Rubio Endorses Romney

[ringil]

Do they? Utah has two major state universities whose undergraduate population, put together, easily exceed attendance at BYU. And there seems to be a “holy war” between BYU fans and Univ. of Utah fans, with BYU having a “good Mormon” image and Utah having the “bad Mormon” image. (Not that Utah fans or students are bad Mormons, but that BYU is seen as golden)

Are the “bad boy” mormons the ones who go party at starbucks?

 

[ringil]

Big difference between a state healthcare plan which affected 8% - those without coverage in that state and what Obamacare did to the entire country. I don’t consider it a liability necessarily - Romney is in a good position to draw the distinction between Romney care and Obama care. And if (hopefully) the supreme court strikes down Obama care in whole or just the mandate, it will only strengthen the case Romney is making on the issue - that it made sense at the state level for Mass. but makes no sense for the country at the federal level.

Ishii

I’m no GOP advocate but I don’t think that is the strongest argument (though it’s the only one he can make) and will impress many of the Conservative base.

Romney will, no doubt, capture the vast majority of the Conservative vote, but MANY will go into the booth holding their nose.

 

[RACJ]

Do you think if Rick Santorum had as much campaign money as Romney that he wouldn’t be using that money for negative ads against his opponents?

Do you realize that by the time Rick Santorum would get enough delegates if Romney stopped getting any from thus forward, it would be so far along in the year that it would give Obama a significant advantage?

Abyssinia, I think that the concern about the internecine battle is overwrought. I've been listening closely to Romney, and he is saying very little of substance. If anything, Santorum has been TOO open about his specific plans for America. 
Last Saturday, I had the privilege of seeing Rick at a conference in Pa. He was 25 minutes into his speech before he started contrasting himself with Romney. He speaks about freedom, individual rights and the crisis in which we find ourselves. Optimism about the future if our people choose Constitutional government permeates the speech. No notes; every word is from the heart. He is an incredibly happy person, smiling with regularity, despite the goofy meme that he is some sort of angry man. 
 I DO know that if Sen. Santorum wins the nomination (a REAL long shot), the snatching of freedoms, the disdain for law and Obama's failed record would be exposed each day, and America would have a clear, stark choice for its future. I simply don't believe that Romney has it in him to wage the type of ferocious fight that it will take to oust this TRULY angry socialist President from the White House.  It comes down to this----I think that Romney lacks a core, and I don't think that he can win. Cordially, Rob :)

 

[_Abyssinia]

Abyssinia, I think that the concern about the internecine battle is overwrought. I’ve been listening closely to Romney, and he is saying very little of substance. If anything, Santorum has been TOO open about his specific plans for America.
Last Saturday, I had the privilege of seeing Rick at a conference in Pa. He was 25 minutes into his speech before he started contrasting himself with Romney. He speaks about freedom, individual rights and the crisis in which we find ourselves. Optimism about the future if our people choose Constitutional government permeates the speech. No notes; every word is from the heart. He is an incredibly happy person, smiling with regularity, despite the goofy meme that he is some sort of angry man.
I DO know that if Sen. Santorum wins the nomination (a REAL long shot), the snatching of freedoms, the disdain for law and Obama’s failed record would be exposed each day, and America would have a clear, stark choice for its future. I simply don’t believe that Romney has it in him to wage the type of ferocious fight that it will take to oust this TRULY angry socialist President from the White House. It comes down to this----I think that Romney lacks a core, and I don’t think that he can win. Cordially, Rob

All I want is whoever the candidate may be to get 1244 delegates as soon as possible so they can start making an argument to American people that presents a better future than four more years of Barack Obama. I don’t think that is going to be Santorum, honestly, I think it is too late for him to win enough delegates. I think Romney can expose Obama as much as Santorum.

 

[_Abyssinia]

I’m no GOP advocate but I don’t think that is the strongest argument (though it’s the only one he can make) and will impress many of the Conservative base.

Romney will, no doubt, capture the vast majority of the Conservative vote, but MANY will go into the booth holding their nose.

I doubt it if the choice is between Romney and four more years of Barack Obama.

 

[Cider]

Michelle Bachmann was the first name that came to mind. I prefer to see her replace John Boehner as Speake of the House though.

I believe Mr. Rubio is mistaken. Romney is farfrom the shoo-in for the nomination that the GOP elite would like to think. The majority of conservatives have REJECTED him. Rubio’s reputation as a conservative may take a major hit as a result of his endorsement.

Really? Far from the shoo in? He does have twice the delegates of Santorum, his closest competitor.

I’m a Santorum supporter but come on, you can’t ignore the fact that Romney has won more states and has more delegates.

