Romney doesn't rule out Santorum as veep

Washington Examiner ^ | 021512 | Byron York

[Fred]

Mitt Romney, whose campaign is preparing a multi-million dollar wave of negative advertising to persuade voters that Rick Santorum should not be president, says he is open to the possibility of choosing Santorum to be his running mate should Romney win the Republican nomination.

Romney appeared on Fox News Wednesday morning and was asked, "You and Rick Santorum, we haven't seen you go head-to-head yet…In the big picture, could you see a scenario where you two team up?"

"Oh, I think it's always possible to have people come together in our party, whether it's Rick and I, or others in the party, who knows?" Romney responded. "It's a little early to tell something like that, but we have similar views on issues -- very different backgrounds."

[tsowellfan]

Still waiting on the Newt supporter to explain why Newt a few month ago spoke good things about Romney and hinted even of picking Romney as his VP

I'm a Newt and/or Santorum supporter and I think you are confusing Allen West with Mitt Romney. Newt has hinted more than once about the possibility of choosing Allen West as his VP.

Sorry, I don't watch CNN or Wolf Blitzer. They have a way of manufacturing and manipulating the news and they LOVE Romney as the "republican" nominee just as they did McCain.

[tsowellfan]

Have you noticed these so called Newt supporters are really doing the dirty stealth work for Romney ?

Alex Jones, is that you???

[hosepipe]

I agree Santo and Willard will loose against Zerodamus..
ONLY Newt has the mockzy the anti-venom to go against that snake..

Assuming America HAS NOT become Sodom or Gomorrah..
And requires pure evil to run it.. because it is doped up and slimed with porn of all types..

[ncalburt]

Odd how threatened you are by that comment !
Hit to close to home !

[ncalburt]

Odd how threatened you are by that comment !
Hit to close to home !

[JediJones]

Santorum said in a debate back in September that Newt would be his V.P. choice out of all the people on the stage.

I think what Mitt is planning is, in a brokered convention where no one has a majority of delegates, to potentially woo Santorum as his V.P. and use his delegates to put them over the top. Sadly, if either Newt or Mitt could put Rick over the top, I don’t trust Santorum not to cut that deal with Mitt instead and leave Newt hang out to dry. Rick has shown he doesn’t have much if any willingness to stand up to the establishment.

[JediJones]

Romney’s also a godawful campaigner. If I were his handler watching him say him and Santorum are “not much different on the issues” I would be tearing my hair out. That’s a huge opening for Newt. He can now run ads linking Romney and Santorum together and more easily explain how he is by far the candidate of bolder, truly conservative change compared to the status quo that MittRick has to offer.

[JediJones]

Santorum would not allow romney on his ticket.LOL! Why, do you think Santorum would hold out for Arlen Specter as his running mate? He endorsed both Specter and Romney so it's a toss-up I guess. Aside from abortion, there isn't one principle Santorum hasn't proved he's willing to compromise on to please the establishment.

[JediJones]

Riiiight, because Santorum trotting his whole family out on stage at CPAC to stand there for his entire speech shows he’s not just an empty-vested, pandering politician, right? The guy has no backbone on anything except abortion and has bent over for the establishment every time he’s been asked. His fiscal record is abysmal (he’s already found himself apologizing for it in the debates) and his connections to lobbyists and other forms of graft are deep and vast.

[JediJones]

All of the current donors are obviously going to back whoever the nominee is. They all want to defeat Obama.

[tsowellfan]

Odd how threatened you are by that comment

Threatened? Actually, right now I think Newt should consider dropping out and endorsing Santorum. So, you're NOT even CLOSE.

And you're even further away by implying that the anti-MSM, anti-establishment conservatives such as those in the Tea Party who support of have supported Newt are really in it for a Romney victory.

I'd actually be more inclined to think that such comments would help Romney win because ONLY Romney could benefit by pinning Newt and Santorum supporters against each other. The last thing Romney would want right now is for there to be an end to the split opposition he's enjoyed since the beginning of the primary. Now THAT to me is much closer to home, logical and makes much more sense.

[JohnD9207]

Gee Fred I can’t figure out your angle. Newt is finished unless he finds a photo of himself riding horses with Reagan. Reagan really didn’t mention him in both his autobiography and diary, read them I have and post the quotes. Romney is a nice guy who cannot figure out that he has no policy differences with ODummy concerning healthcare.
None that we can trust. Santorum is socially conservative, young, opposes national healthcare, and has the ability to put a team around him that will respect the constitution. His VP choice should be Palin but the NOW Cows will kill her again (too bad) but would be an excellent cabinet choice. Rubio is a great choice, and perhaps Ron Paul or his son would agree to be Sec. of the Treasury. Love RP or hate him the guy is spot on correct on the budget and monetary policy. Better than Turbo Tax Timmy. Mitt still has not figured out that the Federal Governments role in a free market economy is to stay out of the way. Newt just needs to get his butt out of the way...unless you actually believe he was the official historian for Freddy Mac. I don’t like liers and that dog does not hunt.

[tsowellfan]

His VP choice should be Palin

Sorry. Been there done that. I like Sarah Palin but I do not think we should repeat ANY of 2008 (even those things that seemed like a good idea). Palin was on the ticket in 2008 and we still lost.

Palin is good doing what she does now. Her time will come.

