MEMO: After Iowa, The Actual Legacy of the GOP Nomination Contest
To: Paul Begala, Sean Sweeney, Bill Burton & Priorities USA Action Team
Cc: Interested Parties
Fr: Todd Schulte, Chief of Staff, Priorities USA Action
Re: The Actual, Lasting Legacy of the Iowa Caucuses
Thanks to Twitter, cable news, old fashioned person-to-person conversations, I have no doubt that you've already had more than enough minute by minute analysis and opinion on what Tuesday’s caucuses means for the GOP nomination race this morning, this afternoon, and for the rest of the week.
Instead, I thought it might be useful to take a step back and look at what we consider to be the lasting legacies of not just last night, but of the almost year-long slugfest that ended with an uninspiring 2 a.m. thud for that perennial frontrunner, Mitt Romney. Please feel free to pass along or send me your thoughts.
The 5 Legacies:
Mitt Romney was correct to state that he is a man of constancy. Despite running for President for 5 years and spending $14 million between his campaigns and his allied Super PAC in an attempt to deliver an early knockout blow to his rivals in Iowa, he managed to barely tie a candidate who spent roughly 5% of that total.
But because so much of this race is about 2012 Mitt vs. Past Mitt(s), let's compare Mitt to Mitt: Despite spending all the money in the world, getting every break in the nomination he could ask for, and watching opponent after opponent self-destruct, 2012 Mitt received 6 fewer votes than 2008 Mitt!
Doesn't get much more consistent than that. Its also what is called a ceiling, or a serious problem.
And while beating Rick Santorum by 8 votes may not mean a whole lot (I’d go so far as to suggest that a couple of strategically-placed yard signs could have changed things) – losing to 2008 Mitt by 6 votes is irrevocable proof that Romney’s hollow message just isn't convincing a vast majority of Republicans. With all the advantages in the world, Romney remains stuck exactly where he has been for the past 5 years.
Romney’s economic message and jobs record is a huge problem. Just compare Romney and Santorum’s speeches last night: Santorum’s speech was rooted in his personal history; he delivered a passionate blue collar message. Mitt Romney, as Mike Huckabee once said, is still “looks like the guy laid you off.”
Last night’s entrance polling revealed Romney's very serious problems with lower and middle income voters. The plus side for Romney is that he enjoys the strong support of the wealthiest voters in the Republican primary – and no doubt that’s a pool of voters and financial backers important to him (and his Super PAC). And as a man of constancy, he'll never miss a beat when it comes to swearing fealty to their interests.
Low Republican Turnout exposes two serious problems for their party. First, even internally, the only message this party has that resonates is one of blanket opposition to the President. Mike Huckabee alluded to this in a recent interview when he explained why he didn't run, and probably why other would-be-GOP candidates – Barbour, Daniels, Christie, ect. – also took a pass. Forget anything that inspires interest, much less excitement. The 2012 Republican Iowa caucuses had roughly half the number of attendees as the Democratic contest in 2008.
Second, the only passion in the Republican field seems to be coming from the 70% of the electorate intent on finding an “anti-Romney”. Romney is the FRONTRUNNER and his own party’s dislike for him is one of his campaign’s defining problems.
The rush to champion extremist policies has revealed this field to be entirely outside of the mainstream of American politics and it presents potentially disastrous electability issues. While these are almost too many to mention, 3 are worth nothing:
- Romney’s decision to make the elimination of Medicare and support for the Ryan Budget a litmus test for his party will prove disastrous with seniors as well as working and middle class voters. We'd bet you $10,000 this keeps the folks at Romney corporate HQ in Boston up at night as much as any issue.
- Buoyed by the belief it fueled Santorum’s rise in Iowa amongst their most socially conservative voters, the Republican Party’s War on Women is about to take center stage as Perry, Santorum & Romney try to out-do each other on denying reproductive rights in South Carolina.
- But its on the critical issue of immigration where the Republican Party may have self-inflicted their most lasting damage. This has been discussed elsewhere many times, but Mitt Romney’s decision to flank to the far, extreme right of this field will not soon be forgotten.
Super PACs played the critical role in the Iowa caucuses. Super PACs spent more than twice what the campaigns themselves spent on television, and Gingrich’s inability to respond to the attacks coming from Romney’s Super PAC sealed his fate in Iowa.
So as we move forward, the lasting legacy of the Iowa caucus is this: Despite tossing prior positions to the wind to champion many of the most ultra-conservative issues in the entire field, Romney remains stuck in neutral for 5 years running. His candidacy fails to inspire, his message is off-putting even to his own party, and his signature achievement is failing to advance his primary chances while exposing himself as out-of-touch and unappealing to the independent voters who will determine the general election.
STATEMENT: Reaction to Iowa Caucus Results
Statement on Iowa Caucus Results from Bill Burton, Senior Strategist, Priorities USA Action:
Despite Mitt Romney's $14 million bet to win the Iowa Caucuses by promising to eviscerate Medicare and implement a divisive immigration policy, he could do no better than limp to a pathetic finish that didn't even beat his 2008 results. But even worse for Romney, should he become the nominee, he now owns a long-term problem with Hispanic and senior voters that will he will not soon live down.
