A lot of people, Freepers included, are unaware of the changes you outlined.
GOP Rules Committee rapidly moving to shut out Conservative Grassroots
Here's the result of what they did:
How the Establishment Stole the GOP
This quote sums it up pretty well:
A small coterie of Establishment Republicans have wrested control of the GOP and formed the mold into which any Republican wanting to run for president from now on must fit.
I have chosen NOT TO FORGET what Romney and the Ruling Class have done - they did far more damage to Conservatives than Obama could ever have hoped to achieve. But everyone is full of fear, short-sighted and willing to forget out of blind hatred of Obama, having no clue that nothing is going to change except that Conservatives are forever sidelined and the country marches further Left.