Daily Caller
David Brooks: Romney won last night by shifting to “compassionate conservatism”
Brooks suggested it was “compassionate conservatism” that aided the former Massachusetts governor, and said that shift could help him win support from working-class women in battleground states.
“He talked about not cutting taxes for the rich, overall,” Brooks continued. “He talked about — he did a lot of compassionate conservatism, more than he’s ever done before. And clearly, one of the weaknesses for the Romney campaign has been, especially, white working-class women in the swing states and I’m not sure how much he’ll have actually swung them.”
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Brooks doing his part to dampen conservative enthusiasim in the wake of his boyfriend Barry’s crushing defeat.
Kataklysmic on October 4, 2012 at 4:48 PM
Groan.
rdbrewer on October 4, 2012 at 4:49 PM
no, he won by coming across as competent and ready for the job.
rob verdi on October 4, 2012 at 4:49 PM
I see it as Brooks claiming that Romney is following the Brooksian path now, and therefore will win because of it.
strictnein on October 4, 2012 at 4:50 PM
Romney won last night because Obama looked like the dunce he really is. Romney could have talked about his favorite bar-b-que recipes and still creamed Obama. Do us all a favor Brooks and go iron your pants.
NotCoach on October 4, 2012 at 4:50 PM
Put another way, he put Obama out of his own misery. There – compassion.
The Count on October 4, 2012 at 4:51 PM
Um, uh, uh, um, everyone a fair chance, um, . . .
Oh yeah, it was compassionate conservatism. That’s the ticket.
mwbri on October 4, 2012 at 4:51 PM
I smell a pants crease article in the future.
rob verdi on October 4, 2012 at 4:52 PM
I don’t believe Romney was much of a conservative last night. Instead Obama decided to play an adult game after being coddled like a spoiled little brat for the last four years and it showed. It is easy to win a debate when you’re the only adult on the stage.
NotCoach on October 4, 2012 at 4:53 PM
Romney could have come out eating a sloppy-joe on camera while Obama tried to put two sentences together to form a thought and still would have won.
nitzsche on October 4, 2012 at 4:53 PM
The pant crease went the way of the tingle.
David Brooks is well past his expiration date. And FYI, conservatism IS compassion.
Rixon on October 4, 2012 at 4:54 PM
If David Brooks wants to make the case that Romney now has greater appeal to working-class women in swing states… why argue with him? Probably a better idea to help support that argument.
The Resolute Desk on October 4, 2012 at 4:55 PM
Can we open up Guantanamo for Brooks and his kind and throw away the key?
victor82 on October 4, 2012 at 4:55 PM
Is it something they put in the water at the Slimes, or did Brooks just have a lobotomy?
Thomas More on October 4, 2012 at 4:57 PM
After NY Times Editorial tried to get liberals passioned, Brooks doing what he can to knock down conservative enthusiasm.
Conservative in NOVA on October 4, 2012 at 5:00 PM
I hate government. Hate it.
I hate statists. Hate them.
Compassion would include letting us opt out of compulsory government programs like Social Security and Medicare and establishing a real safety for those truly in need. For those unable, not unwilling, to take care of themselves.
Compassion is not confiscating money from one group of Americans to give away no strings attached to another group.
Charlemagne on October 4, 2012 at 5:01 PM
I don’t even click on the story links anymore for Brooks as I just don’t want to give him the traffic.
I swear though, if I ever see Brooks running from zombies I am so going to stick out my foot and trip him.
deepdiver on October 4, 2012 at 5:04 PM
Choomie’s got competition there — you could split atoms on Romney’s pants crease.
stefanite on October 4, 2012 at 5:10 PM
Literally.
stefanite on October 4, 2012 at 5:15 PM
David Brooks.. fresh from his starring role in this morning’s DNC ad against Mitt.
gatorboy on October 4, 2012 at 5:15 PM
Brooks and Noonan filled their Depends last night.
Schadenfreude on October 4, 2012 at 5:16 PM
I am sick of how the media has bought into the Obama campaign’s slicing-and-dicing-the-electorate meme. The only reason Obama is doing that is because it’s a fallback. He can’t run on his record or his vision for the future so he’s trying to scare the right groups abouot Romney. People like Brooks should be utterly rejecting this sort of campaign, but insted he is adminishing Romney for not doing the same thing.
What Romney did was grind the Obama campaign’s sword down to a nub. He ruined their carefully constructed caricature of him. Unlike Obama, he didn;t focus-group his responses or themes to capture this or that group of voters, he simply demolsihed the whole Obama campaign. Proof of that is that Plouffe and Axelrod are scrambling today to retool their messaging about Romney.
rockmom on October 4, 2012 at 5:26 PM
Brooks missed the part where Mitt said he’d evaluate government programs and ask the question “Is this program worth borrowing money from China to pay for?”.
