Bring Up the Troops: Ready for Battle

We are now 5 days from the Florida Republican Primary; and tonight there is a Republican candidates debate (7 pm Mountain Time (9 Eastern) on MSNBC) in Boca Raton, Florida. These next 5 days are critical. Here is a short series on several issues facing the campaign in this important stretch.

GREAT LOCAL INTERVIEW IN FLORIDA

Follow this link to a great interview with Governor Romney that touches on several key topics.

TWO-MAN RACE, OR THREE?

We’ve gone over this before, but Thompson is out, Paul hasn’t the slightest chance, and Huckabee is fading and seems more interested in trying to maintain some influence in the process rather than actually winning. That leaves three: Romney, McCain, and Giuliani. The question then is: does Giuliani have a chance? I say no, for this reason: Not only has he faded dramatically in polls nationally as well as to a lesser degree in Florida, but he has had almost zero support from voters in the states up to now, suggesting he has very limited appeal beyond just his fame and respect from 9/11 and its aftermath in the War on Terror.

That leaves Romney and McCain. May the best man win—that’s Romney, of course! ;-)

ROMNEY CONNECTING

Keep in mind two stats when you hear media-types declare that Romney somehow isn’t connecting with Republicans or conservatives:

(1) Romney has more TOTAL VOTES than any other Republican candidate.

(2) Romney has more total votes FROM REPUBLICAN VOTERS than any other candidate.

Does that sound to you like he’s “not connecting?” Me neither. The only reason he hasn’t gotten more votes than he has is that there has been a crowded field of candidates who have a committed base of support, which divides the voters. How come we don’t hear about McCain ‘not connecting’ or Huckabee or any of the others? Hmmmmm….

ROMNEY’S SKILL AND STRENGTH IN DEFENSE OF MARRIAGE

David French of the Evangelicals for Mitt blog (a Harvard Law School grad and a conservative Christian defender of free speech and other legal issues) wrote this before he went to Iraq:

“From the moment the activist judges in the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court handed down their breathtakingly arrogant decision in Goodrich v. Department of Public Health, [Romney] took decisive action to make sure Massachusetts would not grant marriage licenses to out-of-state couples, thereby guaranteeing that Massachusetts would not become the "Las Vegas of gay marriage" and trigger a constitutional crisis as couples returned to their home states with Massachusetts licenses. He also initiated and led an effort to amend the Massachusetts constitution by referendum and has gone so far as to file suit against the Commonwealth's own legislature after they took action to prevent the people of Massachusetts from voting on that amendment. Critically, he has become a leading national advocate for marriage, with his optimistic and uplifting message dominating the public debate. Rather than casting the debate as one over adult rights, the Governor has made the best possible case for marriage: noting what we all should know but too often forget (at great cultural cost) — marriage does not exist for the convenience and enjoyment of adults but as the best possible way of raising and nurturing children. The credible defenders of marriage in Massachusetts all agree: Mitt Romney has been an invaluable supporter and advocate.

Rather than becoming what the media would undoubtedly call the "George Wallace of gay marriage" by standing in the courthouse door and barring couples from receiving marriage licenses, the Governor chose legal means to resist the court's decision. And his decision was correct. It is now clear that the Goodrich decision represented not the beginning of the end of traditional marriage but instead the high-water mark of the same-sex marriage movement. Since that decision, homosexual marriage activists have been on the defensive virtually everywhere, losing referenda and losing court decisions. Had Governor Romney not offered a principled and effective defense of marriage, the outcome may very well have been quite different.”

STRONG ON THE ECONOMY

"For Republicans, the race lately seems to be turning on the issue of the economy, said U.S. News & World Report senior writer and FOX News contributor Michael Barone. That helps Romney, who as a successful venture capitalist and tax-cutter while serving as Massachusetts governor is gaining traction.

“I think an emphasis on the economy does emphasize one of the strong points in Mitt Romney’s resume and so I think he is the beneficiary of a threat there,” Barone said.

“My sense is John McCain is hurt by that. He has said sometimes that he needs a tutoring course on the economy. He does not present it as his strong suit, so I think it may have a slight depressing effect on his percentages,” Barone said."

THE NATURE OF ROMNEY’S OPTIMISM: “WE CAN DO THIS THING”

Romney's Shining City [by Henry Payne]

“It’s morning in America.”

“This may be the key ingredient that Romney found in Michigan. Reaganesque in his good looks, Romney also shares the Gipper’s crucial optimism. And as Michigan exposed in McCain’s cranky “your jobs aren’t coming back” rhetoric, it gives Romney a human element to contrast with McCain’s authenticity.

Suddenly, McCain sounds less like a straight-talker than an old curmudgeon. Next to Romney’s sunniness, it won’t wear well. The electorate likes glass-half-full guys.

You hear it in the two candidates approach to climate change. McCain sounds like Al Gore. Like Gore in “Earth in the Balance,” McCain sees an America with limits. It is a country that needs to be reigned in; cured of its “dysfunctions.”

Romney, on the other hand, sees nothing but U.S. potential. He’s all about wide-open horizons, not cramped federal mandates. It’s there when you meet him. It’s in his DNA.”

TALK RADIO: NO ON MCCAIN, NO ON HUCK, GRADUALLY SLIDING CLOSER TO ROMNEY

While few conservative radio hosts have come out directly and openly in support of Romney, it seems to me the trend is unmistakable. In part this has started with the recognition that McCain and Huckabee have some distinctly liberal positions on some issues, and therefore would tend to deeply divide conservatives. This has led to increasing reappraisal of Romney and respect for his consistent conservative positions, and his ability to communicate and defend those positions. Consider this post from NRO’s K-Lo:

Talk Radio 1, McCain 0 [Kathryn Jean Lopez]

Romney campaigned hard in Michigan, but that win reflects the power of talk radio as well. When you no longer have to wonder, "Could Mike Huckabee be the Republican nominee?" thank Rush. When you remember the litany of John McCain's bad policy moves, thank Mark Levin he's not the frontrunner.

Some of the most important conversations about the future of the conservative movement and America are happening on talk radio today. I write this as I listen to Bill Bennett's callers have an early-morning dialogue with him about some of the tough questions and choices conservatives face this year.

If we come out of this election O.K., talk radio deserves some real credit for seeing it through and helping make them all a little more Right. If we don't, they tried — but I'm optimistic.

A TOUR OF KEY BLOG ENTRIES

Please enjoy following these links to some previous posts on this blog…

Voters persuaded watching Romney debate the other candidates.

Two interesting recent Romney media interviews.

Romney “the best and smartest businessman in North America.”

Joe Scarborough nails it on the MSM’s unfair anti-Romney bias.

Mark Levin reviews John McCain’s decidedly non-conservative record.

And some niiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiice campaign humor…

The Governator to Mitt: Who’s Your Daddy?

“My one and only wife”

Romney Girl's "1985" Dance

Kevin Garnett’s ‘Mitt Romney!’