I was never a huge Romney fan
 

but as I think about it now, and as I recently watched him on TV, man did he screw the pooch big time.

This election was tailor-made for him. Dems nominate a black guy who grew up overseas and has a weird name. Economy tanks. Businesses tank in a way so complicated that most Americans can't understand it.

And what did Romney do? He tried to court the Jerry Falwells and all those wackos. He tried to play Mr. Social Conservative, I'm-not-a-blue-blood.

He decided to be phony. And the Republicans went with the earnest, but not so bright, and not so with it McCain.

Now, before I start rubbing oil on Romney's back, I do think he has a fundamental flaw in his personality that turns people off, like John Kerry. But I wonder if things will ever set up for him, like they did for him this go-around.

Wow, this was like blowing an uncontested layup with time expiring on the clock. One of the all-time misplays in presidential politics.

This is very true.

What it also does is set Mitt up for a VERY interested 2012 run.

If the economy doesnt improve much under Obama, people will be willing to look way beyond Mitt's Mormonism.

Does this essentially end McCain's career in politics? I would guess so.

Mitt needs a life coach. He needs to legitimately connect, in his personal life, with middle America.

Honest to goodness, I think he would make the biggest richest snob elitist in Georgetown blush. Not that Mitt is a bad person. He is just disconnected, since birth. And his personality doesn't allow him to reall step into other people' shoes.

Of course, when I say "life coach", I mean, he needs a form of therapy.

Good points. I would have heartily supported Romney had he stayed true to what he was that won him Governor of Mass. He made his own bad karma. His plasticity his tragic flaw. He outsmarted himself. I'm tempted to blame his Mormon upbringing but I'll resist.

If you recall, it was the tag team of
 

McCain and Huckabee in SC and the shenanigans that cost Mitt the run for the presidency. Had nothing to do with phoniness or elitism. It was McCain and Huckabee working together to get rid of Romney. Huckabee because Romney was a Mormon and McCain because he was jealous of Romney and his wealth, etc.

thanks. maybe you should be a paid consultant for Mitt. Poor, poor, Mitt, lost because he was picked on by everyone.

I'm not sure he "decided" to be phony. He seems to naturally be phony. Or at least he's not very good at getting away with being the chameleon he wants to be. This will come back to haunt him in subsequent runs as well, I would think.

I completely agree about Romney. He should have stayed what he was instead of catering to the social conservatives. But if you want to talk about a campaign blowing it to epic proportions you have to look at Rudy Giuliani. How does he go from a commanding national lead to nothing in such a short time? He had no clue how to win the nomination. He thought he didn't need to worry about the early primary states and never figured out the nominating process is all about momentum and bandwagon effect.

The fact that Romney targeted the social conservatives is what made Huckabee relevant.

The Republicans have redefined conservative to mean conservative on abortion and pro war. You can just about be a socialist on economics and you're ok with the GOP as long as you fall in line on those two things. None of the other traditionally conservative issues are all that important to the party right now.