When Romney dropped out two days after the super Tuesday primary, he had amassed 4.1 million votes total compared to John McCain's 4.7 million votes.
Huckabee at the time had around 1.8 million, if memory serves.
Romney was hardly unconvincing. He had wide support, but because of the GOP's winner take all system, he realized he could never catch McCain, who had won California, NJ, NY, New Hamp, South Carolina, and FLA --- and thus was waaay ahead in the delegate count.
If the GOP had the same system as the Dems, Romney and McCain would still be neck and neck in popular votes and Romney would still be in the race.
And that's not taking into account that flat out corrupting absentee ballot system in Florida and elsewhere whereby 30% of the votes were cast up to TWO FREAKIN' MONTHS before the primary day.
Romney began to surge after Christmas when the vast conservative network on talk radio and in print realized he was the best Republican candidate ......
But millions had already cast their absentee ballots for Thompson, WHO WITHDREW BEFORE SUPER TUESDAY, or Guiliani, who people finally realized was flat out awful, or Duncan, who by then people realized was going no where.
This entire primary has been a Chinese fire drill of errors and Murphy's Law mishaps, which unfortunately ruined the GOP's only fresh faced Washington outsider who had a chance in the general election.
And lastly, without using those two or three 5-second YouTube snippets from 1994, and aside from his 2002 statement to not change abortion laws, do you have any other specifics to back up your claim that Romney was this 'left winger'.... when he ran for Massachusetts governor.
Romney was supported by the NRA, and got high marks from the National ProLife coalition.
Posted on 11/11/2007 8:26:20 AM EST by Josh Painter
“My hope is that, after this election, it will be the moderates of both parties who will control the Senate, not the Jesse Helmses.” - Source
“In my view, it is not a good idea to go into a [Contract With America] like what was organized by the Republican Party in Washington, laying out a whole series of things which the party said, ‘These are the thing’s we’re going to do.’ I think that’s a mistake.” - Source
“Look, I was an independent during the time of Reagan-Bush. I’m not trying to return to Reagan-Bush.” - Source
“I remember in my earliest political experience my father fighting to keep the John Birch Society from playing too strong a role in the Republican Party. He walked out of the Republican National Convention in 1964, when Barry Goldwater said, ‘Extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice.’ Because he saw that as a tacit approval of the effort the John Birch Society was making to influence the Republican Party. I think that extremists who would force their views on the party and try to shape the party are making a mistake.” - Source
“We do have tough gun laws in Massachusetts. I support them. I won’t chip away at them. I believe they help protect us and provide for our safety.” - Source
“Deadly assault weapons have no place in Massachusetts. These guns are not made for recreation or self-defense. They are instruments of destruction with the sole purpose of hunting down and killing people.” - Source
“I don’t think [The Brady Bill’s mandated waiting period] will have a massive effect on crime but I think it will have a positive effect.” - Source
“I don’t line up with the NRA.” - Source
“I’ve been a hunter pretty much all my life.” - Source
“I believe that abortion should be safe and legal in this country. I have, since the time when my mom took that position when she ran in 1970 as a U.S. Senate candidate. I believe that since Roe v. Wade has been the law for 20 years, we should sustain and support it. I sustain and support that law and the right of a woman to make that choice.” - Source
“I think it would be a positive thing to have women have the choice of taking morning-after pills….I would favor having it available.” - Source
“There will be children born to same-sex couples, and adopted by same-sax couples, and I believe that there should be rights and privileges associated with those unions and with the children that are part of those unions.” - Source
“All people should be allowed to participate in the Boy Scouts regardless of their sexual orientation.” - Source