Posted on 10/29/2008 6:34:55 AM PDT by Reaganesque
Its been the most frequently asked question Ive gotten from National Review Online readers and conservatives over e-mail and in person since the market chaos and subsequent bailout circus began.
My answer these last few months has always been: Turn on MSNBC. Turn on FOX. Google a conservative candidate for Congress. Romney is liable to turn up.
And yet, a ridiculous item on the Internet yesterday suggested that hes been in hiding, keeping a low profile nationally and unwilling to help out Republicans who arent a sure thing.
There are problems with that contention: Why do I keep seeing the man on television? Is any Republican a shoe-in this year? Someone get Norm Coleman on the phone with the good news! Because Romney is scheduled to campaign with the Minnesota senator, who is fighting for his political life against the not-so-funny prospect of Senator Al Franken. The images on his website blog do not suggest someone whos decided to sit out the election they suggest someone still engaged in the election year. Nor does his travelog, as hes been doing McCain surrogate events everywhere from Pennylvania and Colorado to Nevada and Texas (among other places including Oregon, Georgia, Nashville ... ). Nor do his post-debate spin-room appearances or his interview on The Laura Ingraham Show this morning suggest that Mitt is standing down on election 2008.
Romneys been in Virginia helping Keith Fimian in that newly blue-leaning state. Hes campaigned for Michele Bachman, now a favorite of MSNBC. Hes raised money for John Sununu in New Hampshire and Oregon senator Gordon Smith both of whose reelection prospects are far from guaranteed. The list goes on.
Since Romney suspended his campaign and subsequently formed the Free and Strong America political action committee in April, he has donated approximately $202,000 to 75 GOP candidates, according to numbers made available to NRO from the PAC. Romney has also made an additional $173,000 in donations through flexible spending accounts to five affiliated state PACS, including $10,000 to the National Organization for Marriage, which is working to pass Proposition 8 in California, and $5,000 to stop a ballot initiative in Massachusetts to decriminalize marijuana.
And when the McCain campaign famously withdrew from Michigan, Romney contributed $50,000 to the demoralized GOP there. According to his PAC, The total amount of financial support to GOP candidates and conservative causes through Romney-controlled state and federal PACs is $375,000.
The web piece further blamed former Romney aides for being the source of the Sarah-Palin-is-a-diva complaints coming out of the McCain camp, presumably meant to damage her post-election prospects should the Republican ticket lose next week. The problem with that is: Most of Romneys inner circle is still his inner circle some having come from the business world, others being Massachusetts people now running his PAC. Others returned to Washington, and are doing McCain surrogate work, but are far from campaign insiders. Whomever is shooting at Palin from the McCain camp is not doing Romneys bidding.
The good news for Mitt Romney is folks care what hes doing. And someone out there sees him as enough of a threat to their ambitions to try to wound him. That rarely happens to irrelevant also-rans.
When longtime Romney spokesman Eric Fernstrom was asked about the former Massachusetts governors future on Monday, the longtime aide suggested Romneys 2008 presidential ambitions werent running his life: Gov. Romney had his shot at the White House, and he lost fair and square. After a hostile primary season that highlighted some shameful instincts hostile to religious liberty both in the mainstream media and on the Right, you might not blame Romney if he went into retreat. But he never did. Romney got on the campaign trail for John McCain, defending the free-market policies that this successful businessman could no doubt run with, if he were in the drivers seat.
Romneys been a team player. Is it because he wants a Cabinet seat? Ask him but I doubt it. There are easier jobs that taking over a massive bureacracy with limited freedom. Is it because he wants to be president? Ask him, but I dont think thats it either and only time will tell, anyway, who will be Right prospects in a few years.
Watching him these past few months, he acts like a man who found a home on the Right, who both personally and philosophically appreciates those who were open to what he brought to the campaign trail, and continues to want to serve his country in whatever capacity she needs him. Right now, thats by fundraising, contributing, and campaigning for conservative candidates and causes like the Susan B. Anthony List and Proposition 8 in California.
In his final primary-campaign speech in February, Mitt Romney said:
I entered this race because I love America, and because I love America, I feel I must now stand aside, for our party and for our country.
I will continue to stand for conservative principles. I will fight alongside you for all the things we believe in. And one of those things is that we cannot allow the next President of the United States to retreat in the face of evil extremism.
And so he campaigns for candidates who share his general vision of the world. Romney was with McCain in Ohio on Monday. Hell be in New Hampshire on Wednesday campaigning for congressional candidates Jeb Bradley and Jennifer Horn. And then hell take off for get-out-the-vote rallies.
If youre wondering where Mitt is and you can suspend some of your cynicism the answer might just be: Where he can be of use. If you take him at his word and his schedule, thats what it reads like anyway.
Kathryn Jean Lopez is the editor of National Review Online.
All the spinning in the WORLD canNOT change it!
and we don't want it to go on for days. ;-)
which all devolved into anti-Romney conspiracy threads as well.
Personally, I haven't sensed this as a big problem but I don't claim to read every thread, although I usually read the ones having to do with Palin. Since Mitt Romney got in the race, I have sensed too much defensiveness at times by the Romney people.
Just CONTROLLED by...
Just MANDATED by...
Just REQUIRED by...
Just AUTHORIZED by...
You get idea; right?
at TIMES???
The DMV
Just CONTROLLED by...
Just MANDATED by...
Just REQUIRED by...
Just AUTHORIZED by...
You get the idea, right? The DMV isn’t socialism either.
Do some research on real socialism & then we’ll talk.
Well, if you read all the Romney threads, with all the persistent lies, by the usual suspects, many of them Mormon haters, each and every thread, you would understand why. Lies must be corrected and cannot be allowed to stand.