Background
New Republican litmus tests on the plan to dismantle Medicare and on a divisive and unworkable immigration policy raise concerns from senior and Hispanic voters who have rightly rejected both proposals. [Priorities USA Action Memo, 1/3/12]
In Iowa, Romney Promised to Veto DREAM Act. [LA Times, 1/1/12]
Romney Has Focused on Heated Rhetorical Attacks on Immigration. According to the Washington Post, “In dealing with the issue of immigration, Mitt Romney’s 2012 strategy is exactly like his 2008 strategy — run to the right, liberally use the words “amnesty” and “magnet,” and occasionally refer to illegal immigrants as simply “illegals.”” [Washington Post, 11/28/11]
Romney Focused Attacks on Gingrich Over Immigration. According to The LA Times, “Romney also took on Newt Gingrich for his comments on illegal immigration at Tuesday's debate. He said what Gingrich was describing amounted to "a new doorway for amnesty" and he noted that Gingrich voted for amnesty in the past. "We make a mistake as a Republican Party to try and describe which people who come here illegally should be given amnesty to be able to jump ahead of line of the people who have been waiting in line," he said. "It’s the wrong course for a Republican debate.”[LA Times, 11/23/11]
Romney Campaign Strategy Focused on Moving to Right of Perry by Attacking on Immigration. According to the Washington Post’s Marc Thiessen, “The Romney campaign also plans to use immigration to drive a wedge between Perry and his conservative base, by highlighting Perry's opposition to a border fence and legislation he signed in 2001 allowing the children of illegal immigrants to attend Texas colleges and universities at in-state tuition. Without mentioning Perry by name, Romney pointed out at a town hall here in Dover that he vetoed similar legislation as governor of Massachusetts, declaring, "If you say, guess what, if you come here illegally, your kids will get (in-state tuition), that draws more people here illegally."”[Washington Post, 8/29/11]
Romney Falling Behind Even McCain’s Poor Performance Among Hispanic Voters. In the latest Pew Hispanic Center poll, Romney received only 23% of Hispanic voters, below John McCain’s 31% in 2008. Of the Republican candidates tested against Obama, Romney has the largest gap between his overall support and his support among Hispanic voters. [Pew Hispanic Center, 12/28/11]
From August to October, Romney Has Lost 12 Points Against Obama With Hispanic Voters. Since August, when Rick Perry entered the race, Romney has lost 12 points in a head to head matchup with President Obama among Hispanic voters. This shift took place while, among all voters, Romney lost only 5 points against Obama. [August 16-27 Q Poll; October 25-31 Q Poll]
Even If They Agree With a Candidate on the Economy, Hispanic Voters Say Anti-Immigrant Statements Would Make Them Less Likely to Support. According to a Univision/ABC News poll of Latino voters, 59% of Latinos said they would be less likely to support a candidate who they agreed with on the economy but made a statement like “illegal immigrants are a threat to America who have committed a crime, we can never support amnesty for illegals.” [Univision/ABC News, 11/8/11]
Study: Hispanic Voting Will Increase by 2.5 Million or 26% Over 2008. According to a Fox News report on a study by the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials Educational Fund, “About 9.7 million Hispanics cast ballots in the November 2008 election that brought Barack Obama to the White House, compared with 7.6 million who did so in 2004, the study notes. That participation is increasing and according to the report's projections this will be reflected in the 2012 election, when the Latino vote is anticipated to increase by 26 percent to 12.2 million voters, or 8.7 percent of the country's total.” [Fox News Latino, 6/24/11]
Mitt Romney said he would sign the House budget authored by Paul Ryan. ABC News reported that “On health care, Romney responded ‘yes’ when asked if he would sign the plan written by Rep. Paul Ryan that would restructure Medicare if it reached his desk as President, but quickly added that he would be offering his own plan.” [ABC News, 6/2/11]
Romney attacked Newt Gingrich for not supporting the House budget authored by Paul Ryan. According to the Washington Post, "After previously hedging on the Ryan plan, Romney is now fully declaring his support for it, as a way to wound the surging Newt Gingrich among conservative voters. Newt, you’ll recall, famously referred to the Ryan plan as “right wing social engineering,” and Romney, in a post on his Web site, has revived this Newt quote, and is suggesting he’d sign it into law as president, in order to portray himself as the only true conservative in the race. “With friends like Newt, who needs the left?” the Romney Web site now blares." [Washington Post, 12/8/11]
Wall Street Journal: GOP Plan Would “Essentially End Medicare.” According to the Wall Street Journal, “The plan would essentially end Medicare, which now pays most of the health-care bills for 48 million elderly and disabled Americans, as a program that directly pays those bills.” [Wall Street Journal, 4/4/11]
Los Angeles Times: “Seniors Would End Up Paying Almost Twice As Much.” According to the Los Angeles Times, “But because commercial insurers cost more to run than government plans, the Wisconsin Republican's proposal to privatize Medicare starting in 2022 would actually spark a dramatic increase in how much the nation spends on healthcare for the elderly, according to an independent analysis by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. Even as the federal government cut its own spending, seniors would end up paying almost twice as much out of their own pockets — or more than $12,510 a year, the CBO estimates. Altogether, the total cost of insurance would be higher.” [Los Angeles Times, 4/7/11]
Brookings Institution Senior Fellow: “Most of the savings from spending reductions would go to finance tax cuts.” According to Henry Aaron, a Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution, “Ryan justifies such cuts in the name of deficit reduction. In fact, deficit reduction would be minimal. Most of the savings from spending reductions would go to finance tax cuts - including cuts in the top tax rates from 39.6% to 25% for those who make $375,000 or more. And most of the rest of the claimed savings are illusory. Ryan's baseline assumes that military ventures in Afghanistan and Iraq will continue indefinitely. If one recognizes that these ventures will end, deficit reduction over the next decade would be just $155 billion, a tenth of what Ryan claims.” [Brookings, 4/10/11]
The House budget authored by Paul Ryan is unpopular with a majority of Americans. According to CNN, "A new national poll indicates that a majority of Americans don't like what they've heard so far about congressional Republicans' plans to change Medicare. […] The poll indicates that 58 percent of the public opposes the Republican plan on Medicare, with 35 percent saying they support the proposal." [CNN, 6/1/11]
MEMO: Before Tonight’s Caucuses, What Has Iowa Shown Us About Republicans?
TO: Interested Parties
FR: Bill Burton, Priorities USA Action
RE: MEMO: Before Tonight’s Caucuses, What Has Iowa Shown Us About Republicans?
Even before the Iowa Caucuses tonight, Republican candidates have managed to do permanent damage to their general election prospects with two key voter groups. New Republican litmus tests on the plan to dismantle Medicare and on a divisive and unworkable immigration policy raise concerns from senior and Hispanic voters who have rightly rejected both proposals.
In his effort to dispatch Newt Gingrich and Rick Perry, Mitt Romney has underscored this problem. On Medicare, he harshly criticized Gingrich for opposing the House Republican plan that would essentially end Medicare. And on immigration, he savaged Gingrich and Perry for advocating anything less than a draconian, systematic deportation of all undocumented immigrants.
Hispanic Voters
Over the past year, Hispanic voters have watched as views formerly confined to the Pat Buchanan-Tom Tancredo fringe have become the only acceptable policy for Republican presidential candidates. Since Rick Perry entered the Presidential race in August, Mitt Romney effectively attacked him from the right on immigration using inflammatory rhetoric and embracing far-right policies. As Gingrich’s popularity rose, Romney used the same tactics during a month-long assault. While his demagoguery may have damaged his Republican rivals, it has caused permanent problems for Romney with Hispanic voters and pushed the entire Republican Party to the fringe on immigration.
In the Pew Hispanic Poll released this week, Romney’s falls substantially behind even John McCain’s anemic performance with Hispanic voters, receiving only 23% compared to McCain’s 31%. Compared to other Republicans, Romney specifically is weak with Hispanic voters, where he has a much larger gap between his overall support and support from Hispanic voters.
Senior Voters
Much to the chagrin of their party’s strategists, the House budget continues to serve as a litmus test for Republican presidential candidates. Upon its passage in the House, Republicans fell over each other to praise Chairman Paul Ryan and his plan that would replace Medicare with a voucher program. It was April when Newt Gingrich suffered what was considered a fatal blow to his campaign by criticizing the plan as “right-wing social engineering.” Soon after Mitt Romney came out for the plan, saying he would sign it into law. Now, in the month before Iowa, Romney has touted his strong support for the plan and harshly attacked Gingrich for his past statement.
