Mitt & Newt: A Plan to Win This Year

Newsmax ^ | Thursday, 19 Apr 2012 05:00 PM | Christopher Ruddy

[Josh Painter]

As the dust begins to quickly settle from the hotly contested Republican primary and Mitt Romney assumes the title of presumptive nominee, it’s important to recognize the role Newt Gingrich has played and will continue to play in helping the Republicans win the White House and Senate this fall.

The former House speaker recently told Newsmax in an interview that he remains in the race, not as a spoiler, but to play a key role promoting a conservative agenda at the Republican convention in Tampa in August. It’s a worthy goal – and I have no doubt that Newt will soon be officially supporting Mitt Romney to pursue that agenda.

Michael Reagan pointed out in a recent appearance on Fox News that Republicans must now unite behind Romney to defeat Obama and his liberal agenda. Considering the uphill battle we face, I couldn’t agree more.

And supporters of Gingrich and Santorum should keep in mind that the key goal now is to roll back the Obama agenda. We can only do that with a united front.

At the same time, Gov. Romney needs to realize that his nomination win came after a hard-fought battle, a war of attrition that saw one leading contender after another fall by the wayside until he was the last man standing. With superior funding and organization, Romney ultimately prevailed.

Though Newt failed to wrest the nomination, I believe he offered a very strong message that Mitt should tap into – a message that may have resonated even more strongly in the general election.

Today, Newt remains the great communicator of the Ronald Reagan vision of small government, strong national defense, low taxes, and individual freedom.

He also has a track record of accomplishment, acting as the key conservative figure behind the Contract with America...

[Josh Painter]

The fatal flaw in Ruddy's case here is that no one, not even Gingrich, can hold Romney's feet to a conservative fire. Romney has no core, and he will cave and break to the left the first time and every time he has to make a choice between standing up for principle and going with the status quo flow.

When Sarah Palin announced in October that she would not run for the GOP nomination, I started supporting Newt because he was the only Reagan conservative left standing, not so he could be cast in the role of Romney's "conservative conscience." That conscience is a voice Romney does not allow himself to hear.

Newt's fair weather supporters such as Ruddy, Herman Cain, and even Michael Reagan cave to the GOP establishment's "Manchurian Candidate" are just signs of how corrupt the Republican Party has become and how spineless many who claim to be "conservatives" really are.

The GOP is going the way of the Whigs. It's time for a new Conservative Party that consistently stands for conservative principles. "Fantasy" sports (Fantasy Football, Fantasy NASCAR, etc.) are all the rage these days. In a fantasy political world, Reagan conservatives like Newt Gingrich and Sarah Palin would turn their backs on the corrupt GOP to design and build that Conservative Party to rescue and preserve the republic. Too bad that's only a fantasy.

[ScottinVA]

Michael Reagan pointed out in a recent appearance on Fox News that Republicans must now unite behind Romney to defeat Obama and his liberal agenda. Considering the uphill battle we face, I couldn’t agree more.

"Must," my a**!!

Oh, wait.. he said "Republicans."

[Yashcheritsiy]

You’re right.

Romney is *already* “moving to the centre” (i.e. the left) now that he thinks he’s in the clear. Nobody is going to “hold his feet to the fire.” And you know why? Because conservatives were too stupid to get around conservative candidates instead of just lamely voting for Romney “because he’s inevitable.” To hold somebody’s feet to the fire, you have to have leverage on them. Conservatives have demonstrated to Romney that he can win, even when he ignores conservative concerns. Therefore, conservatives have no leverage on Romney whatsoever.

This tripe about “well, we’re gonna really hold his feet to the fire!!!” is nothing but chest-thumping windbaggery.

What’s worse - if he does somehow win the general, he may actually be WORSE than Obama, because he’ll have a compliant GOP Congress, just like Bush had. Any program Romney wants, Romney will get, and there’s nothing conservatives will be able to do about it. At least with Obama, the GOP makes a pretense of putting up a fight.

The GOP IS going the way of the Whigs - and I’m increasingly convinced that this can’t happen fast enough, even if it does shoot down that Party’s hopes in the 2012 Presidential election. Replace it with something fresh.

[SueRae]

Me too (although I like Herman Cain as well.)

Any chance Newt gets a shot at the VP slot? That would give him President of the Senate as part of his role..a good fit from Speaker of the House.

[ivory49]

I coul’nt have said that any better

[yoe]

A new Conservative Party? That will take years....in the coming election Conservatives, Non-Conservatives and Moderates will have to stand as one behind the Republican nominee if they are to stand a chance of winning. If Obama should win another four years remember this: it isn't just Obama but Nancy Pelosi will be back in real time. A Marxist president and a mentally ill speaker will be the final nail that subjugates the American citizen.

DON'T VOTE FOR OBAMA!! (VOTE FOR YOUR COUNTRY!)

[ScottinVA]

The GOP is going the way of the Whigs. It's time for a new Conservative Party that consistently stands for conservative principles.

