Free Republic

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker believes Mitt Romney is a "good man and would have been a good president," but now that the former Massachusetts governor has officially backed out of the 2016 race, Walker would like his support among the list of possible Republican presidential hopefuls. "I would love to have his endorsement," Walker told Fox News Channel's Bret Baier during a segment that aired Friday of an interview that will be running as part of a series surrounding potential 2016 candidates. At the same time, Walker said that he thinks it is "a time for new fresh ideas," and...

It’s good to see conservatives have gotten back to letting the New York Times choose their nominees for them. The only silver lining to Mitt Romney being pushed out of the presidential race — temporarily, I hope — is that the media’s preferred GOP candidate, Jeb Bush, is catnip to the stupidest influence-seekers, so Wall Street will be wasting all kinds of money over the next few months. Then, Shemp Bush will declare and knock Jeb out of the running, only to be replaced by Zeppo Bush. I wouldn’t be putting a lot of money on another President Bush, unless...

Former Florida Governor and likely 2016 presidential candidate Jeb Bush reportedly “never forgave” Mitt Romney for moving to the right on illegal immigration, which was perhaps one of the only issues where Romney was somewhat in line with conservatives. Romney announced on Friday that he would not make a third run for the White House, and NBC’s Chuck Todd said Romney was Jeb Bush’s preferred candidate in 2007 before Romney flipped on immigration. Todd added that “some of the interest in the race was personal” Jeb Bush “never forgave” Romney for using “immigration as a wedge issue against McCain.”

A new poll suggests that former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush stands to gain the most from Mitt Romney’s decision not to run for president for the third time. A Fox News poll released Thursday before Mr. Romney’s decision was announced found that Mr. Bush was the second choice of many who favored Mr. Romney, and would lead the field in his absence. Although Mr. Romney would have led the field with 21% of Republicans surveyed by Fox, the poll found that in his absence Mr. Bush rose to No. 1 spot with 15%, followed by Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee...

LOS ANGELES — Backstage on Friday night at CBS Studio Center, U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro was about 30 minutes from appearing live on the edgy HBO comedy show “Real Time with Bill Maher.” He was cramming for his spot on the show’s panel, reviewing topics with Scott Carter, the show’s executive producer. Castro should expect to talk about the Koch brothers, Mitt Romney, Saudi Arabia. Carter peppered the congressman with questions. Castro, 40, offered one-sentence answers. “Do not feel like you have to be concise for us,” Carter said. “If anything, be expansive.” Another topic Maher might cover: The Iowa...

Mitt Romney announced Friday he will not run for president in 2016, after briefly flirting with a third White House run -- a decision that only slightly narrows the crowded field of potential Republican candidates. "After putting considerable thought into making another run for president, I've decided it's best to give other leaders in the party the opportunity to become our next nominee," Romney told donors on a conference call Friday morning. The announcement comes after the 2012 GOP nominee, who repeatedly denied interest in another campaign, surprised donors earlier this month by telling them he was considering it. Since...

I’ve been emailed this text of remarks Mitt Romney will be making to his supporters shortly: Let me begin by letting you know who else is on this call, besides Ann and me. There are a large number of people who signed on to be leaders of our 2016 finance effort. In addition, state political leadership from several of the early primary states are on the line. And here in New York City, and on the phone, are people who have been helping me think through how to build a new team, as well as supporters from the past who...

For Mitt Romney, it appears that the third time is not the charm. On a conference call with supporters today, Romney is expected to take a pass on another White House bid, according to an advance text of his remarks. “After putting considerable thought into making another run for president, I’ve decided it is best to give other leaders in the Party the opportunity to become our next nominee,” Romney plans to say.

“Exposing the obvious using statistics” may be the new slogan over at fivethirtyeight.com.  Harry Enten has written two pieces based on his analysis of Republican presidential hopefuls name recognition vs their favorability.  His conclusion?  That Chris Christie and Sarah Palin likely have no chance at the nomination.  Duh.  But their data is much more interesting—and useful—than that. Based on polls taken at this point in the race in presidential elections since 1980, the Manhattan cheeze-wizzes have plotted the candidates name recognition on the X axis and their net favorability rating on the Y axis. The trend line is telling.  I have to quote Motor Trend to really...

Republican Mitt Romney is to give an update to his supporters on Friday on whether he should run for president a third time in 2016 amid signs he has yet to convince some financial backers as to why he should take the plunge again. A former staffer, who asked to remain unidentified, said a conference call with Romney was expected to be held at mid-morning on Friday, and that he might give a signal as to which way he was leaning. Romney for the past three weeks has been seeking traction for another presidential run after he was defeated by...

