Posted on 01/22/2012 4:55:48 PM PST by Dysart
The nature of this peculiar primary season – the reason it seems at odds with both the 2009-2010 political narrative and the seriousness of the times – was determined by Mitt Romney. Even if you don’t mind RomneyCare, or the abortion flip-flop, or any of the rest, there’s a more basic problem: He’s not a natural campaigner, and on the stump he instinctively recoils from any personal connection with the voters. So, in compensation, he’s bought himself a bunch of A-list advisors and a lavish campaign. He is, as he likes to say, the only candidate with experience in the private sector. So he knows better than to throw his money away, right? But that’s just what he’s doing, in big ways and small.
Small: It’s a good idea to get that telegenic gal (daughter-in-law?) to stand behind him during the concession speech, but one of those expensive consultants ought to tell her not to look so bored and glassy-eyed as the stiff guy grinds through the same-old-same-old for the umpteenth time. To those watching on TV last night, she looked like we felt.
Big: Why is the stump speech so awful? “I believe in an America where millions of Americans believe in an America that’s the America millions of Americans believe in. That’s the America I love.” Mitt paid some guy to write this insipid pap. And he paid others to approve it.
(Excerpt) Read more at nationalreview.com ...
Haha Like those are going to enhance his image or strengthen his prospects. My advice: do retain the helpful consultants, Mitt.
Steyn never a proponent of Newt yet now sees through the veneer of Romney's "inevitability". Wondering here if other pundits will follow suit now.
Willard is running an even worse campaign than last cycle. And I’m lovin’ it!
It’s typical Willard Romney campaigning though:
New on NRO . . .
The Corner
The one and only.
By Jonah Goldberg
Interesting e-mail from a reader:
Regarding Romney’s loss, one thing I have not seen mentioned is the robo calls. All this week, the Romney campaign flooded republicans with robo calls. From Monday through Friday we would get literally four to five calls a night. They would come sometimes ten minutes apart. If you did not answer them, they left long messages on your answering machine. I turned off our phone on Weds, but when I turned it back on, on Friday, they were still calling so I turned it off again. This REALLY pissed off a lot of people I talked to, me included–our son works at night a lot and we try to keep in touch via that line so I was especially unhappy.
this explains why virtually everyone who's anyone in the political consultancy business is out there bashing every other candidate and acting like Mitt is somehow a wonderful conservative leader.
Who writes that crap that Romney delivers?
I could write a better speech in 10 minutes, most freepers could.
Glad he made poor choices in speechwriters..lol
Newt makes it all seem off-the-cuff. I wonder though if he takes a lot of time to prepare it?
Churchill averaged about one hour to write each minute of a speech.
The Gettysburg address, now that’s a great speech!
Short and immensely moving...as all speeches should be.
Mark??? Are you coming around to...can I say it? Newt? I’m shocked...Shocked. But, then again welcome back to the human race. We’re all here hoping that Ann Coulter will too.
Hard to select just one quote ... Mark Steyn slices and dices mittens.
You just reminded me——I think it should be illegal for candidates to have other people write their speeches. They need to be the words of the candidate and we need to know how they think and if they are illiterate buffoons.
They should get back to the Lincoln days-—yes, they can hire ONE person to correct the grammar but most of it has to come from the candidate. NO SPEECH WRITERS ANYMORE.
There actually are three men who, in their own way, are responsible for the opening Newt exploited: Romney, Herman Cain and Todd Palin.
Mark Steyn finally scores one against Romney. I'll take it.
TS
“Steyn never a proponent of Newt yet now sees through the veneer of Romney’s “inevitability”. Wondering here if other pundits will follow suit now.”
Bill Kristol saw through it. He will be planning how to get the best seat on the train.
Let me revise that to four men: Romney, Herman Cain, Todd Palin and Rick Perry.
I really think that Newt is a unique, one of a kind politician. He’s like our History Prof in school. There is such a depth of thought in the man that he doesn’t need the speech writers and consultants other than to hone his ideas.
With Mitt Romney, there is no original thought. He’s being told what to say and what to do. He can’t be himself. He’s like in need of a laxative.
Newt on the other hand can talk to anyone...anywhere...at any time.
I think he is a man of the ages. He is our Churchill, our Bibi Netanyahu. His knowledge of the world and it’s people will allow for discussion and communication that has not been seen in Washington for a long time.
I see him getting the best people around him. No more Czars. No need for Czars.
Needless to say, Romney's abilities in this area are probably average across the population but below the avg politician.
A book I recommend highly, I read it through in a single sitting.
Winston S Churchill (ed) - Never Give In! - The Best of Winston Churchill’s Speeches
I wonder how long it took Lincoln to write the Gettysburg address? It’s very short....but my God it’s powerful.
Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.
Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.
But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate — we can not consecrate — we can not hallow — this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us — that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion — that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain — that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom — and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.
Perhaps Mitt’s chief deficit in the campaign is his, in my view, inability to inspire a person, to grip them and raise enthuasism. Compare his rather boring style of speaking with the oratory of Ronald Reagan or Newt.
You can scream at me about how you don’t like this or that about Mitt and his positions, but his lack of having a bit of charisma in his presentation, is his greatest problem in leading a campaign against bho.
My recollection (from readings, I wasn’t around then!) was that he wrote the GA in short order and wasn’t pleased with the words at all, and was certain that it was not going to be received well...little did he know.
I am sure that by now GOP Central knows they have a real problem on their hands with Romney. He can’t sell their deal.
He talks too fast and stutters and everything he says seems planned. He won’t say Romneycare is a bust. He refuses to show his taxes and offers up excuses.
All of this is his own fault. His big drop before SC was the hum hoing around on the tax issue. He leaves the voters assuming he has a lot to hide. He will never be able to win the General Election.
No doubt over the next week, GOP central will mount an all out effort to damage Gingrich. They will be stupid to do this because, if they do, they will only push more voters to Newt.
So we can count on them to soon resort to plan C. That will probably be a new entry. If they see Romney losing Florida, I can see this happening.
I am sure that by now GOP Central knows they have a real problem on their hands with Romney. He can’t sell their deal.
He talks too fast and stutters and everything he says seems planned. He won’t say Romneycare is a bust. He refuses to show his taxes and offers up excuses.
All of this is his own fault. His big drop before SC was the hum hoing around on the tax issue. He leaves the voters assuming he has a lot to hide. He will never be able to win the General Election.
No doubt over the next week, GOP central will mount an all out effort to damage Gingrich. They will be stupid to this because, if they do, they will only push more voters to Newt.
So we can count on them to soon resort to plan C. That will probably be a new entry. If they see Romney losing Florida, I can see this happening.
“He refuses to show his taxes and offers up excuses.”
He says he will show them Tuesday. I bet South Carolina forced his hand. If Mitt had won SC I bet we would not be seeing his tax returns.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.