Embracing a plan that would essentially end Medicare may earn cheers at DC Republican cocktail parties but the plan would be devastating for the middle class. It has consistently fallen among the most unpopular policy proposals because the budget illuminates in stark terms the Republican priorities: massive cuts to health care for seniors in order to pay for even larger tax cuts for the very wealthiest.
Next year, the Republican nominee will try to convince voters to forget their 2011 embrace of right-wing policies that hurt the middle class. But our New Year’s resolution is to make sure voters remember.
Background
In Iowa, Romney Promised to Veto DREAM Act. [LA Times, 1/1/12]
Romney Has Focused on Heated Rhetorical Attacks on Immigration. According to the Washington Post, “In dealing with the issue of immigration, Mitt Romney’s 2012 strategy is exactly like his 2008 strategy — run to the right, liberally use the words “amnesty” and “magnet,” and occasionally refer to illegal immigrants as simply “illegals.”” [Washington Post, 11/28/11]
Romney Focused Attacks on Gingrich Over Immigration. According to The LA Times, “Romney also took on Newt Gingrich for his comments on illegal immigration at Tuesday's debate. He said what Gingrich was describing amounted to "a new doorway for amnesty" and he noted that Gingrich voted for amnesty in the past. "We make a mistake as a Republican Party to try and describe which people who come here illegally should be given amnesty to be able to jump ahead of line of the people who have been waiting in line," he said. "It’s the wrong course for a Republican debate.”[LA Times, 11/23/11]
Romney Campaign Strategy Focused on Moving to Right of Perry by Attacking on Immigration. According to the Washington Post’s Marc Thiessen, “The Romney campaign also plans to use immigration to drive a wedge between Perry and his conservative base, by highlighting Perry's opposition to a border fence and legislation he signed in 2001 allowing the children of illegal immigrants to attend Texas colleges and universities at in-state tuition. Without mentioning Perry by name, Romney pointed out at a town hall here in Dover that he vetoed similar legislation as governor of Massachusetts, declaring, "If you say, guess what, if you come here illegally, your kids will get (in-state tuition), that draws more people here illegally."”[Washington Post, 8/29/11]
Romney Falling Behind Even McCain’s Poor Performance Among Hispanic Voters. In the latest Pew Hispanic Center poll, Romney received only 23% of Hispanic voters, below John McCain’s 31% in 2008. Of the Republican candidates tested against Obama, Romney has the largest gap between his overall support and his support among Hispanic voters. [Pew Hispanic Center, 12/28/11]
From August to October, Romney Has Lost 12 Points Against Obama With Hispanic Voters. Since August, when Rick Perry entered the race, Romney has lost 12 points in a head to head matchup with President Obama among Hispanic voters. This shift took place while, among all voters, Romney lost only 5 points against Obama. [August 16-27 Q Poll; October 25-31 Q Poll]
Even If They Agree With a Candidate on the Economy, Hispanic Voters Say Anti-Immigrant Statements Would Make Them Less Likely to Support. According to a Univision/ABC News poll of Latino voters, 59% of Latinos said they would be less likely to support a candidate who they agreed with on the economy but made a statement like “illegal immigrants are a threat to America who have committed a crime, we can never support amnesty for illegals.” [Univision/ABC News, 11/8/11]
Study: Hispanic Voting Will Increase by 2.5 Million or 26% Over 2008. According to a Fox News report on a study by the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials Educational Fund, “About 9.7 million Hispanics cast ballots in the November 2008 election that brought Barack Obama to the White House, compared with 7.6 million who did so in 2004, the study notes. That participation is increasing and according to the report's projections this will be reflected in the 2012 election, when the Latino vote is anticipated to increase by 26 percent to 12.2 million voters, or 8.7 percent of the country's total.” [Fox News Latino, 6/24/11]
Mitt Romney said he would sign the House budget authored by Paul Ryan. ABC News reported that “On health care, Romney responded ‘yes’ when asked if he would sign the plan written by Rep. Paul Ryan that would restructure Medicare if it reached his desk as President, but quickly added that he would be offering his own plan.” [ABC News, 6/2/11]
Romney attacked Newt Gingrich for not supporting the House budget authored by Paul Ryan. According to the Washington Post, "After previously hedging on the Ryan plan, Romney is now fully declaring his support for it, as a way to wound the surging Newt Gingrich among conservative voters. Newt, you’ll recall, famously referred to the Ryan plan as “right wing social engineering,” and Romney, in a post on his Web site, has revived this Newt quote, and is suggesting he’d sign it into law as president, in order to portray himself as the only true conservative in the race. “With friends like Newt, who needs the left?” the Romney Web site now blares." [Washington Post, 12/8/11]
Wall Street Journal: GOP Plan Would “Essentially End Medicare.” According to the Wall Street Journal, “The plan would essentially end Medicare, which now pays most of the health-care bills for 48 million elderly and disabled Americans, as a program that directly pays those bills.” [Wall Street Journal, 4/4/11]
Los Angeles Times: “Seniors Would End Up Paying Almost Twice As Much.” According to the Los Angeles Times, “But because commercial insurers cost more to run than government plans, the Wisconsin Republican's proposal to privatize Medicare starting in 2022 would actually spark a dramatic increase in how much the nation spends on healthcare for the elderly, according to an independent analysis by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. Even as the federal government cut its own spending, seniors would end up paying almost twice as much out of their own pockets — or more than $12,510 a year, the CBO estimates. Altogether, the total cost of insurance would be higher.” [Los Angeles Times, 4/7/11]
Brookings Institution Senior Fellow: “Most of the savings from spending reductions would go to finance tax cuts.” According to Henry Aaron, a Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution, “Ryan justifies such cuts in the name of deficit reduction. In fact, deficit reduction would be minimal. Most of the savings from spending reductions would go to finance tax cuts - including cuts in the top tax rates from 39.6% to 25% for those who make $375,000 or more. And most of the rest of the claimed savings are illusory. Ryan's baseline assumes that military ventures in Afghanistan and Iraq will continue indefinitely. If one recognizes that these ventures will end, deficit reduction over the next decade would be just $155 billion, a tenth of what Ryan claims.” [Brookings, 4/10/11]
The House budget authored by Paul Ryan is unpopular with a majority of Americans. According to CNN, "A new national poll indicates that a majority of Americans don't like what they've heard so far about congressional Republicans' plans to change Medicare. […] The poll indicates that 58 percent of the public opposes the Republican plan on Medicare, with 35 percent saying they support the proposal." [CNN, 6/1/11]
MEMO: War is Over, If You Want It
TO: Interested Parties
FR: Bill Burton, Priorities USA Action
RE: Sunday Memo: War is Over, If You Want It
On the week that President Barack Obama kept his promise to end the war in Iraq, the Republican candidates have been conspicuously unwilling to defend their own position on keeping troops in Iraq. While the Republican candidates lack the backbone to speak out this week, they have repeatedly criticized President Obama’s successful work to end the Iraq War.