According to the Washington Post, Mitt Romney’s primary residence is in Utah, and he has recently registered to vote there. HOLLADAY, Utah — After losing two straight presidential races, Mitt Romney packed up his home in Massachusetts and journeyed west to Utah, building a mansion here in the foothills of the Wasatch Range that has served as his sanctuary from defeat.Here in the Salt Lake Valley, first settled by his Mormon ancestors, residents look past Romney’s electoral shortcomings and revere him as a savior for rescuing the 2002 Olympics. Romney won his highest 2012 vote margin in Utah — 73...

Mike Huckabee Complains of ‘Trashy’ Women at Fox News By ADAM B. LERNER 1/27/15 Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee said in a recent radio appearance that while in New York for his Fox News show, he experienced significant culture shock from all the “trashy” women swearing in a professional setting. “In the South, or in the Midwest, there in Iowa, you would not have people who would just throw the F-bomb or use gratuitous profanity in a professional setting,” Huckabee told host Jan Mickelson in a Friday appearance on Des Moines’ “Mickelson in the Morning.”

JANUARY 26, 2015 Reality Check on Huckabee There’s no hiding his highly problematic record in Arkansas. By Quin Hillyer Late last week, a nasty little scuffle of the premature 2016 presidential campaign reminded us why both Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee should be kept miles away from the Republican presidential nomination. It also reminded us that Huckabee thinks he can sell snake oil even to water moccasins. Neither the moccasins nor Republican voters should buy what he’s selling.

The usually grim-faced media mogul practically swooned in his seat. Moments after Jeb Bush delivered what many in the audience described as an unremarkable talk at a conference in Washington, Rupert Murdoch turned to his seatmate, Valerie Jarrett, the White House adviser, to gush over its content and tone. Mr. Murdoch was pleased that Mr. Bush, the former governor of Florida, had listed the economic benefits of overhauling the nation’s immigration system, confiding in Ms. Jarrett that Mr. Bush, a likely Republican presidential candidate, had said all the right things on the fraught issue, according to three people with firsthand...

For the last several months, the likes of Jeb Bush, Mitt Romney, Ted Cruz and Rand Paul have dominated the media coverage of the still-nascent contest for the White House. But when the 2016 Republican presidential race roared to life this weekend with twin events in Iowa and Louisiana, two lesser-known contestants left indelible impressions on the GOP faithful. Former Hewlett-Packard chief executive and current American Conservative Union Foundation Chairwoman Carly Fiorina and battle-tested Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker left the crowds stirring after a nonstop ten-hour festival in Des Moines that exposed voters to 27 speakers and at least 10...

(VIDEO-AT-LINK) In the fall of 2007, as Mike Huckabee was surging in the Iowa polls, Mitt Romney’s foundering presidential campaign dispatched a camera crew to Arkansas with the charge to produce one of the most brutal ads of the election cycle. The final product — a withering spot that tied Huckabee to a 2003 murder committed by a serial rapist who was paroled while he was governor of Arkansas — never saw the light of day. But the unaired ad, obtained this week by BuzzFeed News, highlights a potentially potent line of attack on Huckabee as he considers a 2016...

As Mitt Romney prepares to run a THIRD time for President because Jeb Bush is pre-empting the third timer in big money enclaves controlling the Uniparty’s political machinations, word out of Raleigh, NC is that the Conservatives’ challenge to tan man’s Speaker of the House position may have done more good than our left leaning media would have led us to believe. ”The word from Washington is that our efforts to go after John Boehner have generated a stronger piece of legislation designed to shut down Obama’s unconstitutional amnesty,” says William Gheen, head of Americans for Legal Immigration. (1) With...

The Donald doesn’t think much of Mitt or Jeb. Donald Trump came out guns blazing at a high-profile GOP event in Iowa on Saturday — blasting possible presidential contenders Mitt Romney and Jeb Bush. “It can’t be Mitt, because Mitt ran and failed. He failed,” Trump bellowed, drawing cheers from the riled-up audience at the Freedom Summit. “He choked. He had that election won.” Trump was equally blunt in assessing former President George W. Bush’s younger brother. “You can’t have Bush,” Trump said. “The last thing we need is another Bush.”

Mitt Romney: Climate Change Is Real, Human-Induced, And We Must Tackle It

Mitt Romney’s opening pitch for a third shot at the White House left many Republicans scratching their heads, in part because his plans to fight poverty and tyranny seemed to borrow the lexicon of liberals like FDR, LBJ and Woodrow Wilson. With a full house of Republican National Committee members listening aboard the USS Midway in San Diego, Mr. Romney implored his party last week “to lift people out of poverty” and “to make the world safe.” The first phrase is a favorite of liberals who gush over Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal and Lyndon B. Johnson’s Great Society programs...