Scott Brown, moderate When Brown ran in the Senate special election, Romney helped him in two major ways: 1) staff and seed money, and 2) staying out of sight, rather than campaigning with him.

To share the limelight on election night, Romney appeared at the victory celebration to introduce Brown to the national TV audience as his American idol and BFF…

TWIST: A year later, many conservatives are disillusioned with Brown because he has supported liberal legislation and made high-profile compromises with Democrats. So now Romney, a former moderate himself, doesn’t want conservatives to view him as Brown’s sponsor, ally, or mentor. When asked about Brown in Iowa and South Carolina, he will praise his inspiring victory, but not his voting record, independence, or leadership.

Likewise, Brown has apparently concluded he could lose reelection if seen as a Mittite. He now says he might be too busy to campaign for Romney. On MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,’’ he praised Romney as a person, but lauded Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey as a genuine leader.