Poll: Romney the frontrunner in 2016?

CNN's Political Ticker ^ | June 19, 2014 | Paul Steinhauser, political editor

[2ndDivisionVet]

He's said over and over that he won't run for the White House a third time, but a new poll indicates that if Mitt Romney changed his mind and made another bid for president, he'd be the frontrunner among Republicans in the first-in-the-nation primary state of New Hampshire.

According to the Suffolk University/Boston Herald survey, which was released Thursday, 24% of Granite State Republicans and independents who lean towards the GOP say that Romney would be their first choice for their party's presidential nomination.

Among the potential 2016 GOP contenders, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie was a distant second, at 9%, with Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky at 8%, and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush at 7%.

While the survey may make headlines, it's important to remember that Romney's very well known in New Hampshire. He owns a vacation home in the state, has often appeared at GOP events in New Hampshire, and was governor of neighboring Massachusetts. Romney easily won the 2012 Republican primary, but lost the state by six percentage points to President Barack Obama in the general election....

[staytrue]

“A Conservative. A non-ringer. Someone who was running to win. An actual opponent for Zero. Y’know ?”

Ok, in 2012, who was that person ?

Now in 2016 you might get Cruz. Palin is not running. Frankly Santorum is one of the front runners.

[Diogenesis]

The attack orders came from General WIllard Romney.

Just like against Sen. Thompson before.

Poor sport spoiler Democrat in disguise Romney doing what he does best:

Novak: "Fred Thompson drop-out rumors traced to Romney campaign"

Said Novak: "The rumors were traced in part to Mitt Romney's campaign,
trying to stir up strife between McCain and Thompson."

---

"Despite outspending his rivals by huge margins throughout the primaries,
(Mitt Romney, Carpetbagger UT,CA,MA,NH,Mexico) lost Iowa, South Carolina, Florida and California.
The only primaries he won were in Michigan, where Dad was governor; LDS states;
and a few states on Super Tuesday in which his California-obsessed rivals
couldn't spare the cash to advertise.
Only John Connolly in 1968 had a worse cash-to-delegates ratio.
And John McCain rightly did not like Romney's tactics during the primaries.
(W)hen (Romney's early leads) started slipping away, he resorted to unfair,
distorted, scorched-earth negative ads, betting that his opponents couldn't
afford to spend enough for the truth to catch up to his charges."
[Romney: A Mistake for McCain, 7/23/2008, Dick Morris]

[fieldmarshaldj]

It not only was NOT suspect, it was dead on the money. Willard has been backstabbing Conservatives for his entire political life, and sabotaging Palin in 2008 (especially AFTER he got passed over for the VP slot). His fingerprints were all over the knives.

[2ndDivisionVet]

"...Palin is not running..."

She calls you and chats? Or can you read minds?

[Gen.Blather]

“Ok. I thought each was a terribly flawed, “

All of us are flawed. Romney was essentially a Socialist-lite. How could he run against a socialist regular and hope to get the Republican vote? Obama won with fewer votes than he had in 2008. But a larger percentage of Republican voters sat out the 2012 election than did in 2008. Ouch!

[Diogenesis]

Your bastard imposer of statism, Willard Carpetbagger Romney,
will no doubt go after any conservative ... including
Sen Cruz.

Romney represents Mexico and the Democrats.

[fieldmarshaldj]

Scott Walker. The Conservative superstar of the year.

[Patton@Bastogne]

.

Romney - the Magic RINO:

Chihuahua Romney - the One and the Only "Magic RINO(TM)":

"We don't intend to turn the Republican Party
 over to the traitors in the battle just ended.
We will have no more of those candidates who are pledged
 to the same goals as our opposition and who seek our support.
Turning the Party over to the so-called moderates
wouldn't make any sense at all.""
--  President Ronald Reagan

.

[samtheman]

It’s why the situation is so hopeless. There are so many stupid Republicans. Very stupid. Very, very stupid.

