What Mitt Romney did right
* He raised the money: At the start of the 2012 campaign, most Republicans saw President Obama’s fundraising potential as one of the major hurdles their side would need to overcome. While the Obama team pooh-poohed the idea he would be the first $1 billion candidate, it’s a near-certainty that when the final math on the 2012 cycle is done that the incumbent will have crested that lofty territory. Even so, Romney was Obama’s equal in the fundraising department and even had more money to spend than the incumbent in the final two and a half weeks of the race.
* He avoided infighting: Sure, toward the end of the race there were a handful of blame-game stories that focused on Stevens’ outsized role in the campaign’s senior leadership. But, by and large, the Romney inner political circle remained remarkably cohesive — a major contrast to the backbiting, departures and overall chaos that defined Sen. John McCain’s presidential campaign in 2008. And, according to those who traveled with the campaign or its surrogates, the “road show” — the candidate’s team on the campaign trail — ran smoothly and maximized the time of Romney (and his surrogates). There is a more legitimate debate about whether, from a broader strategic perspective, Romney was spending his time in the right places, but hindsight on those sorts of things is always 20-20.
* He debated well: Compare Romney’s performance across the three debates with that of McCain in 2008 or George W. Bush in 2004 (and, to a lesser extent, 2000) and it’s clear that Romney was the best of the bunch.
Blowback
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His 1st debate was awesome. His second was okay. His third was a complete and utter failure.
portlandon on November 29, 2012 at 7:46 PM
What he did wrong.
He was Romney.
astonerii on November 29, 2012 at 7:47 PM
Seems to be a pattern with our candidates. They all do not want to win it.
McCain hired Palin and when she showed promise for his victory, he pushed her under the bus and the rest of the nation by passing TARP.
Romney just never was willing to do what it would take to win, well, except the primaries. I think he would have killed a million people to win the primary, just so he could ensure another term of Obama.
astonerii on November 29, 2012 at 7:50 PM
Mitt did just about everything right, except that his campaign was 5 months too short because of Palin. Very few have the courage to place the blame where it belongs. Of course, some of her more moronic supporters think a ham sandwich could have beaten Obama.
Basilsbest on November 29, 2012 at 8:16 PM
You need to come out of that sphincter for air someday.
astonerii on November 29, 2012 at 8:24 PM
Romney probably saved the House for the GOP. Any of the other candidates would have dragged many House incumbents down.
rockmom on November 29, 2012 at 8:28 PM
Heal thyself.
Basilsbest on November 29, 2012 at 8:28 PM
Yeah, both candidates raised an insane amount of money. I wonder if it was all necessary though. There must be a point of diminishing returns, especially based on the turnout.
Dongemaharu on November 29, 2012 at 8:34 PM
Less extreme than your God Worshiping of the loser.
astonerii on November 29, 2012 at 8:43 PM
Less extreme? You are deranged. And a true loser.
Basilsbest on November 29, 2012 at 8:53 PM
You argue Romney was a competent person to run for the Presidency. You argue he ran a great campaign. I just made a point that he would and did do anything to win the primary. You take that statement I made as if I believe it and did not use it to drive a point home. Then argue i am the deranged one.
Hint loser. Your perfect candidate and perfect campaign failed. It is a given fact that it did. It did not fail because it was impossible to win. Obama is by far the single worst president this nation has ever had. By all accounts any competent person would have won this election. Yet Romney, supposedly the perfect candidate failed.
astonerii on November 29, 2012 at 8:57 PM
The campaign was too short. Compare Romney’s 1st debate performance as compared with his second and third. Given adequate preparation time he mopped the floor with Obama. In fact it was utter devastation.
You and morons like you think it was easy to defeat a president with all of Obama’s advantages – which I’ve listed for your benefit ad nauseum.
Sarah Palin thought a winning campaign could be launched in 2 months from a brokered convention. A brokered convention would have been an absolute debacle and a winning campaign against a well organized opponent can’t be done in 6 months, let alone 2. The next Dem presidential candidate will have the advantage of an organization put together over the last 5 years. The GOP must deal with this reality. Preparation is an important key to success. I’m writing about this now in the hope that I can add what little I can to prevent a repeat in 2016.
Basilsbest on November 29, 2012 at 9:19 PM
Romney contrasted specifics policies of Obama with his own, but didn’t weave them together to show what it all meant.
He didn’t list dozens of examples of Obama’s aggression against free enterprise, explain how that was socialism and then explain why his more capitalist policies are better for Americans. He didn’t list dozens of ways Obama slighted democratic allies, pandered to tyrants and then explain how that makes us less safe. He didn’t list the dozens of ways Obama turned us against each other, against our social foundations and then list the dozens of elements in Obama’s background that led him teach that with Saul Alinsky tactics and then execute them on America.
That’s a high bar to expect of any candidate, but what was so disturbing was that Romney didn’t even try. I think that he thought that we couldn’t process anything more than incompetence in a president so that’s how he packaged and sold apparent instances of it. The Obama administration is not incompetent, it’s anti colonialist so most Americans didn’t buy it.
Americans needed a candidate to help them understand the threats to their freedom, and Romney just further obscured the largest one. There’s too much noise and misinformation for most Americans to integrate the evidence, and most of those attempting to help them are marginalized on partisan radio and blogs. A successful conservative candidate has to teach the benefits of freedom, constitutional law and democratic tolerance and demonstrate how a progressive liberal opponent is the antithesis of it all. Romney did very little of that.
elfman on November 29, 2012 at 9:31 PM
First debate, otherwise nothing.
bgibbs1000 on November 29, 2012 at 9:34 PM
Listen, you dribbling sycophant. No matter what Sarah Palin said or thought, Romney’s campaign had FAR MORE than two months in which to mount a campaign. He had for all intents and purposes clinched the nomination by March. Now, from that time onward your sycophant little self was telling was what a MAGNIFICENT campaign Romney was conducting. Remember that? Of course you don’t. Your Milquetoast Electable god gets his ass handed to him and you blame…Palin. You’re truly sick.
ddrintn on November 29, 2012 at 9:48 PM
Prove it.
ddrintn on November 29, 2012 at 9:50 PM
By the way, Romney had been preparing for 6 friggin’ YEARS. And, Obama was elected president after a months-long primary battle with Hillary Clinton. You really have run out of excuses, and you’ve become just a sick joke. Honestly, your posts read like some tongue-in-cheek parody.
ddrintn on November 29, 2012 at 9:54 PM
Good grief. Do you ever tire of you hatred. You’ve hung onto this for a year. Let it go dude.
Hate of Mormons? I believe I remember that. Hmmmmm
bluealice on November 29, 2012 at 9:57 PM
You too. Every thread. Tiresome
bluealice on November 29, 2012 at 9:58 PM
COming from some other discredited ‘bot whose head was up Romney’s ass. Show where I was wrong. I dare you.
ddrintn on November 29, 2012 at 10:08 PM
Don’t know how you came to that conclusion. I hardly post here. Never a bot. A Perry gal. Try to keep up.
(discredited??? No idea what you mean. Never claimed credit…funny)
bluealice on November 29, 2012 at 10:11 PM
Oh, come off it. You were one of those on that Romney Red Team Rah Rah bandwagon. Like I said, point out where I’m wrong. So you’re also one of those bitter PerryKrishna types. Big whoop.
ddrintn on November 29, 2012 at 10:15 PM
Gah….You’re not worth it. Never were. Buh Bye. Enjoy your unhappiness.
(PerryKrishna….lol)
bluealice on November 29, 2012 at 10:19 PM
What a surprise…
ddrintn on November 29, 2012 at 10:21 PM