 

[_Abyssinia]

VP power ranking for Mitt Romney:

race42012.com/2012/03/31/vp-power-rankings-march

Apart from Marco Rubio, Bobby Jindal jumps out to me from the list, even though I think it would be good for a female on ticket for reasons I state on page 1 of this thread.

 

[Pork_Roll]

Apart from Marco Rubio, Bobby Jindal jumps out to me from the list, even though I think it would be good for a female on ticket for reasons I state on page 1 of this thread.

Why not select the VP candidate based on quality and not appearences? Palin didn’t help McCain, I don’ think it will help money-bags Romney.

 

[Scott_Lafrance]

VP power ranking for Mitt Romney:

race42012.com/2012/03/31/vp-power-rankings-march

Apart from Marco Rubio, Bobby Jindal jumps out to me from the list, even though I think it would be good for a female on ticket for reasons I state on page 1 of this thread.

I am putting my money on Bob McDonald or Cathy McMorris Rodgers.

McDonald is a very popular governor in Virginia and Ken Cuccinelli, the VA Attorney General, is putting together a campaign staff for making a run at Governor of Virginia. McDonald could win reelection without effort, so that indicates to me that he is the top of this list of VP considerations. McDonald is accomplished, popular, brings alot of positives to the ticket, and is “ready to go out of the can”, one of the things Romney seems to be high on.

Rogers brings interest as a low controversy, high-policy knowledge, high accomplishment woman on the ticket.

 

[RACJ]

All I want is whoever the candidate may be to get 1244 delegates as soon as possible so they can start making an argument to American people that presents a better future than four more years of Barack Obama. I don’t think that is going to be Santorum, honestly, I think it is too late for him to win enough delegates. I think Romney can expose Obama as much as Santorum.

There is abundant information at massresistance.com concerning Mitt. I think he is slippery, and not at all a conservative. When he is nominee, I'm afraid that he will pull his punches against Obama for fear of alienating the sacred *moderate* voters. I wish that I could trust him, despite my disagreements with him on issues. 
What incenses *me* is how the establishment R's rigged the game, going to the extreme of taking Va. off the table by changing the rules after the game began. Also, his lies about Newt resigning "in disgrace" when he knew it wasn't true. His pabulum about "trees being the right height" and streets being "just right" in Michigan is downright depressing to hear from a guy whom we're supposed to vote for. Everyone makes mistakes, but the incessant pandering and patronizing from Mitt make it hard to believe that his administration will bring about a fight to restore Constitutional principles. Blessings, Rob :dts:

 

[_Abyssinia]

There is abundant information at massresistance.com concerning Mitt. I think he is slippery, and not at all a conservative. When he is nominee, I’m afraid that he will pull his punches against Obama for fear of alienating the sacred moderate voters. I wish that I could trust him, despite my disagreements with him on issues.
What incenses me is how the establishment R’s rigged the game, going to the extreme of taking Va. off the table by changing the rules after the game began. Also, his lies about Newt resigning “in disgrace” when he knew it wasn’t true. His pabulum about “trees being the right height” and streets being “just right” in Michigan is downright depressing to hear from a guy whom we’re supposed to vote for. Everyone makes mistakes, but the incessant pandering and patronizing from Mitt make it hard to believe that his administration will bring about a fight to restore Constitutional principles. Blessings, Rob :dts:

Santorum, Gingrich, Bachmann had months to get 10,000 signatures to qualify for the Virginia ballot. Something obviously went wrong in their campaigns. Romney and Ron Paul managed it.

Why would establishment Republicans, if that is who you mean, bother to change the rules in Virginia just so Romney could win? This process is not going to be decided by one state.

To judge whether Romney has a conservative record I looked at his time as Governor. Romney had a generally conservative record while as Governor and see no reason to see why that would change. It took guts to be conservative in liberal Massachusetts.

 

[_Abyssinia]

Very conservative Republicans rate Mitt Romney more favorably

Mitt Romney appears to be regaining traction among the Republican Party’s conservative base.

An ABC News/Washington Post

poll released Tuesday finds that 64 percent of Republicans and independents who identify as very conservative now view Romney favorably—a solid 21 point increase in three weeks.

That’s still less than Rick Santorum, who polls at 70 percent favorable among very conservative voters and 14 percent negative—11 percentage points less than Romney’s unfavorable rating. But that’s still a dramatic improvement for the former Massachusetts governor as he seeks to prove that he can win over all segments of the party in his bid for the GOP nomination.

Perhaps most striking in the poll, however, is Newt Gingrich’s fading poll numbers with Republicans.

news.yahoo.com/blogs/ticket/mitt-romney-approval-rating-among-most-conservative-republicans-144254764.html

 

[RACJ]

Santorum, Gingrich, Bachmann had months to get 10,000 signatures to qualify for the Virginia ballot. Something obviously went wrong in their campaigns. Romney and Ron Paul managed it.