We don’t have a chance.

[Waryone]

"He did not run last time."

The truth is, he only runs against conservatives. Hillary would be safe.

[Mears]

I think we get your point.

.

[Rides_A_Red_Horse]

Hell no!

[re_nortex]

Well you can go crying to Mr. Robinson or you engage in debate ?

The boss has stated that Free Republic is not a liberal debating society. Your words of support for the bizarre cultist "Bishop" Willard Romney reveal that you're not a genuine Conservative. I come to FR, the foremost site for for Conservative activism, to engage in meaningful conversation with like-minded Christian (and Jewish) Conservatives -- not with those who stand with a gun-grabbing, pro-sodomite abortionist.

And, by the way, note that I did not ping the Patriot who founded this site in any of my posts to you. So your claim that I went "crying to Mr. Robinson" are utterly without merit.

[x]

The story I saw originated after the 2008 election with somebody who had worked for the McCain primary campaign in South Carolina. Just what reliable info (if any) he had about the national campaign is questionable, but McCain people had reason to shift the blame for their defeat to Palin and blaming the whispers on secret Romney people in their campaign served their purposes.

And really, if you're talking about people in the McCain campaign who actually knew Palin and could dish (real or invented) dirt, wouldn't it be more likely that they were long-time McCain loyalists, rather than Romneyites who somehow happened to get picked up along the way by the campaign?

That was in 2008-9 when that story that was picked up by the American Spectator and believed so many people came out. A year or two later, when campaign advisors were gearing up for 2012, you did find Romney people talking down Palin, in the way that people in one campaign do put down prospective rivals, but that story that secret Romneyites in the McCain campaign were sabotaging Palin to clear the way for Romney back in 2008 was a questionable one.

That said, it does look like Kevin Madden, who had worked for Romney in 2008, was putting Palin down in interviews before the election. My point, though, is that there was enough bad blood between Palin and McCain's people and enough incentive on their part to blame her for their defeat that you don't have to put the blame for whispers or rumors at Romney's door.

[CatherineofAragon]

"Romney has an impeccable personal history."

You cannot be serious.

Romney was a longtime supporter of abortion and Planned Parenthood.

Only two years ago he said, "If two people of the same sex who LOVE each other want to adopt children" he believed it should be made possible. That's right---he believes queer perversion is "love", and he thinks those who practice it should be able to adopt and abuse kids.

Is that what you call an impeccable personal history?

[Norm Lenhart]

So in sum, Romney did it, they admitted it and he deserves the blame. Nothing suspect.

[Norm Lenhart]

Sure he’s serious. And no one stops him or any of the other Romneybots lately from stirring the crap.

So get ready for 2012 all over, top to bottom. Again.

[RoosterRedux]

What is it about Gov. Romney that you “like” so much. We’re all ears.

He's better than that traitor Obama! And he's better than Hillary. I contributed to every candidate's campaign (starting with Perry, then Cain, and Newt), changing horses as they dropped out.

In the end, I even contributed to Romney...because I love my country and Obama hates it.

And Hillary is too old and effed up to know that she is nothing but a useful idiot.

Sure, I don't like Romney, but he is light years better than Obama (can you imagine if Obama or Hillary were in charge of the Olympics).

[x]

There are a lot of details to track down. It would be hard to account for everyone who ever worked for Romney and whatever they may have said at one time or another about Sarah Palin, so I can't say that nobody who ever worked for Romney never criticized Palin.

I simply point out that one of the articles cited as "proof" was just a rumor circulated by somebody who'd worked for the McCain primary campaign in SC, and that there were enough people in the McCain campaign who wanted to blame Palin for their defeat (and conceal their role by attributing the rumors to someone else) that there's enough blame to go for the rumor mongering around before you even get to Romney and his people.

People in the McCain campaign who were in a position to know anything about Palin and spread damaging stories about her were more likely to be McCain loyalists than people picked up from the Romney campaign.