Romney to Tea Party movement: No third party bids!

CNN ^ | 03/9/2010 | By: CNN Political Producer Peter Hamby

[Jim Robinson]

Washington (CNN) - Mitt Romney has a message to Tea Party candidates nationwide: If you lose your Republican primary bids, stay on the sidelines.

The former Massachusetts governor on Monday warned the grassroots movement not to mount third party efforts in general elections, which he said would siphon votes from Republican nominees.

"If there is a conservative candidate that runs in the general election, then obviously, divide and fail is the result," Romney said in an interview with the conservative Web site Newsmax. "Hopefully Tea Party candidates will run in respective primaries and they will either win or lose. And if they win, they will go into the general. If they lose, they won't, and they will get behind the more conservative of the two finalists."

Romney explained that "dividing our conservative effort in the general elections" would "basically hand the country to Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, and that would be very sad indeed."

[gunnyg]

[Vaquero]

Romney..the worst of the lot....NO WAY IN HELL, there Mittens...

I will be a lot happier when Bachmann and/or Palin declare their candidacy....

[nomoremods]

Nice try, Mitt. Every conservative knows that you RINO’s won’t respect the same rules should a conservative win. It’s the RINO’s who cut and run and whine; the conservatives stay and fight.

[Lazamataz]

I suspect that those who initially opposed Bush and then backed him in the general election, and then opposed McCain and said they would never back him but ended up backing him in the general election will end up backing Romney if he wins the Republican nomination.

So, how's that working for us?

[Minus_The_Bear]

This assclown Romney doesn't get that HE is the 3rd party! He is no conservative & has no business telling us what we should or shouldn't do.

[RobRoy]

I’m glad to hear Romney is not going to run as a third party candidate. He could have been a spoiler.

[Sybeck1]

He is taunting us.

[alstewartfan]

Milt, if you run a fair campaign and win, I will begrudgingly support you, despite your horrendous record and positions on issues. But, if you stack the deck, rig the system worse than it already is rigged, I GUARANTEE that someone is going to challenge you from the right. Conservatives will no longer be shoved to the back of the bus. Bob

[2ndDivisionVet]

Or George H.W. Bush with weird underwear and not a day in uniform.

[ZX12R]

I will not do it again. No way, no how.

[bronxville]

He gets to deadheat in a poll with obama today and suddenly he’s the bossman. lol

There is NO way I’m voting for someone who advocates killing babies - period.

[OriginalChristian]

He thinks he’s the front runner. He thinks he speaks for the party and conservative elctorate. I think he’s a freakin jerkwad. I held my nose and voted for this sham in the MO primary in 2008 after Thompson dropped off. I voted for Gov. Palin in the general, some rope-a-dope RINO was also on that ticket dragging her down. He was the media’s ‘chosen one’ to be so honored to run against ZerO the Douche. Romney wins, everybody loses.

Palin/Cain 2012 thru 2020.

[gwilhelm56]

Romney = ObamaLite!!!!

If the USA has to go to HELL, I’d prefer the enemy Demogogues ..errr ..Commiecrats ... uhmmm Democrats (yea..that’s right) to be IN CHARGE!!

Romney you get the nomination... I will have to, for only the 2nd time in my voting life, leave the president line BLANK!!

[hellbender]

Mitt Romney is the third-party candidate! A nominal Republican who removes all the significant reasons for voting Republican, because he stands for so much of what The Enemy does, like forced government takeover of health care.

[miss marmelstein]

Actually, he’s McCain with hair.

[alstewartfan]

Yes, I’m certain that he will give his wholehearted endorsement to Sarah Palin at the convention, if not before. He’ll make an excellent Secetary of Commerce. Bob

[ari-freedom]

He's not just a conservative. He's the conservative's conservative.

OK Laura probably really hates me now but there were a lot of conservatives who fell for him in 2008 even though his record in MA should've been well known.
That's the power of Romney. He is a very tricky guy.

[Vendome]

Romney!

You STFU! and Sit this out!

None of those scenarios are possible but for your self serving arrogance!

You, Newt and others have sat on the sidelines for the last two years and you weren’t even so much as lackluster in 2008.

You have no position we care about and your duplicitous record is an enethema to me and thousands of other Freepers!

FUMR!

You SOB!

Now you stay out of this and let Americans run the country.

I WILL NOT VOTE FOR YOU UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE!

Kapish?!

[Jim Robinson]

McCain was pro-life.

[prisoner6]

Oh this guy jerks my chain! Mitty...you would run this country the way your dad ran Rambler!

Soo...how's that Rambler Classic sedan with the dog on the roof workin' out for yunz?