First it was Dick Morris. Now you are sending me political cartoons from a Liberal as the "truth" about Romney. What is especially ironic is this cartoonists take on Palin this Sunday which he titles "A message to Sarah Palin". I won't post the cartoon as it isn't worthy of the bandwidth here on FR. But below is the link.
Given the topic of this thread it is ironic that we have come full circle. You are the one promoting the liberal people who trash Sarah Palin. This thread for you has been a very bad case of projection. It's time to hold yourself to the same standard you claim Romney should hold. Lets see who is promoting anti-Palin liberals on FR? Mitt Romney or Diogenesis? I suggest you take a step away from the keyboard. Think about things for a bit until Next Tuesday is over do some real soul searching. Ask yourself why your ideas match Horsey, Dick Morris and Barney Frank. And then get back to us here on FR when you have found your conservative bona fides again.
Horsey's anit-Palin political cartoon from this Sunday
Horsey is wrong on Romney and wrong on Palin. only someone obsessed with RDS would fail to see that.
Thanks for nailing it.
No conservative supports RINO-Romney the venal, shapeshifting backstabber.
And, like all conservatives, I support McCain/Palin despite your false postings.
Your are as disingenuous as your venal Master, Romney.
Which is exactly why patriotic FReepers have exposed Myth Romney for what a shapeshifter he is.
"Look, I was an Independent during the time of Reagan/Bush.
I am not trying to return to Reagan/Bush."
(Mitt Romney, 1994 Senate Debate, Boston, MA, 10/25/94)
"I wasn't a Ronald Reagan conservative."
(Mitt Romney In Interview with Marc Ambinder,
"Romney Explains Himself," National Journal, 2/9/07)
"I'm very clear I think, to the people across the Commonwealth -
my "R" didn't stand so much for Republican as it does for reform."
(Romney Video, accessed 9/19/07)
"I'm not running as the Republican view or a continuation of Republican values.
That's not what brings me to the race."
(Romney Video, accessed 9/19/07)
You haven’t exposed anything. All you’ve posted are LIES and lots of them. REAL conservatives don’t lie. Neither do REAL patriots, of which you are neither.
I have to wonder about some of these people who claim to be conservative but do everything they can to stir up conflict on FR. It's getting to the point that their insults and personal attacks hijack every thread to the point no rational discussion about issues can take place. Seems to me that's the goal of a liberal, not a real conservative who cares about our country. There's an ill wind blowing on FR. It takes longer and longer to find any post of value or wisdom. It didn't used to be this way.
Now who to believe...Diogenesis, who has posted numerous lies about Romney, or Michael Reagan, Ronald Reagan's son?
Romney in so many ways, is a remarkably talented and capable person. He petrifies Liberals. And I agree. Many of the people on FR who have been putting him down, are Liberals pretending to be conservatives.
What true conservative believes and posts information from a Liberal newspaper? Most conservatives have long since stopped reading Liberal newspapers except for rare exceptions and in most instances certainly wouldn't use them as a source for information about anything, let alone a Republican candidate.
But... but... you mean Diogenesis, Dick Morris and Barney Frank are wrong about Romney and Michael Reagan is right? Blasphemer /sarc.
Hey check out Michael Reagan's unedited quote. Seems he is on to something here.
_________________________________________________
MICHAEL REAGAN, the son of President Reagan wrote the following in Human Events about Mitt Romney:
Some Republicans insist that the only perfect candidate would be a clone of my Dad, Ronald Reagan. Aside from the fact that there is no such thing, its important to recognize that Ronald Reagan, as he often admitted, was anything but perfect.
One of the criticisms about former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney focuses on his record concerning the abortion issue. We are told by the modern day Diogenes clones that he cant be trusted to fight abortion because he once, more or less, supported a womans right to butcher her baby. It may come as a surprise to these purists, but Ronald Reagan once supported abortion too. Yet nobody ever questioned his strong pro-life credentials after his conversion to Republicanism. They accepted his sincerity. Why cant they accept Mitt Romneys?
Romneys record shows he should be totally acceptable to all conservatives, yet because of one dubious question concerning the validity of his conversion to the pro-life side, he is deemed unsuitable to carry the conservative banner.
Romney: Make all the promises you have to...
and hide all those donations from the contractors and builders of the BIGdig in my Presidential account.
ALL of the attack ads in Iowa (against Huckabee) are from ... Romney.
ALL of the attack ads in NH (against McCain) are from ... Romney.
ALL of the dirty tricks, including push polls,
fake troopers and badges have been from ... Romney.
Friday, December 28, 2007 - Boston Herald
"Former Gov. Mitt Romneys administration failed to act on disciplinary recommendations
that would have kept ex-con killer Daniel Tavares locked up another year -
and behind bars at the time he was accused of killing a newlywed couple in Washington state."
"Despite Tavares long history of violence, the Romney-led Department of Correction
took no action on recommendations that he be stripped of good time because
of assaults on prison guards in 2003 and 2005, said sources familiar with a state probe into the case."
Mitt Romney cannot be trusted.
Romney aides bogus badges: Sources detail illegal security tactic
" Boston Herald - Friday, July 20, 2007
"In an apparent violation of the law, a controverisal aide to ex-Gov. Mitt Romney
created phony law enforcement badges that he and other staffers used on the campaign trail
to strong-arm reporters, avoid paying tolls and trick security guards
into giving them immediate access to campaign venues, sources told the Herald.
They (the aides) knew the badges were fake and probably illegal,
said a presidential campaign source who asked for anonymity
because the story could damage the individuals career.
Two additional sources confirmed that the badges - described as bright silver plates with a state seal attached -
were first created and used by Garrity while Romney was still governor."
ALL of them are lies??
Who knew!
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