...Which is exactly why I joined the Constitution Party. For the first time since Reagan left office, I'll be voting for a conservative candidate. After that craven surrender in the 2010 lame-duck session, I completely lost confidence in the Republican Party.

IF Romney were to be elected in November, which he most assuredly won't, he'd bring political malleability to a new level. That's what comes from having no real core values.

[arrdon]

FOCUS! DEFEAT OBAMA! First things first! We can’t create anything new until all this CRAP is cleaned up first.

[txhurl]

It appears our conservatives might be planning to co-opt Mittens.

If you can’t beat him, make him join you.

We have Cheney giving him the miscon business, Ryan the fiscon, and Sarah and Michelle ready to help with Socon, and Newt with Perry chomping to champion 10thcon.

If we strengthen all FOUR legs under Mittens while keeping him out of the country or on the golf course at least as much the the Zeros,
we can turn this around and un-do everything of the last three years.

It’s not like Mittens has any original ideas, anyway. He enjoys the figurehead status he fights for.

I think he’s OK with being PINO - POTUS in name only - if he messages that he can be contained.

[TADSLOS]

Sounds like the convention came and went. We must have hit a Mayan calendar time warp.

[txhurl]

Cheney ‘miscon’ meant MILCON.

[Longbow1969]

Which is exactly why I joined the Constitution Party. For the first time since Reagan left office, I'll be voting for a conservative candidate.

You keep pushing this Constitution Party without mentioning to people that they believe in a protectionist trade policy that the likes of Bernie Sanders (S-VT) would love, and an isolationist foreign policy that would make Ron Paul supporters giddy.

The Constitution Party is not a real alternative. They will get the same nothing burger percentage of the vote they always get.

[Josh Painter]

“That will take years” is the same argument the left has used for years to block drilling for domestic oil & gas. No matter how long it takes, you have to start sometime, and the sooner the better.

This republic has prevailed against all sorts of threats. If it withstood the Civil War, it can stand against a radical Alinskyite from Chicago.

Sorry, Mitt Romney and his win-at-all-costs Alinskyites just aren’t that much of an improvement over Obama and HIS win-at-all-costs Alinskyites. Both candidates are progressives, and each candidate’s supporters turn my stomach.

[Psalm 144]

With Willard, a great VP selection or a poor one will represent the difference of a pile of feces with a cute little curl on the top, or a pile without. The pile is the problem, and cannot be sufficiently sugared, garnished or shaped to be other than what it is.

[Psalm 144]

“each candidate’s supporters turn my stomach”

They cannot understand that. Truly, they cannot comprehend that they are loathsome to people with integrity. Really, between the Willard and Hussein factions we are only talking about variants of authoritarian-totalitarian leftists. The Willard faction is *usually* better at math. Otherwise their social policies, arrogance and hostility to general personal liberty are much the same.

[SoConPubbie]

The Constitution Party is not a real alternative. They will get the same nothing burger percentage of the vote they always get.

For some of us, it isn't about Party over Principle.

For some of us, it isn't just about winning, but about winning with someone of principle.

Mitt has no princples, None.

[ScottinVA]

The USCP opposes trade agreements which have the uneven plane that puts American manufacturers at a disadvantage.

As for the foreign policy issue of nonintervention, I’m not completely aligned with it, because history has shown there are instances in which preventive intervention is needed... but the party’s platform as a whole is one with which I mostly agree.

As for the USCP not being a real alternative... how much of an “alternative” is Mitt Romney offering these days?

[SoConPubbie]

The GOP is going the way of the Whigs. It's time for a new Conservative Party that consistently stands for conservative principles. "Fantasy" sports (Fantasy Football, Fantasy NASCAR, etc.) are all the rage these days. In a fantasy political world, Reagan conservatives like Newt Gingrich and Sarah Palin would turn their backs on the corrupt GOP to design and build that Conservative Party to rescue and preserve the republic. Too bad that's only a fantasy.

Amen!

[Agamemnon]

Assuming Romney becomes the (R) nominee, he will need to coalesce the base. He must do this convincingly for conservatives and Tea Party to get on board full throttle, not just halfheartedly.

How many of us were enthusiastic about Reagan in 1980 but thought the "Rockefeller Wing" was going to sabotage our chances when he selected GHWBush as his VP? How many of us were somewhat enthusiastic about Quayle, but not so much about GHWBush in 1988? How many of us were enthusiastic about Kemp, not so enthusiastic about Dole in 1996? How many of us were only cautiously supportive of GWBush in 2000, but roared when we learned he'd selected Cheney as his VP?

How does Romney get us ALL on board? Here's a suggestion:

Run not only with your VP but with your proposed cabinet as well.

Conservatives sometimes have to be reminded that a President is not king. He can't get anything done by dictate. Above all, he must be a quarterback for the team. While a quarterback may sometimes run a ball in to the end zone himself, more often than not he strategically uses the talents of his team mates to move the ball down the field and bring about the win.

