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Part 2 in a developing series of in-depth analysis by Dr. Jeff Fuller (See part 1 here) It’s often revealing to turn conventional wisdom on its head and see what’s really hidden underneath. You’ve all heard it, I’m sure, that RomneyCare is Mitt’s doom, an albatross around his neck, his biggest weakness as a potential candidate. In Part 1 of this series I detailed not only how grave some people feel this issue is for Romney’s chances, but also pointed out that Obama and his team of key operatives (Axelrod, Gibbs, and Daley) are all praising RomneyCare as ObamaCare’s predecessor...

SALEM, N.H. -- John McCain, who happily volunteers he doesn't know much about economics . . . Later in the piece: McCain stood before a line graph showing the increase of the alternative-minimum tax, a low-budget campaign's alternative to the PowerPoint presentation Mitt Romney uses when talking about economic policy, a subject McCain has said he feels he is unknowledgeable and that filling the void would be a priority when selecting a vice-presidential nominee. Yet further: Like Mike Huckabee, who joked recently that he "may not be the expert that some people are on foreign policy, but I did stay...

The below is what I origianlly posted at Iowans for Romney) http://iowansforromney.blogspot.com/2007/11/vote-for-mike-huckabee-is-vote-for-rudy_25.html : Yes my friends, a vote for Mike Huckabee is a vote for Rudy Giuliani. In Iowa this is absolutely the case, and in other battleground states the same argument holds true. Why is a vote for Huckabee a vote for Rudy? On the surface the proposition appears preposterous. Huckabee and Rudy represent the absolute polar opposites of the GOP field; Huck being a solid social conservative but fiscal liberal/moderate and conversely Rudy being a social liberal/moderate and a solid fiscal conservative. I've had conversations with supporters of...

Much of this is being addressed here and elsewhere, but I wanted to chime in from the Iowa perspective. "Life Support" is a modern medical marvel that can sometimes tide people through horrible acute illnesses/traumas until their own organ systems kick back into gear. Unfortunately, the VAST majority of people on "Life Support" are simply artificially and temporarily avoiding imminent death. This is the decided direction of the Rudy Giuliani and John McCain campaigns as evidenced today by their decisions to not participate in the Ames Straw Poll on August 11th. They are attempting to delay their Iowa embarrassment and...

McCain's deeply flawed immigration bill has been a recent "flash point" for criticism. McCain has obviously taken the attacks on this horrible legislation a little too personally and has wrongly punched back on the personal level (similar to his personal attack on Romney's conviction during the 2nd debate that he switches positions "during even numbered years".) From a Newsweek article: Referring to Romney's stance, McCain said: "Maybe I should wait a couple of weeks and see if it changes because it's changed in less than a year from his position before." Then followed his "varmint" comment which was an obviously...

Hat tip to Charles Mitchell over at Evangelicals for Mitt for linking to this report from "The Politico" blog where they astutely point out that Romney was far from "a liberal" in his 1994 race against Teddy Kennedy. Check out his campaign flyers from '94 . . . Front and BackBelow is a portion of the flyer with some of the specific issue stances: Looks like he ran a pretty conservative campaign back then to me! Basically, I agree with Charles about how more and more news stories and blog entries flat out say that Romney ran in '94 as...

After months of waffling on whether he supports sending additional troops to Iraq, Smooth Talking Mitt Romney today finally said something. Despite the failure of previous troop increases to stabilize Iraq, the advice of generals and experts who oppose the plan, and the fact the American people have utterly rejected President Bush's failed leadership, Romney issued a statement endorsing President Bush's escalation of the war, saying "I agree with the President.I support adding five brigades in Baghdad and two regiments in Al-Anbar province." See COMMENT NUMBER 1 BELOW

Michale Reagan has a column up where he has some great things to say about Romney. Essentially, he says that Romney and Giuliani are the type of leaders/candidates that could beat Sen. Hillary Clinton: The common wisdom holds that it is all but inevitable that Hillary Clinton will be the Democratic presidential nominee in 2008, and that she’ll be a formidable if not unbeatable candidate. I don’t disagree with that assumption, despite the sudden emergence of Barack Hussein Obama as the media’s newest darling. I see him as nothing more than a passing fancy for the mainstream media. If it...

Go to the article at Townhall for the embedded links: Part 218 of the Boston Globe's attempt to derail Mitt Romney's accelerating presidential campaign details the governor's travels and his PACs' spending this year. (The Globe neglected to give us the citation to its parallel story on John Kerry's absences from DC or Massachusetts in 2002, or Mike Dukakis' journeys in 1986. Perhaps they are in the same file as the Globe's stories on the citizenship/green card status of the crews working on Kerry's many homes?)Rarely have we ever had such a clear demonstration of the hard-left nature of a...

This wonderful interview Romney had with K Lo of NRO adresses many of the "hot-button" issues of our day and of Romney's past. The whole interview is worth reading, but I thougth I'd highlight the discussions of Iraq, gay rights, and abortion. He also gives an impressive reading list (aides say he's a voracious reader) and he ends with a quippy potential exposee/You-tube scandal that could end his chances. Lopez: What did you make of the Iraq Study Group report that was released last week? Gov. Romney: The members of the Iraq Study Group deserve credit for their hard work....