Why would establishment Republicans, if that is who you mean, bother to change the rules in Virginia just so Romney could win? This process is not going to be decided by one state.

To judge whether Romney has a conservative record I looked at his time as Governor. Romney had a generally conservative record while as Governor and see no reason to see why that would change. It took guts to be conservative in liberal Massachusetts.

 Candidates have very narrow windows of time in which to gather signatures in most states, including Pa. Va. changed the rules right before the window opened, and Rick and Newt, with little money, were unable to gather the necessary names to appear. Not only that, but the new law disallowed write-ins! Dirty pool, clearly. A class act would have been critical of the skulduggery, but not Mitt. 
 What bugs me more than anything else about Romney, and this is saying a lot, is that only 9 of his 36 judicial appointments in Ma. were Republicans, and I don't know if ANY were actually conservative.  I can't feign enthusiasm for a man who disparaged the records of Reagan and Bush en route to the governorship. I'd probably like him if I were a Democrat. :shrug: Rob

 

[_Abyssinia]

Candidates have very narrow windows of time in which to gather signatures in most states, including Pa. Va. changed the rules right before the window opened, and Rick and Newt, with little money, were unable to gather the necessary names to appear. Not only that, but the new law disallowed write-ins! Dirty pool, clearly. A class act would have been critical of the skulduggery, but not Mitt.
What bugs me more than anything else about Romney, and this is saying a lot, is that only 9 of his 36 judicial appointments in Ma. were Republicans, and I don’t know if ANY were actually conservative. I can’t feign enthusiasm for a man who disparaged the records of Reagan and Bush en route to the governorship. I’d probably like him if I were a Democrat. Rob

I think the rules changed in November for Virginia, that still gave them months to get enough signatures to qualify.

30 out of 36 of all Romney’s Judicial appointments were for lower courts where judges deal with criminals. Romney wanted judges that were tough on crime and when Romney was asked said, “people on both sides of the aisle want to put the bad guys away.”

Romney also said that when he had a few chances to appoint judges to a higher court the criteria was "strict construction, judicial philosophy.’’ 12.5% registered voters are Republican in Massachusetts, Romney’s 9 Republican nominees count for 25% of his total judicial appointments representing Republicans twice as well as they are represented in the general voting public.

whyromney.com/#judicial

 

[JMJSHJ]

I think Rubio will be the VP nominee if he accepts it. He has too much value to bring to the ticket for Romney to not want him on it. A female VP wouldn’t be good at this time. Sarah Palin was a virtual nobody prior to 2008 and she sure got a lot of publicity afterwards. If you think they won’t try to destroy Gov. Susana Martinez think again. Unlike 2008, the Republicans have a good chance to win the Election and will not risk that with a female VP nominee.

 

[ishii]

I think Rubio will be the VP nominee if he accepts it. He has too much value to bring to the ticket for Romney to not want him on it. A female VP wouldn’t be good at this time. Sarah Palin was a virtual nobody prior to 2008 and she sure got a lot of publicity afterwards. If you think they won’t try to destroy Gov. Susana Martinez think again. Unlike 2008, the Republicans have a good chance to win the Election and will not risk that with a female VP nominee.

Agreed. All we need is someone like Michelle Bachman or an untested governor (male or female) to ruin the chances of beating Obama. This is an election in which I don’t think the GOP has to do something out of the box in order to win. Just pick a good VP, and relentlessly campaign against Obama and his failed policies.

Ishii

 

[_Abyssinia]

Funny!

Mitt Romney caught off guard by staff’s April Fools’ Day prank

There was a time when Mitt Romney was known for pranks. When a schoolyard crush married someone else, he painted the groom’s leather shoes with pink nail polish so when he knelt at the altar it would show. Then there was the time he dressed up as a police officer, put a flashing red light on the roof of his car and chased after two buddies while they were on a double date.

But when his aides orchestrated an elaborate prank for him on Sunday, Romney was befuddled. He had forgotten it was April Fools’ Day. And on this morning, as he recounted to a crowd here, “they turned me into the April fool!” Luckily, the scene was caught on video.

The Republican presidential front-runner was all set to deliver a stump speech at a pancake breakfast in Milwaukee. He was ushered into a ballroom. He waited backstage behind a black curtain. Arrows on the floor showed him where to walk.

An aide warned Romney that, for whatever reason, turnout was low but that he would have to power through the event. “It’s really small,” one aide said, “but it will be okay.”

Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) went out first to introduce Romney, “the next president of the United States!” Romney could hear applause, and when his intro music, Kid Rock’s “Born Free,” blared from the speakers, he and Sen. Ronald H. Johnson (R-Wis.) walked out from behind the black curtain.