The apparent desire of Republican frontrunners Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich to keep American troops in Iraq indefinitely undermines America’s national security interests and forces middle class taxpayers to pick up the tab for Republican overseas spending. At $50 billion a year, the Romney-Gingrich plan for Iraq could instead pay for the ten year cost of the American Jobs Act, adding up to 1.9 million jobs here in America.
The Romney-Gingrich plan for an indefinite military presence in Iraq is only one part of their agenda for significant new overseas spending:
· Romney has proposed increasing government spending on the military by $30 billion a year without any plan to pay for it, garnering criticism from even other Republicans.
· Gingrich and Romney oppose Administration efforts to begin to reduce our troop presence in Afghanistan. While Romney has changed positions multiple times to correspond with opinion polls, they have both made clear that they prefer no timeline for withdrawal. The Romney-Gingrich indefinite military presence in Afghanistan costs taxpayers north of $100 billion every year.
· In the event that the US was forced to enter into another military conflict, Romney and Gingrich’s stated preference for unilateral military action would leave American taxpayers footing the entire bill for maintaining world stability. Their go-it-alone approach was inadvisable when George Bush pursued it in Iraq and it is simply unaffordable now.
Perhaps the worst part of the Romney-Gingrich foreign policy is that they both expect middle class families to pay for their overseas spending. Romney and Gingrich have already stated that, no matter what, they will not ask the wealthiest Americans to contribute to balancing our budget or paying for overseas wars. Instead, Romney and Gingrich propose cutting Medicare for seniors and slashing education for the middle class.
It’s simple budget math: the Romney-Gingrich plan for more spending overseas plus their pledge that the wealthiest Americans will not pay a dime more means middle class families will be forced to pick up the check for their overseas spending.
Background
New York Times: “Republican Candidates Mum on Iraq.” According to the New York Times, “The end of the Iraq war has been marked with speeches and ceremonies in Washington, Baghdad, Fort Bragg, N.C., and elsewhere. But it has gone almost completely unremarked on the Republican campaign trail. At the debate in Sioux City, Iowa, on Thursday night, Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich and Rick Perry did not mention Iraq at all, leaving it to Michelle Bachmann and Ron Paul to mentioned it only briefly.” [New York Times, 12/16/11]
Romney Supported Bush’s Invasion Of Iraq. “But one thing I can tell you is that when the president made his decision, based upon the intelligence that existed then -- from our own intelligence sources and around the world -- I supported the president’s action.” [Fox News, 4/24/07]
Romney criticized President Obama for announcing a timeline for withdrawal from Afghanistan. According to the Boston Globe, “Romney praised the decision to send additional troops to Afghanistan, but criticized President Obama’s announcement of when troops will withdraw. ‘The Taliban may not have watches, but they do have calendars,’ Romney said.” [Boston Globe, 6/2/11]
Romney Called Removal of Troops By Year End “Astonishing Failure.” In October, Romney said, “President Obama’s astonishing failure to secure an orderly transition in Iraq has unnecessarily put at risk the victories that were won through the blood and sacrifice of thousands of American men and women. The unavoidable question is whether this decision is the result of a naked political calculation or simply sheer ineptitude in negotiations with the Iraqi government.” [Romney Statement, 10/21/11]
Gingrich Called Effort to Begin Withdrawal From Afghanistan “Dangerous.” On Fox News, Gingrich said, “I think we are drifting to a very, very dangerous situation. None of the generals recommended the speed of the drawdown the president wants. We are beginning to lose in the region.” [Fox News via Think Progress, 7/29/11]
WSJ: “On Afghanistan, Romney aides said the former governor would defer to U.S. military commanders on how and when to reduce the U.S. military presence.” [Wall Street Journal, 10/8/11]
The US Spent Nearly $50 Billion in Iraq, Over $100 Billion in Afghanistan Last Year. According to Bloomberg, "The budget for the 2011 fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30, includes $113.5 billion for Afghanistan operations and $45.8 billion for Iraq. “[Bloomberg, 6/21/11]
Congressional Budget Office: Iraq War will cost about $1.9 trillion. According to Reuters, “CBO estimated that of the $2.4 trillion long-term price tag for the war, about $1.9 trillion of that would be spent on Iraq.” [Reuters, 10/24/07]
The US spent $118.6 billion on the Afghan war in 2011. According to the New York Times, "Spending on the war in Afghanistan has skyrocketed since Mr. Obama took office, to $118.6 billion in 2011. It was $14.7 billion in 2003, when President George W. Bush turned his attention and American resources to the war in Iraq." [New York Times, 6/21/2011]
On Talk Radio, Romney Criticized Obama for Seeking Support from United Nations and Arab League for Military Action in Libya. On Hugh Hewitt's radio show, Romney claimed, "And he calls for the removal of Muammar Gaddafi, but then conditions our action on the directions we get from the Arab League and theUnited Nations." [Hugh Hewitt, 3/21/11]
Gingrich Said He Would Appoint Unilateral Extremist John Bolton Secretary of State. Gingrich said he would offer to appoint former UN Ambassador John Bolton as Secretary of State. Bolton was one of the most extreme members of the Bush Administration who expressed open disdain for attempts to enlist allies for military action and for the United Nations. The Economist called Bolton “an abrasive unilateralist” and "the most controversial ambassador ever sent by America to the United Nations… probably his most noted trait during his brief 16-month stint in New York has been his inability, or unwillingness, to make friends and build alliances in an organisation where networking, compromise and consensus are the order of the day. “Instinctively, he's a bully,” one Western ambassador complained. “He has succeeded in putting almost everyone's back up, even among America's closest allies.”” [Economist, 12/7/06]
Mitt Romney proposed an increase in defense spending of about $30 billion. According to the Wall Street Journal, “Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney laid out a hawkish foreign policy in a speech in South Carolina on Friday, saying he would boost defense spending and expand the size of the Navy while deferring to military commanders on how long to keep U.S. troops in Afghanistan. […] The speech came a day after Mr. Romney proposed increasing U.S. active-duty forces by 100,000 people and boosting noncombat defense spending to 4% of gross domestic product, up from about 3.8% now. That increase would amount to roughly $30 billion more in defense spending a year.” [Wall Street Journal, 10/8/11]
Criticized by Huntsman for Building Foreign Policy Around Spending. According to the Wall Street Journal, “Huntsman took direct aim at Mr. Romney's speech, writing in an opinion piece Friday that "simply advocating for more ships, more troops and more weapons isn't a viable foreign policy." Mr. Huntsman said he opposed the status quo of "more military entanglements and more spending."” [Wall Street Journal, 10/8/11]