Right on, Romney! By Patrick J. Buchanan Saturday, December 16, 2006 Gov. Mitt Romney, leaving office, has just taken a modest step to protect the people of Massachusetts. Romney signed an agreement with the feds to empower 30 state troopers - to be trained by the feds for five weeks - to determine if crime suspects are illegal aliens. If so, the troopers could hold them on immigration violations. If an MS-13 gang member were arrested for assault and battery, and the victim was too terrified to testify, the state troopers could hold the alleged assailant, call in immigration authorities...

“Look at the invoices!” That’s what Tom Stemberg, then a fledgling entrepreneur, told Mitt Romney in 1985. Romney was the head of a new venture firm, Bain Capital, and was skeptical of Stemberg’s idea of launching a chain of office-supply stores. Romney had called 100 businesses in the Boston area and found that they were spending far less on pens, paperclips, and the like than Stemberg was claiming in his business plan. Stemberg had heard this complaint from other venture capitalists, and he always told them the same thing: the businesses didn’t know how much they were spending. If the...

"Despite recent statements across the country by Governor Mitt Romney claiming he’s pro-life, pro-family and a committed conservative, a broad investigation of his actual statements, actions, and public positions over the years indicates that he has spent his entire career speaking and governing as a liberal – and that his new found conversion to conservatism very likely coincides with his candidacy for the presidency." Please refer to comment #1 to see what a shoddy piece of work this is. If they are trying to convince people of something, they should at least get SOME of the facts right and not...

"BOSTON --Gov. Mitt Romney's beliefs on gay issues are under scrutiny after the re-emergence of a letter he wrote during his 1994 run for U.S. Senate in which he promised a gay Republicans group he would be a stronger advocate for gays than Sen. Edward Kennedy. . . " Read Comment #1 below to see how this is all "smoke and mirrors" by the Globe and NYTimes and how Romney has been consistantly against gay marriage and consistantly anti-discrimiation of gays.

Romney's Mormon Allies October 23, 2006 WHEN JESUS, as quoted in Matthew's Gospel, said, ``Render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's, and unto God the things that are God's," he was stressing the need to separate the civil and religious realms -- a message that has resounded across the centuries, and that churches and political leaders often have been tempted to ignore. The Mormon church and Mitt Romney should make sure that the church stays out of his nascent presidential campaign. The Globe reported last week that a top church official held a meeting with Romney's son at church...

From the Governor's Website: Remarks by Governor Mitt Romney Liberty Sunday: Defending Our First Freedom October 15, 2006 Welcome to this historic city. The authors of liberty recognized a Divine Creator who bequeathed to us certain inalienable rights. They affirmed freedom of religion and proscribed the establishment of any one religion. Today, there are some people would like to establish a single religion for America . . . the religion of secularism. They not only reject traditional religious values, but also the values of the founders. And they set aside the wisdom of the ages. Their allies are activist judges....

Governor Romney has made significant inroads with party activists. The political pundits have been taking note and praising Romney over the last few months. Also, trends in the GOP Bloggers Poll results over the last several months have confirmed Romney's Rise. March: Romney had a net positive rating of +9.5%--lower only than Allen and Giuliani July: Romney inched up to a +17.9% net positive rating--lower that Allen, Gingrich, and Giuliani August: Romney's net positve rating was +32.2% g at has been the "First choice" of 13% of voters--Both below only Gingrich and Giuliani September: Romney had a +41.1% net positive...

O'REILLY: Is there anything that could make you vote Democrat? Is there any scenario that you could envision you supporting the Democrat candidate for president? COULTER: If Zell Miller were running against John McCain. O'REILLY: You're not a big McCain fan, are you? COULTER: No. Actually, I don't really like any of our front-runners. O'REILLY: Really? COULTER: I think it's going to be somebody else. O'REILLY: I think it's going to be Mitt Romney. COULTER: Actually, of the ones they talk about ... he's my favorite. It's somebody out of the blue. O'REILLY: I think Mitt Romney is the guy...

I cross-posted this at Iowans for RomneyAn interesting poll performed by Angus Reid recently roughly gauged the "like-ability" and "name recognition" of various prominent US politicians. I really like it when they publish the actual question(s) asked: I’d like to get your feelings toward some of our political leaders and other people who have been in the news. I’ll read the name of a person and I’d like you to rate that person using something called the feeling thermometer. You can choose any number between 0 and 100. The higher the number, the warmer or more favourable you feel toward...

'Know Thine Enemy,' Romney Says of 'Jihadists' Republican Presidential Hopeful Warns of Religious-Tinged Threat By TEDDY DAVIS April 30, 2006 — - Gov. Mitt Romney, R-Mass., has sought to confront the religious element of terrorism. "They are terrorists, yes, but more directly they are Jihadists," the White House hopeful told ABC News. "That has broad implications." Romney's determination to avoid referring to America's enemies solely by the tactics that they use is earning praise from some foreign policy specialists. "I think it could change the entire center of the conversation," said Mary Habeck, a professor of strategic studies at the...