Free Republic

How do you say “chutzpah” in Mormon? Mitt Romney is out on a book tour insisting that Romneycare and Obamacare have very little in common. “It’s the difference between a racehorse and a donkey,” is Romney’s line. And besides, the former Bay State governor writes in his new book, “the plan is working.” I don’t know how many of the working Massachusetts families facing insurance premium hikes of more than 30 percent this year alone - on top of the fastest-rising costs in America since the plan took effect - would say it’s “working.” But for Romney to say “there’s...

And so it begins: CPAC embraces the new Mitt Romney http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0210/33161.html South Carolina mulls 2012: Romney? Palin? Huck? http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/politics/South-Carolina-mulls-2012_-Romney_-Palin_-Huck_-84732787.html Romney now biggest threat to Obama head to head http://hotair.com/archives/2010/02/18/ppp-poll-romney-now-biggest-threat-to-obama-head-to-head/ These are just a few examples from the last two days. You'll also notice the (once again) packed straw poll at CPAC, and a sudden surge in Freepers attacking Sarah Palin at every turn. It seems the push is already at full force. Mitt Romney is the guy to beat, like it or not (remember that McCain enjoyed -5% support at FR during the campaign), and the GOP is circling the...

With the latest Gallup Poll showing that former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney is leading the pack of potential GOP Presidential nominees, serious questions need to be asked of the candidate. Although Sarah Palin comes in 2nd in the polls and is actually in a statistical tie with Romney, Palin is the one who has been scrutinized to the point of navel-gazing. Romney, on the other hand, has so far received a pass from the media. If Republican voters are going to turn to a moderate governor of a very liberal state to be its standard bearer even after the policies...

SAN FRANCISCO Political speculation swirls. Meg Whitman, billionaire former eBay CEO and leading candidate for the Republican gubernatorial nomination in California, supposedly prefers not to run in tandem with Carly Fiorina, former CEO of Hewlett-Packard, who is seeking the Republican Senate nomination to run against the three-term Democrat Barbara Boxer. Fiorina, who advised John McCain's presidential campaign, was mentioned as his possible running mate. Whitman supposedly thinks two female former tech tycoons on the ticket would be one too many. Furthermore, Whitman supposedly harbors national ambitions, perhaps as 2012 vice presidential running mate with Mitt Romney, her business mentor and...

Various representatives of the Barack Obama administration were out on the Sunday talk shows in the U.S. today, trying to spin the election of Senator Scott Brown (R -MA) [and how often do you see that abbreviation?] as being an endorsement of the Obama agenda, particularly with regard to health care. I witnessed the White House press secretary, Robert Gibbs, on "Fox News Sunday," trying to do this very thing. Gibbs was making the very same kinds of arguments to host Chris Wallace as Howard Dean tried making a few days ago to MSNBC's Chris Matthews. Wallace was a lot...

Mitt Romney's Man by Samuel P. Jacobs AP Photo If Scott Brown pulls off an upset in the race to replace Ted Kennedy in the Senate, he may have Mitt Romney to thank. Samuel P. Jacobs on the 2012 GOP presidential hopeful's hidden hand. There are a number of forces driving Republican Scott Brown’s surprising surge in the Massachusetts special Senate election campaign. He’s benefiting from public anger over the Obama administration’s health-care reform plan. He’s buoyed by a tide of cash from around the country, donated by conservatives eager to send a message by upsetting Democratic front-runner Martha Coakley....

His supporters say the book will show Romney is more thoughtful than Sarah Palin. BY KENNETH T. WALSH Friends of Mitt Romney say his upcoming book, No Apology: The Case for American Greatness, is a lengthy and detailed explanation of his philosophy and should be a fitting prelude to a 2012 presidential campaign if Romney decides to run. The book, which comes out March 2, seems designed to position Romney as a thoughtful conservative who has ruminated carefully about the major issues of the day, ranging from the global economy to national security. Romney supporters say it will serve as...

The Mormon Media Observer looks back at the year filled with LDS newsmakers. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., tops the list, based on a newsmaker's frequency in the news as well as the significance of their stories. 1. Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nevada The Senate Majority Leader led the battle to push through health reform in the Senate. News coverage of Reid made a household name and the divisive debate made him out to be both villain and saint. He may still face a tough battle in his home state of Nevada to save his seat. On Christmas The New...

WASHINGTON - Later this winter, Mitt Romney will strike out on a national book tour, but unlike his party’s most successful recent author he does not expect to make headlines with bits of fresh gossip from the 2008 campaign, see his fans camp overnight outside bookstores, or chat with Oprah Winfrey about his family. “Inevitably there are going to be comparisons with the Sarah Palin book,’’ said Eric Fehrnstrom, a Romney spokesman. “We’re not going to match her crowd size or sales. These are two different people with different ways of expressing themselves.’’ -snip- But Romney, considered by many in...