Gingrich Falsely Claimed Military Spending Was At Historic Low. According to Politifact Georgia, “Gingrich tweeted that the country now spends less on defense as a percentage of the GDP than at any time since the start of World War II. That’s a firm statement, but since the Cold War ended, and in a few other years as well, the percent of GDP used for defense has been consistently lower than current spending levels. Further, experts say the concept is highly misleading.” [Politifact, 7/20/11]
Romney Said He Wouldn’t Support Asking Wealthy to Pay Any More in Taxes. Romney said he opposed asking the wealthiest to pay any additional in taxes, calling them “employers” and saying, “I don’t want to raise taxes on employers.” Additionally, Romney has signed the Americans Tax Reform pledge to never raise taxes. It is estimated that Romney pays about 14% in federal taxes and opposes attempts to correct the fact that his tax rate islower than many middle class families. [Time, 10/3/11; Boston Globe, 8/16/11; Think Progress, 8/15/11]
Gingrich Tax Plan Includes Massive New Tax Cuts for the Wealthy, Gingrich Has Pledged to Never Raise Taxes. According to Bloomberg, “The top 1 percent of taxpayers, who earn more than $629,809, would receive an average tax cut of $343,993 in 2015. That change would boost their after-tax income by 25.5 percent and put their average federal tax rate at 12.8 percent. The top 0.1 percent, or households with incomes exceeding $2.9 million, would get an average tax cut of $1.9 million.” Gingrich has signed the Americans for Tax Reform pledge that prevents any effort to ask the wealthy to pay more in taxes. [Bloomberg, 12/12/11; Americans for Tax Reform]
MEMO: Romney’s Recurring Negative Campaign
TO: Interested Parties
FR: Bill Burton, Priorities USA Action
Video: American Bridge 21st Century
RE: Sunday Memo: Romney’s Recurring Negative Campaign
DA: December 9, 2011
Link to video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=po-Gr9tzYlU
As we learned from the 2008 campaign, the more desperate Romney gets, the more negative he becomes. This week is the beginning of the 2012 edition of Mitt Romney's GOP Desperation Express. His negative campaigns are kissing cousins of his positive campaigns in one regard: He'll say and do anything if he things it will help him get elected.
During the 2008 campaign, Romney launched attacks against every one of his major rivals-- Mike Huckabee, John McCain, Fred Thompson, Rudy Giuliani. His Republican opponents said of the ads: “distortion,” “hypocrisy,” “lying,” “desperate,” “dishonest,” “simply aren’t true,” and “clear willingness to say and do anything for political gain.” While the Republican candidates disagreed on much, there was a general agreement that Romney’s relentless attacks were unfair.
Many commentators argued that the ads backfired – helping to propel Huckabee and McCain to come-from-behind victories in Iowa and New Hampshire. But in 2008 and 2012, a scorched-earth campaign is the only strategic path for a candidate who has shown for six years that the appeal of his positive message is limited to 25% of Republican primary voters.
It’s not just the negativity of Romney’s attacks that turns off voters, it’s that their message reinforces Romney’s key weakness. In 2008 and now, Romney launched harsh immigration attacks accusing opponents of supporting “amnesty” when he had earlier defended the same plan and said it was “not amnesty.” He bashes opponents as career politicians despite his 17-year political career. He attacked John McCain for opposing tax cuts that he had refused to take a position on. He went after Giuliani for pro-choice views despite his own long history of claiming to support abortion rights.
These obviously hypocritical attacks may help explain why nearly half of Republican voters believe Romney “will do or say anything to win.”
As we learned from the 2008 campaign, the more desperate Romney gets, the more negative he becomes. This week is just the beginning.
Background
Nearly Half of Likely GOP Voters in Iowa and New Hampshire Believe Romney “Will Do or Say Anything To Win.” According to a Bloomberg Poll conducted by Selzer & Company, 48% of likely Iowa Caucus goers and 43% of likely New Hampshire primary voters say Romney “will do or say anything to win.” [Bloomberg, 11/17/11]
Senator McCain had to defend himself against Mitt Romney's attacks in 2008. Responding to Mitt Romney during a 2008 debate, John McCain defending his immigration plan saying, "It's not amnesty. And for you to describe it as you do in the attack ads, my friend, you can spend your whole fortune on these attack ads, but it still won't be true." [ABC News transcript, 1/5/08; Video]
Giuliani Campaign: Iowa Voters Can’t Be Bought By Romney Attacks. The Giuliani campaign responded to Romney’s mailing saying, “Iowa voters can’t be bought and they certainly won’t buy what Mitt Romney is selling distortion, hypocrisy and a clear willingness to say and do anything for political gain.” The campaign added that when he was governor, Romney had “a record that included allowing the number of illegal immigrants to skyrocket while he was in charge, and even hiring some of them to work on his lawn while he was governor.” [Associated Press, 11/6/07]
Mike Huckabee criticized Mitt Romney for running attack ads in the 2008 campaign, calling him "desperate" and "dishonest." In a December 2008 appearance on Meet the Press, Mike Huckabee said, "Mitt Romney is running a very desperate and, frankly, a dishonest campaign. He's attacked me, and, and yesterday--or Friday, I guess it was, he launched then just a broadside attack against Senator McCain. Now, Senator McCain and I are rivals for the presidency, but I've said on many occasions, I'll say it again here today, Senator McCain is an honorable man, and I believe he's an honest man. I believe he's a man of conviction. And I felt like that, when Mitt Romney went after the integrity of John McCain, he stepped across a line." [Meet the Press transcript, 12/30/07]
Mike Huckabee criticized Mitt Romney for negative ads during the 2008 campaign. According to the Washington Times, Huckabee accused "Mr. Romney of directing dishonest attacks at the entire Republican field. "If he becomes president, he will likely not start being honest in the job if he had to be dishonest to get there," said Mr. Huckabee, a former Arkansas governor." [The Washington Times, 12/30/07]
Mike Huckabee criticized Mitt Romney's 2008 campaign for negative attacks, calling them "out of bounds." Speaking to CNN, Huckabee said that, "And I just think that the attacks by the Romney campaign have gotten really kind of out of bounds for good politics, particularly within the Republican Party, totally violating Reagan's 11th commandment. And it's certainly not the kind of, I think, discourse that makes for a good election and for a good decision on the part of the voters." [CNN transcript, 12/31/07]
John McCain criticized Mitt Romney's 2008 campaign for negative attacks. Speaking to reporters in South Carolina, McCain said "I wish we could talk about our own qualifications and vision rather than attacking other candidates which apparently the Romney campaign seems to be doing rather frequently and I don't think it helps." [CBS News, 12/11/07]
John McCain criticized Mitt Romney, saying that his attacks were "the best indicator that I'm doing very well." Speaking to reporters in New Hampshire, McCain said ""The best indicator that I'm doing very well is that when you're attacked by Romney," he said, suggesting his rise in New Hampshire polls is provoking this attention from Romney. "And I don't know how to respond to some of it because his position may change tomorrow," he added." [CBS News, 12/28/07]
