Romney pissed-off too many Conservatives with his flood of negative attacks during the primaries.
With the nomination, he won the poisoned chalice of his own creation.
I don't buy that for a minute. Conservatives are not that stupid. I could see that happening if this were 1996 or even 2000 but not a re-election of Barack Hussein Obama. Conservatives in their right mind would not stay home and allow an anti-American communist beat a liberal in the general election. Too much at stake. There's the children and grandchildren to think about and their future. Conservatives are for Family not for this.
The only Conservatives that may have stayed home are the Republican-conservatives who aim to punish the GOPe for not accepting their conservative candidate. They are basically party above nation conservatives who would prefer to see the nation spiral into the bowels of Hell before they would vote for republican that is not their guy. They are, in the long run, republicans first, Americans and Family second.
There was too much at stake this time around. Conservatives lost because we have become out numbered and there's a lot of people scared and without a job and no idea where the next pay check will come from to make ends meet and provide for the family. They voted BIG Government out of fear and panic. Obama knows exactly what he's doing. He's winning and we're losing.
By the way, Mitt Romney was second to last on my list next to the crazy uncle. I was not a Romney supporter for the very reasons you listed but I sure as heck was not stupid enough to let Obama get a second term without at least doing my part to see him lose.
Choose Obama over Romney? C'mon, conservatives - Real Conservatives are smarter than that.
We're out numbered. John Boehner needs to go or we will lose the House in 2014.