“It’s completely empty!” Romney said, save for a handful of aides. “There’s nobody there. I thought, ‘Oh, boy, this is gonna look really bad on the evening news, let me tell you.’ ”

It turned out that Ryan and Johnson were in on the prank, which Romney’s traveling aides had hatched up late Saturday night. They had built a fake set for a Romney event. The applause was really a soundtrack played through a set of speakers.

“So not only did they do that, but they caught it on camera,” Romney said. “You guys — this is known as ‘forgive but remember,’ I’ll tell ya. We’re gonna remember this.”

After aides shouted “April fools!” at him, the former Massachusetts governor made his way to the real ballroom, where he addressed an overflow crowd of several hundred supporters and served them pancakes.

More and photo: washingtonpost.com/blogs/election-2012/post/mitt-romney-caught-off-guard-by-staffs-april-fools-day-prank/2012/04/01/gIQAPj9PpS_blog.html?tid=pm_politics_pop

D G Jackson got it on video:

youtube.com/watch?v=dk4l2PXS_gk

 

[RACJ]

I think the rules changed in November for Virginia, that still gave them months to get enough signatures to qualify.

30 out of 36 of all Romney’s Judicial appointments were for lower courts where judges deal with criminals. Romney wanted judges that were tough on crime and when Romney was asked said, “people on both sides of the aisle want to put the bad guys away.”

Romney also said that when he had a few chances to appoint judges to a higher court the criteria was "strict construction, judicial philosophy.’’ 12.5% registered voters are Republican in Massachusetts, Romney’s 9 Republican nominees count for 25% of his total judicial appointments representing Republicans twice as well as they are represented in the general voting public.

whyromney.com/#judicial

 IMO, any certification process which makes it impossible for any candidate to appear on the ballot EXCEPT for self-financed near billionaires and a Ron Paul, whose support is a mile deep and an inch wide, is antithetical to democracy. Esp. the knife-twisting provision that write-ins are disallowed. It stinks like a pig sty. There was NO WAY that Newt, Perry, Santorum, Cain and others had a chance, with the necessary focus of their resources on Iowa.  So, disenfranchising supporters of other candidates was Mitt's intent AND result. It won't be forgotten. 
 BTW, you probably won't want to search massresistance.com. It'll be too depressing. Mitt is not a conservative. Would any conservative nominate only NINE Republicans to the judiciary out of 36 selections? No. No matter, I still retain abundant admiration and respect for you, Ab. ;) Rob

 

[_Abyssinia]

Chris Cillizza: Romney’s VP will be Christie, Jindal or Rubio

“Mitt Romney won’t make his vice presidential pick for a few months yet. But if history is any guide, we already know who he will choose: a conservative… The key is that the pick would have to be considered a conservative by conservatives’ own standards — someone with the record and the temperament to placate any lingering doubts about Romney. It would have to be someone whom conservatives would be genuinely excited about. Three people currently mentioned in the great process that is the vice presidential sweepstakes fit that description to a T: Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.” - Washington Post

Romney needs to pick Hispanic running-mate, say GOP strategists

“Hispanics are by far the fastest-growing segment of the population and are a key voting bloc in many swing states including Florida, Nevada and New Mexico” - The Hill

Republicans consider how they can boost support among Hispanics

“Sen. Marco Rubio (R., Fla.) is developing a scaled-back version of the Dream Act, which would allow people brought to the U.S. as children to gain legal status, but not citizenship, if they enroll in college or the military. Several Senate Republicans have signed on to bipartisan legislation aimed at broadening access to the legal immigrant visa system.” - WSJ

 

[Scott_Lafrance]

Chris Cillizza: Romney’s VP will be Christie, Jindal or Rubio

“Mitt Romney won’t make his vice presidential pick for a few months yet. But if history is any guide, we already know who he will choose: a conservative… The key is that the pick would have to be considered a conservative by conservatives’ own standards — someone with the record and the temperament to placate any lingering doubts about Romney. It would have to be someone whom conservatives would be genuinely excited about. Three people currently mentioned in the great process that is the vice presidential sweepstakes fit that description to a T: Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.” - Washington Post

Romney needs to pick Hispanic running-mate, say GOP strategists

“Hispanics are by far the fastest-growing segment of the population and are a key voting bloc in many swing states including Florida, Nevada and New Mexico” - The Hill

Republicans consider how they can boost support among Hispanics

“Sen. Marco Rubio (R., Fla.) is developing a scaled-back version of the Dream Act, which would allow people brought to the U.S. as children to gain legal status, but not citizenship, if they enroll in college or the military. Several Senate Republicans have signed on to bipartisan legislation aimed at broadening access to the legal immigrant visa system.” - WSJ

I maintain that Romney’s VP will be Virginia governor Bob McDonell.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_McDonnell

Hard to go wrong and he has a stellar conservative record as governor. Executive experience counts for something and he is not as controversial as Cristy.