Romney Attacked McCain, Giuliani, Gingrich for Supporting “Amnesty,” Despite His Previous Praise for the Same Plan. In the 2008 campaign, Romney claimed in a debate that he was not calling John McCain’s plan “amnesty” but had two television ads running that made that claim, despite the fact that Romney had previously said McCain’s plan was “not amnesty.” McCain said, “you can spend your whole fortune on these attack ads, but it still won't be true.” Romney then claimed while he was attacking McCain for supporting amnesty, he couldn’t define it himself, saying, “you're going to have to define the word for me.” This year Romney has attacked Gingrich for supporting “amnesty” and was corned on Fox News for seeming to favor the same policy. [Boston Globe, 11/29/11; Rush Limbaugh, 11/23/11; McCain Challenging Romney on Immigration in 2007 Debate]
Mitt Romney attacked Rudy Giuliani's for being pro-choice despite Romney previously claiming to be pro-choice. While speaking to reporters in New Hampshire, Romney said "I believe it's important for someone to be pro-life, to be pro-family and pro-traditional marriage, to be in favor of legal immigration but against illegal immigration and to have a record of insisting on the highest ethical standards, and I'm afraid that on all four of those measures that Mayor Giuliani would be the wrong course for our party." [Washington Post, 11/26/07]
Romney Criticized McCain For Not Supporting Bush Tax Cuts. Romney said, “I don’t recall Senator McCain saying…that he was wrong to vote against the Bush tax cuts…I think he was.” Romney also said that “he was quicker than McCain to endorse President Bush’s tax cuts.” The Romney campaign aired a television ad attacking John McCain for voting against the Bush tax cuts. [Washington Post, 12/29/07; International Herald Tribune, 12/28/07; Atlanta Journal Constitution, 12/23/07; East Valley Tribune, 11/14/06]
“Romney Rather Pointedly Refused To Endorse The Bush Tax Cuts In 2003.” “Romney is correct to say that he never publicly opposed Bush’s tax cuts. But while he may have supported them, we find no record of his doing so in public. Indeed, Romney rather pointedly refused to endorse the Bush tax cuts in 2003.” [Factcheck.org, 1/7/08]
MEMO: On Israel, President Obama Leads while Republicans Play Politics
TO: Interested Parties
FR: Bill Burton, Priorities USA Action
RE: MEMO: On Israel, President Obama Leads while Republicans Play Politics
The bipartisan consensus in support of America's relationship with Israel -- a relationship President Obama has called "an unbreakable bond" -- is something to be celebrated. As top Israeli leaders have repeatedly said, President Obama has consistently fought for a secure Israel and peace in the Middle East. But rather than recognize the President's leadership and his strong support for the Israeli-American relationship, today Newt Gingrich and Mitt Romney continued to play politics with false attacks on the President.
BACKGROUND
Ehud Barak (Israeli Defense Minister): “I’m the minister of defense, I can tell you that I can hardly remember — I was in uniform for decades — I can hardly remember a better period of support, American support and cooperation and similar strategic understanding of events around us than what we have right now.” [Fox News, 8/4/11]
Prime Minister Netanyahu: "I would like to express my gratitude to the President of the United States, Barack Obama. I asked for his help. This was a decisive and fateful moment. He said, “I will do everything I can.” And so he did. He used every considerable means and influence of the United States to help us. We owe him a special measure of gratitude. This attests to the strong alliance between Israel and the United States." [JTA, 9/10/11]
Wall Street Journal: “Meanwhile, visits by the Israeli and American military brass have jumped dramatically. Since becoming Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in 2007, Adm. Michael Mullen has made four visits to Israel, two of them this year alone. Before Adm. Mullen, no chairman of the joint chiefs had visited Israel for over a decade. Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak has visited Washington four times so far this year, a schedule unmatched by any recent Israeli defense minister. "There's been a constant stream of American officers coming through," said one senior Israeli army officer. "I haven't seen anything like it in my 20 years in the army."” [Wall Street Journal, 8/14/11]
Elliott Abrams, a former Bush National Security Adviser: "'It’s the best military-to-military relationship ever.’ And that part is true.” [Daily Beast, 9/25/11]
AIPAC Spokesman: “Clearly the Obama administration remains deeply committed to the U.S.-Israel alliance, and supporting aid to Israel and deepening our military cooperation is just one aspect of that.” [Think Progress, 8/18/10]
MEMO: On Israel, President Obama Leads while Republicans Play Politics
TO: Interested Parties
FR: Bill Burton, Priorities USA Action
RE: MEMO: On Israel, President Obama Leads while Republicans Play Politics
The bipartisan consensus in support of America's relationship with Israel -- a relationship President Obama has called "an unbreakable bond" -- is something to be celebrated. As top Israeli leaders have repeatedly said, President Obama has consistently fought for a secure Israel and peace in the Middle East. But rather than recognize the President's leadership and his strong support for the Israeli-American relationship, today Newt Gingrich and Mitt Romney continued to play politics with false attacks on the President.
BACKGROUND
Ehud Barak (Israeli Defense Minister): “I’m the minister of defense, I can tell you that I can hardly remember — I was in uniform for decades — I can hardly remember a better period of support, American support and cooperation and similar strategic understanding of events around us than what we have right now.” [Fox News, 8/4/11]
Prime Minister Netanyahu: "I would like to express my gratitude to the President of the United States, Barack Obama. I asked for his help. This was a decisive and fateful moment. He said, “I will do everything I can.” And so he did. He used every considerable means and influence of the United States to help us. We owe him a special measure of gratitude. This attests to the strong alliance between Israel and the United States." [JTA, 9/10/11]
Wall Street Journal: “Meanwhile, visits by the Israeli and American military brass have jumped dramatically. Since becoming Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in 2007, Adm. Michael Mullen has made four visits to Israel, two of them this year alone. Before Adm. Mullen, no chairman of the joint chiefs had visited Israel for over a decade. Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak has visited Washington four times so far this year, a schedule unmatched by any recent Israeli defense minister. "There's been a constant stream of American officers coming through," said one senior Israeli army officer. "I haven't seen anything like it in my 20 years in the army."” [Wall Street Journal, 8/14/11]
Elliott Abrams, a former Bush National Security Adviser: "'It’s the best military-to-military relationship ever.’ And that part is true.” [Daily Beast, 9/25/11]
AIPAC Spokesman: “Clearly the Obama administration remains deeply committed to the U.S.-Israel alliance, and supporting aid to Israel and deepening our military cooperation is just one aspect of that.” [Think Progress, 8/18/10]
PRIORITIES POINTS: Behind Mitt Romney’s Unpopularity? Mitt Romney.