Did anyone hear Palin the other night (4/12/2012) on Hannity when asked if she'd consider being Sec'y of Energy? Did you watch her show the following night in place of Greta? Did anyone hear our own FReeper Allen West when interviewed on Hannity (4/11/2012) and asked whether he'd consider being Romney's VP? And BOTH essentially said YES!

Newt has practically conceded. Are any of these folks any less conservative for facing what are becoming our realities this election cycle?

I have proposed cabinet and administration roles for persons who were Romney's rivals at some point. These are the skill sets we conservatives wanted applied to the places of government where they'd be most effective. Instead of rivals let's make them team players:

Rick Santorum - Sec'y of HHS

Sarah Palin - Sec'y of Energy + Sec'y of Interior (merge these)

Newt Gingrich - Sec'y of Education

Michelle Bachmann - Attorney General

Herman Cain - Sec'y of Commerce, HUD, and Head of GSA (merge)

John Bolton - Sec'y of State

John Petraeus - Sec'y of Defense

Ron Paul - Head of Federal Reserve (let the audit begin)

Donald Trump - Head Council of Economic Advisers

Paul Ryan - Head of Office of Management and Budget

Joe Arpaio - Head of FBI, and Homeland Security (merge these)

Dick Cheney - Head of CIA

White House spokesman: Mark Levin

And our own FReeper, Allen West, as VP.

I was a Perry guy. Keep him as Governor of Texas. He's doing fine right where he is.

Next: Most of these folks are honed primed and stoked from the recent primary debates. They're all sharp. Nationalize the cabinet selection process as much as the Presidential and Congressional elections.

Release every one of these folks back out onto the the campaign trail with an assignment: tackle in an "in your face" way each of these departments - stage a kick-off news conference in front of each one of them. Challenge the office holders to the equivalent of Lincoln-Douglas style debates allowing each Obama appointed office member to defend their record and their (mis)-management of their public trust.

They won't debate, you say? OK, try some new Rules for Conservative Radicals. Stalk them, dog them with cameras, shame them into the arena, watch the cowards avoid the heat, watch for and exploit their mis-steps, create and run ads based on their failures in office and refusal to be made accountable.

While this is distracting the DNCs resources, Romney can land his own punches on Obama in the same way he's managed to blow away all his opposition in the primaries. Use Romney's well funded strike teams to confound opposition at the grass roots, do what they can to discourage and depress Democratic opposition and their voters.

Face it: if Romney was able to take out his competitors in the primary don't you suppose Obama's hacks could have taken anyone of them out in the general?

Have Romney's boys sew the seeds of hopelessness and dissension in the Obama ranks, emphasize betrayal and failure of Obama to keep 2008 promises. Undermine, destroy and confound the opposition into a confused, ill-directed mass who find themselves fighting on more than one Alinskyized, freeze-the-target Presidential candidate, and instead spending their resources fighting 10+ personalities "running" for cabinet offices.

Who are the DNC’s "generals" they have to call into a fight like that?

Instead of dividing us with all the endless sniping, let's quit doing the DNC's work for them and work on dividing THEM for a change!

Romney and Netanyahu both began strategic business careers at Boston Consulting Group. Agree with them or disagree with them, but admit that they are patient, long range, strategic thinkers.

One of the things Romney has been able to do in large part is to keep his persona distanced from the decisively well-calculated positioning of opposition to rivals in the primaries. His name-less, face-less cloaked "hit-men" are as effective as any guerrilla force out there, but all that activity is maintained at a plausibly deniable, comfortable, arms-length distance from Romney the candidate. I dare say it puts the likes of Nixon's and Clinton's "opposition research" squads to shame.

Sorry George. Enough of the "kinder-gentler" crap. Tight formations, and "gentlemen's wars" provided the fixed targets that let us destroy the British in our War of Independence.

I can see that machine going to work on Obama and leaving more than just a few lumps. Let's turn the "talents" of Romney's henchmen on to Obama, keep them disciplined, focused, and this side of doing any thing "Watergate," and let them go for the DNC's jugular.

If Romney is what we've got to work with this time around let's face that fact head on and let's hold his feet to the fire and make our will known as conservatives. If he's smart he'll seek our trust, and appoint many of our cabinet choices. To secure our trust he's going to have to both earn it and maintain it.

Romney will go a long and convincing way to doing that by arming, deputizing, and funding the campaign efforts of his "cabinet-in-waiting."

FReegards!

[SoConPubbie]

A new Conservative Party? That will take years....in the coming election Conservatives, Non-Conservatives and Moderates will have to stand as one behind the Republican nominee if they are to stand a chance of winning.

You're problem, if Mitt is the nominee, God Forbid, is that Mitt is not a Republican, oh, he has an 'R' next to his name, but that is where the similiarity ends. He is a lying, left-wing, Progressive Liberal and nothing less.