[RasterMaster]

Newt Says Romney a Possible VP Pick

“I think the consensus is that he’d certainly be on the list, whether he’d want to or not,” Gingrich said. “He’s a very competent person. This is a very serious man. I would certainly support him if he became the Republican nominee.”

http://townhall.com/tipsheet/katehicks/2011/12/07/love_thy_enemy_newt_says_romney_a_possible_vp_pick

Gingrich defends Romney

http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/1110/Gingrich_defends_Romney.html

[NoRedTape]

LOL!!! Romney is DREAMING. He has no true voting block because he has NEVER, and will NEVER connect with real people. He is a huge phoney. How DARE he say who will be his VP. I will root for Obama over Romney......

[stanne]

Okay, I’ll vote for romney.

[maine-iac7]

You left out the part where Santorum was a Romney supporter in his last race - that changes to pisture

[JohnD9207]

Actually we agree...I did say she would be killed by the NOW COWS, but I darn sure would offer her a cabinet position after the election.

[newzjunkey]

Setting aside his petulant demeanor, Santorum has a plethora of negatives that are still bubbling under.

Is he electable? Even in 2000, where is easily won reelection to the Senate, he only tied his Dem opponent among women. However, in 2006's epic defeat he lost 61% of women voters. Dems know how to defeat him.

He helped give us Obama's first Supreme Court nominee, Sotomayor, by voting to confirm her Circuit Court appointment by Bill Clinton. That's the kind of judge Senator Rick Santorum truly believed was suited for our high courts! To compare, "rock-ribbed" RINO John McCain voted against her for the 2nd Circuit.

Rick Santorum added $550 million more in Amtrack funding to the $900 million in the budget. (Reference: Santorum amendment to Transportation funding bill; Bill S.Amdt.3015 to S.Con.Res.83 ; vote number 2006-052 on Mar 15, 2006) It that fiscal conservatism?

Based on his voting record, until just recently Santorum rated an F from Numbers USA on immigration. Suddenly, late in this campaign, he's now an A-, the only candidate to flip-flop positions and raise his grade substantially except the king flip-flopper himself Mitt Romney. Even Mitt moved just one letter grade! Which is the more believable Rick, the cold hard voting record or the sudden rhetorical shift?

Obama and the press don't need a "smear machine" they simply need to pull back the curtain on Santorum and let his record do the talking.

The PA press have started gathering things from their years of reporting.

Here are just a few highlights culled from the above piece:

1. His charity Operation Good Neighbor (2001-07), illegally never registered with PA, doled out just 36% of income as grants, far less than the 75% of responsible causes. I'm sure it's coincidence the charity which spent most of its money on lobbyists, aides and fundraisers closed after he was defeated for reelection.

2. His "leadership PAC," "American's Foundation," was worse--just 18% went to candidates, well below similar PACs.

3. The $500,000 mortgage for his Leesburg mansion came from a private bank run by a big campaign donor. By all appearances, Santorum was not eligible for the closed program.

4. Santorum bilked a Pennsylvania school district out of $72,000 to pay for home "cyberschooling" of five of his kids ... in Virginia.

5. As the third-ranking Republican, he worked closely with House majority leader Tom DeLay, now felon, on the "K-Street Project" to grow ties between the GOP and major lobbyists. Twenty-three of his own staffers landed well-paying jobs at lobbying firms. When he was fired by the PA voters? Santorum turned to lobbyists to make nearly $1m per year while unemployed. How can he credibly help drain a swamp he diligently helped craft as the senate GOP point man?

6. This supporter of Medicare Part D was so important to the culture of crony capitalism, an internal memo at pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline said his loss "creates a big hole that we need to fill."

7. Before anyone heard of Solyndra, Santorum was securing $100 million federal loans for a coal-to-liquids plant that was never built. The project's lobbyist was PA's top GOP power broker, Bob Ashner, and paid nearly $1 million.

That's seven places just to start off.

What has this lawyer and career politician really done over his career?

Is he really as neocon interventionist-minded as his debate performances suggest? He's suddenly trying to align himself with Tea Party after speaking against it. Is he really central gov't minded as his debate attacks on 10th amendment supporting candidates warn?

What specific reforms does he propose on taxes, regulation, tort reform, ethics and crony capitalism? What are his "bold solutions" to fixing the mess we're in? Looking beyond his defense of Life & Marriage, where he is not alone, is he credible on the issues?

Isn't this former establishment figure another big spending "compassionate conservative" yet lacking the personal appeal or executive experience of G.W.?

A close look warns me Rick Santorum would be a disaster if elected.

[ansel12]

“Have you noticed these so called Newt supporters are really doing the dirty stealth work for Romney ?”

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From Fox News- http://nation.foxnews.com/newt-gingrich/2012/01/19/firebrand-free-republic-founder-endorses-newt-gingrich-epic-call-action

I’m officially endorsing Newt Gingrich for President today
Jan 19, 2012 | Jim Robinson, Free Republic

I’m officially endorsing Newt Gingrich for president today. Was going to wait until after Florida, but see no reason to delay. We need Newt to win in South Carolina and Florida to stop any possible momentum building up for the establishment big government, statist, abortionist RINO!!

RomneyCare = ObamaCare = government tyranny!! Taxpayer funded abortion is as evil as evil can be!!

Newt is a pro-life Reagan Revolution conservative who led the Republican Revolution of the 90’s, taking the majority away from the democrats who had held it for 40 years. And as Speaker, cut the taxes, cut the government, cut the spending, cut the deficit, cut regulations, cut unemployment, brought the federal budget under control for four years running. And unlike Romney, actually blocked a socialist healthcare system from becoming law. And created a pro-growth, pro-free market, pro-jobs environment and extended the Reagan economy throughout the 90’s!! Newt is the ideal candidate to lead the Tea Party Revolution!!