TO: Interested Parties
FR: Priorities USA Action
RE: Priorities Points: Behind Mitt Romney’s Unpopularity? Mitt Romney.
After non-stop travel, millions of dollars spent, and rave reviews from the Washington elite, Mitt Romney has actually managed to become substantially less popular. In all 15 states polled twice by Public Policy Polling, Romney is less popular than he was earlier this year. Those numbers should defy logic: By conventional political metrics, the sixth year of Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign has been virtually flawless.
He’s faced no new scandals, no recent damaging gaffes, no problems raising money, no problems with his campaign operation, no difficult political environment, and no unsafe policy proposals.
Looks like the cause of Mitt Romney’s drop in popularity is… Mitt Romney himself.
48% of likely Iowa Caucus participants and 43% of likely New Hampshire primary voters believe Romney “will do or say anything to win.” Nearly half of the Republican base, the group that knows Romney best, believe he “will do or say anything to win.”
There are several moments in the last few months where Romney’s vulnerabilities have been particularly apparent to voters:
- Disingenuous Immigration Attacks: His attacks on Newt Gingrich and Rick Perry from the right on immigration, deficits, and Social Security may have done permanent damage to Perry but seem disingenuous coming from a politician who has been on all sides of those issues. As Newt Gingrich said this week, “If you run to the left of Teddy Kennedy, it is a little tricky, then, to try to run to the right of Newt Gingrich.”
- Debt Ceiling Dance: During the debt ceiling debate, as both sides forcefully advocated for their position, Romney was nowhere to be found. It was an obvious political calculation that only reinforced the view that even when the full faith and credit of the US is at stake, Romney is off somewhere else thinking about his political future.
- Waffle in Ohio: While campaigning in Ohio, Romney pointedly refused to endorse an unpopular but signature Republican effort to rollback collective bargaining rights, potentially avoiding a damaging general election issue. But, within a day, facing nationwide political pressure from conservatives, Romney reversed himself and endorsed the measure.
Data
Romney’s Popularity Declined in All 15 States Polled Twice, Often Substantially. In the 15 states where Public Policy Polling has polled twice, Romney’s popularity has declined in all 21 including declines of 28 points in Florida, 20 points in Pennsylvania, 18 in Arizona, 17 in Ohio and 16 in Iowa. [Public Policy Polling, 10/30/11, 10/29/11]
Romney’s “Positive Intensity” Score by Gallup Lowest He’s Ever Seen After Steady Decline Since April. Gingrich decline in Gallup’s “Positive Intensity” score to 11 is his lowest since Gallup began publicizing the measure. In April, Romney’s score was 20 and has declined steadily since to 15 last month and 11 today. Romney trails both Newt Gingrich and Herman Cain. [Gallup, 11/22/11]
Nearly Half of Likely GOP Voters in Iowa and New Hampshire Believe Romney “Will Do or Say Anything To Win.” According to a Bloomberg Poll conducted by Selzer & Company, 48% of likely Iowa Caucus goers and 43% of likely New Hampshire primary voters say Romney “will do or say anything to win.” [Bloomberg, 11/17/11]
Sunday Memo: Mitt Romney’s 1994 – the year his career in politics began
TO: Interested Parties
FR: Bill Burton, Priorities USA Action
RE: SUNDAY MEMO: Mitt Romney’s 1994 – the year his career in politics began
VIDEO: American Bridge 21st Century
1994… The Internet was coming to age. Courtney Cox and David Schwimmer debuted the first episode of Friends. O.J. Simpson led America on a slow, winding “chase” to infamy. I got my first car (’84 Chevette). And Mitt Romney -- the man now calling Newt Gingrich a “career politician” -- was beginning his 17-year career in national politics.
It’s a tactic Romney has perfected over his two decades running for office: Regardless of the circumstances, painting himself as the political outsider and his opponent as a career politician.
The irony is not just the long time Romney has spent in politics, but how he embodies the characteristics of a ‘career politicians’ he claims to be so eager to defeat. He has opportunistically changed on core beliefs so frequently, the conservative Manchester Union Leader wrote that Romney just “tells us what he thinks we want to hear.” But, to court (and win) support from the Republican establishment in Washington and on Wall Street, Romney has continued his pattern of pandering. Even the food he eats and the airlines he flies feel calculated by his chief pollster and strategist.
In the 1994 campaign, Romney’s career politician sentiment may have been honest: “I’ve never run for office before, that’s why I finally decided to do it.”
But it was stale even he flirted with running for office in Utah and Massachusetts in the early 2000s
It became questionable as he ran for Governor of Massachusetts in 2002.
By the time he began running for President in 2006, it was silly.
Five years into his hunt for the White House, it’s just phony.
Stalled at a 23% plateau for five years now, Romney may have damaged Rick Perry with his savage attacks in the last two months but he did nothing to improve his own standing in the wake. His increased attacks on Newt Gingrich offer yet another opportunity to brutalize a Republican opponent but the disingenuous nature of the attack may well work against him.