Or maybe the part where he said the proper role of government was to let the people take care of themselves and each other?
He talked about cutting spending, cutting programs. Just because he also talked about keeping SS and Medicare from jumping off of the rails doesn’t mean he’s a “compassionate conservative”.
We’ll see if Romney lives up to this rhetoric (and we should hold his feet to the fire if he’s elected) but he didn’t debate as a compassionate conservative.
gwelf on October 4, 2012 at 5:31 PM
Don’t know about Brooks, but Holder sure belongs there.
SailorMark on October 4, 2012 at 5:32 PM
Yeah. This charlatan, Frun, Noonan, and Kristol will all be glomming on the Romney bandwagon now. Irrelevent, they are.
SouthernGent on October 4, 2012 at 5:35 PM
Rockmom: Amen! You’re right on the money IMHO. BTW from your typo “abouot Romney” in the first paragraph I think I finally learned how Canadians spell “about.”
jwolf on October 4, 2012 at 5:35 PM
Why don’t you make fun of Michelle M. a bit more, you irrelevant jerk.
John the Libertarian on October 4, 2012 at 5:39 PM
peski on October 4, 2012 at 5:43 PM
God f**king help him if he pushes this crap in office.
HerneTheHunter on October 4, 2012 at 5:59 PM
You got it. It’s not that Romney was particularly good, it’s that Obama was so baaaaad. And anyway, at this point anything Romney does is probably a day late and a dollar short.
ddrintn on October 4, 2012 at 6:00 PM
David Brooks=Who the F#ck Gives a Crap!
RMOccidental on October 4, 2012 at 6:04 PM
He did no such thing, and a week from now Romney will still be trailing in all those phony polls. Romney’s never defined himself as anything politically but NotObama, and the same goes for last night. And that will be NotEnough.
ddrintn on October 4, 2012 at 6:06 PM
Keep Plucking that Big Bird
tmitsss on October 4, 2012 at 6:08 PM
Shut up.
ConservativeLA on October 4, 2012 at 6:12 PM
Think not? Then why is Team Obama completely overhauling their strategy vs. Romney today? Because he demolished their old one.
Romney did define himself last night, as the guy who knows what the hell he is talking about and will focus 100% on jobs and economic growth. Is it too late? Perhaps.
rockmom on October 4, 2012 at 6:18 PM
oh come on Brooksie, enough of this political analysis stuff.
what did the crease in Mitt’s pants look like?
how was the cut of his jib?
DrW on October 4, 2012 at 6:31 PM
Hey, look! It only took about 18 hours for the trolls to start climbing back out of their bunkers.
Romney was excellent. Even leftard Andrew Sullivan saw it. From his live blog of the debate:
And so on. Obama was weak; Romney took charge and crushed him.
peski on October 4, 2012 at 6:32 PM
You’re right, of course, but I don’t think it’s too late at all. I’m no Dick Morris, but I think Romney is in the lead and will win. Obama’s problem is that his weak performance last night was him. It’s all he’s got. His talking points are stale, his record sucks, and he’s go nowhere else to go. And most undecideds will make up their minds in the last 3 weeks – that’s when the Romney money bomb is set to go off.
peski on October 4, 2012 at 6:36 PM
Brooksie went from pant crease to pant load.
single stack on October 4, 2012 at 6:39 PM
David Brooks: Romney won last night by shifting to “compassionate conservatism”
And Obama lost the debate by showing that the affirmative action bestowed on Obama his whole life failed miserably to prepare him for anything other than impressing the fawning liberal media.
RJL on October 4, 2012 at 6:40 PM
..speaking of pants legs, Rin Tin Tin is back.
The War Planner on October 4, 2012 at 7:05 PM
I think he (Brooks) missed the convention.
Smart conservative.
Fleuries on October 4, 2012 at 7:10 PM
In your dreams, David.
Loser.
petefrt on October 4, 2012 at 7:13 PM
Brooks doing his part to dampen his boyfriend Barry BAMSTAHHHHHHH!!!!! YOU DA MANNNNNNNNNNN BAMMMMMMMY BABYYYY!!! LOVE YA BARRY OL BUDDY OL PALLLLLLL!!!!!! YAHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.
Kat48 PM
cableguy615 on October 4, 2012 at 7:49 PM
And speaking of bloviating idiots with Napoleonic complexes…
ddrintn on October 4, 2012 at 9:16 PM