Speech - http://www.primetimepolitics.com/primetime/site/page/full_text_of_speech/
It was a good speech, but this guy goes way overboard. He wins the award for Romney sycophant of the day!
Why so-called conservatives are infatuated with Willard, is not normal. His candidacy changed nothing. Romney is still a liberal.
These endless comparisons to Reagan are downright silly.
Lonsberry originally supported Huckabee, and donated money to Huckabee. Until Huckabee revealed himself to be the nasty little bigot that he is.
Huckabee is a bigot?
Says who and why?
shortstop:
I can’t believe you - or any other GOP voter - would even think about not supporting John McCain against either leftist appeaser. Election of the Clintons or Barack Hussein Obama poses clear and present danger to all Americans. For us - GOP - to let that happen for political reasons or even personal enmity would be a betrayal of our children, our grandchildren, and theirs.
To let either of the democrat socialists into the Oval Office by not voting would be a massive dereliction of duty - treasonous - to the country that very likely would not be rectifiable. The democrat party would destroy us all in its haste to surrender to the islamic jihadis, not understanding that a large proportion of them (women, gays, minorities, apostates eg, Obama) would be the first to be beheaded or placed in dhimmitude.
I implore all her to listen to what Mitt Romney said, clear you minds, and resolve to preserve our nation by uniting behind John McCain. If not for you personally, then for your family and theirs to come.
He might be able to, even without our support. The AFL-CIO guys are such chauvinists, they’ll never pull the trigger for Hillary. And Democrats have historically been racists and demonstrated that it is still part of their platform when they blocked Miguel Estrada from the Supreme Court. He had written nothing on which they could’ve ‘convicted’ him for being a conservative. Then, when W gave them the milquetoast Miguel Estrada, they didn’t protest. And John Roberts had written some things that did show that he didn’t have much patience with liberals. So, it is difficult to picture dummycrats voting for Obama. These types will vote McCain.
He will also get some support from us, however reluctant. We might write in a candidate or leave the top of the ticket empty, but we certainly won’t vote Dem..
So, McCain does have a chance.
Lonsberry is Mormon.
This is the kind of politicking we're missing in these national scope contests. You get a guy out-on-the-stump where he has the freedom to address the people in front of him -- that's when you come to know the man.
Not in this endless series of over-contrived national debates.
Who so-called conservatives continue to label Romney a “liberal” is not normal (and certainly not correct).
McCain would absolutely have to “reach across the aisle” to name Romney his VP. They are vastly different in terms of political philosophy and personal comportment. Romney earned his money, McCain married his, but was snarky about Romney’s wealth all the time. And all his snide comments about Romney’s flip-flopping were also inaccurate. Romney flipped and stayed flipped. So did I. I was once a dummycrat. So, I can see flipping and staying flipped. And I’ve flipped on everything - abortion, gun control, the environment, capital punishment, taxes, etc.. So I don’t begrudge anybody else the flipping.
McCain is way too petty, self-absorbed and narcissistic to permit Romney any avenue at all to the Presidency. I would vote for him if he chose Romney as VP, but I see him giving it to either Giuliani or Lieberman - or, who knows, perhaps even John Kerry to burnish his military credentials.
A picture is worth a thousand words: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1962577/posts
Thanks. This one is going next to Reagan's "Let Them Go Their Way" in the permanent file...
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