Background
American Bridge 21st Century Video: Mitt Romney: A 17-Year Career Politician
This week, Mitt Romney called Newt Gingrich a 'lifelong politician.' According to the Chicago Tribune, "Mitt Romney argued Tuesday that he'd be the best Republican candidate to take on President Obama next fall, saying the party needs to do better than a "lifelong politician" like Newt Gingrich. […] "I think to get President Obama out of office, you're going to have to bring something to the race that's different than what he brings," Romney said, after pointing out that Gingrich has spent "30 or 40 years in Washington." "He's a lifelong politician. I think you have to have the credibility of understanding how the economy works. And I do." [Chicago Tribune, 11/29/11]
Mitt Romney attacked Rick Perry as a 'career politician.' According to Yahoo! News, "Rick Perry's poll numbers may be sinking to new lows, but Mitt Romney still considers the Texas governor his most politically viable opponent in the Republican presidential race. Ignoring his other rivals, Romney continues to focus his attacks exclusively on Perry. Case in point: A new website slamming Perry as a "career politician." [Yahoo! News, 10/18/11]
The New Hampshire Union Leader endorsement of Newt Gingrich implied that Mitt Romney 'tells us what he thinks we want to hear.' In their endorsement of Newt Gingrich, the New Hampshire Union Leader wrote that, "We don't have to agree with them on every issue. We would rather back someone with whom we may sometimes disagree than one who tells us what he thinks we want to hear." [Union Leader, 11/27/11]
Union Leader's Editorial page editor confirmed criticism of Romney. Cline explained, "And in our assessment, if you were to balance it between Romney and Gingrich, Romney is a very play-it-safe candidate. He doesn't want to offend everybody -- or anybody. He wants to be liked. He wants to try to reach out and -- and be very safe, reach out to everybody, bring everybody on board. And that's, A, not very realistic, but imagine what that would be like as president, somebody who plays it very safe. I don't think we're in the kind of situation right now as a country that that's necessarily the right kind of president at the moment -- perhaps in the late 19th century, perfect. Right now, we're in a lot of trouble in this country. We need a candidate that is bold in his leadership, that has a vision for where he wants to take the country and knows how to get there.” [CNN transcript, 11/27/11; Video]
Romney campaign using Twitter photos to promote image that Romney flies Southwest and eats Subway. According to the Daily Caller, “Mitt Romney is an ordinary American, who flies and eats cheap just like us. Take a look at the Republican presidential candidate’s Twitter feed in recent days, and it’s clear his campaign is making an effort to show that… This isn’t the first time Romney made an effort to not appear so formal, stuffy or wealthy in the age of a weak economy and the tea parties. He’s also noticeably ditched the tie at while on the trail.” [Daily Caller, 9/1/11]
Romney: “I’m In This Race Not Because It’s The Next Step In My Political Career. I Don’t Have A Political Career!” On The November 23rd episode of Hardball, Michael Smerconish said ‘Joe, let me play for all of us, but for you comment on, what Governor Romney said today explaining he’s not a career politician.’ The show then cut to a clip of Mitt Romney saying, ‘I’m in this race not because it’s the next step in my political career. I don’t have a political career!’” [MSNBC’s Hardball, 11/23/11]
Sunday Memo: Mitt Romney’s 1994 – the year his career in politics began
TO: Interested Parties
FR: Bill Burton, Priorities USA Action
RE: SUNDAY MEMO: Mitt Romney’s 1994 – the year his career in politics began
VIDEO: American Bridge 21st Century
1994… The Internet was coming to age. Courtney Cox and David Schwimmer debuted the first episode of Friends. O.J. Simpson led America on a slow, winding “chase” to infamy. I got my first car (’84 Chevette). And Mitt Romney -- the man now calling Newt Gingrich a “career politician” -- was beginning his 17-year career in national politics.
It’s a tactic Romney has perfected over his two decades running for office: Regardless of the circumstances, painting himself as the political outsider and his opponent as a career politician.
The irony is not just the long time Romney has spent in politics, but how he embodies the characteristics of a ‘career politicians’ he claims to be so eager to defeat. He has opportunistically changed on core beliefs so frequently, the conservative Manchester Union Leader wrote that Romney just “tells us what he thinks we want to hear.” But, to court (and win) support from the Republican establishment in Washington and on Wall Street, Romney has continued his pattern of pandering. Even the food he eats and the airlines he flies feel calculated by his chief pollster and strategist.
In the 1994 campaign, Romney’s career politician sentiment may have been honest: “I’ve never run for office before, that’s why I finally decided to do it.”
But it was stale even he flirted with running for office in Utah and Massachusetts in the early 2000s
It became questionable as he ran for Governor of Massachusetts in 2002.
By the time he began running for President in 2006, it was silly.
Five years into his hunt for the White House, it’s just phony.
Stalled at a 23% plateau for five years now, Romney may have damaged Rick Perry with his savage attacks in the last two months but he did nothing to improve his own standing in the wake. His increased attacks on Newt Gingrich offer yet another opportunity to brutalize a Republican opponent but the disingenuous nature of the attack may well work against him.
Background
American Bridge 21st Century Video: Mitt Romney: A 17-Year Career Politician
This week, Mitt Romney called Newt Gingrich a 'lifelong politician.' According to the Chicago Tribune, "Mitt Romney argued Tuesday that he'd be the best Republican candidate to take on President Obama next fall, saying the party needs to do better than a "lifelong politician" like Newt Gingrich. […] "I think to get President Obama out of office, you're going to have to bring something to the race that's different than what he brings," Romney said, after pointing out that Gingrich has spent "30 or 40 years in Washington." "He's a lifelong politician. I think you have to have the credibility of understanding how the economy works. And I do." [Chicago Tribune, 11/29/11]
Mitt Romney attacked Rick Perry as a 'career politician.' According to Yahoo! News, "Rick Perry's poll numbers may be sinking to new lows, but Mitt Romney still considers the Texas governor his most politically viable opponent in the Republican presidential race. Ignoring his other rivals, Romney continues to focus his attacks exclusively on Perry. Case in point: A new website slamming Perry as a "career politician." [Yahoo! News, 10/18/11]
The New Hampshire Union Leader endorsement of Newt Gingrich implied that Mitt Romney 'tells us what he thinks we want to hear.' In their endorsement of Newt Gingrich, the New Hampshire Union Leader wrote that, "We don't have to agree with them on every issue. We would rather back someone with whom we may sometimes disagree than one who tells us what he thinks we want to hear." [Union Leader, 11/27/11]
Union Leader's Editorial page editor confirmed criticism of Romney. Cline explained, "And in our assessment, if you were to balance it between Romney and Gingrich, Romney is a very play-it-safe candidate. He doesn't want to offend everybody -- or anybody. He wants to be liked. He wants to try to reach out and -- and be very safe, reach out to everybody, bring everybody on board. And that's, A, not very realistic, but imagine what that would be like as president, somebody who plays it very safe. I don't think we're in the kind of situation right now as a country that that's necessarily the right kind of president at the moment -- perhaps in the late 19th century, perfect. Right now, we're in a lot of trouble in this country. We need a candidate that is bold in his leadership, that has a vision for where he wants to take the country and knows how to get there.” [CNN transcript, 11/27/11; Video]
Romney campaign using Twitter photos to promote image that Romney flies Southwest and eats Subway. According to the Daily Caller, “Mitt Romney is an ordinary American, who flies and eats cheap just like us. Take a look at the Republican presidential candidate’s Twitter feed in recent days, and it’s clear his campaign is making an effort to show that… This isn’t the first time Romney made an effort to not appear so formal, stuffy or wealthy in the age of a weak economy and the tea parties. He’s also noticeably ditched the tie at while on the trail.” [Daily Caller, 9/1/11]
Romney: “I’m In This Race Not Because It’s The Next Step In My Political Career. I Don’t Have A Political Career!” On The November 23rd episode of Hardball, Michael Smerconish said ‘Joe, let me play for all of us, but for you comment on, what Governor Romney said today explaining he’s not a career politician.’ The show then cut to a clip of Mitt Romney saying, ‘I’m in this race not because it’s the next step in my political career. I don’t have a political career!’” [MSNBC’s Hardball, 11/23/11]