I think this deal helps Romney get the GOP nod in 2012.

Putting aside the debate over whether this deal is good or not, I'm talking about how this might be perceived by the public, and how Robme will try to play this to his advantage.

He's always tried to be a "moderate" Republican, and the Tea Party hates him for it. There was an article in the Boston Globe last week about moderate Republicans being upset with the Tea Party faction ( http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2011/07/27/gop_moderates_shrinking_in_numbers___and_impact ) and a moderate Republican, or one that even looks moderate enough, can win those people over easily.

And, if he can make it look like Obama caved on SS and Medicare (and you can bet your ass he will try this), he might be able to bleed off enough Independents, and even some right-leaning Dems (he did in Mass, sadly) to go along with those disgruntled moderate Republicans, and they would compensate for any lost Tea Party votes. He would no longer have to try to walk that line between being moderate for one part of the GOP and extreme enough for the teabaggers, a line that a couple of months ago made him back off his own health care deal that he did here in Mass. While satire, this Onion article is actually pretty spot on about the line he's trying to walk so far.. http://www.theonion.com/articles/mitt-romney-haunted-by-past-of-trying-to-help-unin,20097/

Of course, this is all just guesswork. For all I know the Republicans will elect the corpse of Ronald Reagan, but I think this is one scenario that might play out. Romney is many things (weasel, smeghead, etc) but above all he is a purely political creature with no moral compass. If anyone can play this to his advantage he can.

And that would suck, because my father hates Romney more than any other politician on Earth, and my dad is scary when his forehead vein is ready to pop. :)

Could anyone explain me why?

Some may not like the idea, which I understand.

Some may not like me, which I understand.

And some may think it's a post in favor of this happening, which is idiotic, as I'd rather dangle my balls in a tank of hungry piranha than see this shithead succeed in any way.

Plus, I didn't call anyone any names, or insult half of DU, so what fun is it? ;)

:spray: Ah, so very, very true. :D

Edited to add: my girls tell me I have one of those veins.

This wouldn't work well against a moderate republican. Thus the suggestion that Romney is helped by this makes those who are strongly attached to the idea of Obama winning a second term unhappy. Then they unrec.

That is the unfortunate truth. Obama will only be able to beat the truly insane like Bachman, Palin, Perry etc. Any moderate Republican will be able to blur the differences between himself and Obama and thus trounce him.

Don't mind the unrec, or the differing opinion, just curious as to your take on it.

will do him in.

Though I can't say that for certain, of course. You could be right.

with his own primary prospects. Again, too early to speculate.

:)

Frankly, I'm not sure that progressive priorities won't be safer with the democrats in the house and senate playing opposition to a Romney administration than they are now with Obama's compulsion to appease teabaggers.

the teabaggers don't look so good right now to anyone who doesn't have a hard on for Michelle Bachmann or the baggers fantasy tag teamer, Sarah Pee.

so, they'll get the guy with magic underwear. no, not Vitter.

and to you for watching...that center of the forehead thing is scary.

I agree, this opens things up wide for Romney, and IMO he's the most dangerous of the Repugs as far as electability goes.

And his hair is reasonably good, even though he styles it with a stick of butter.

The question is whether the right-wing whackos will turn away from him as "not Christian", but I think he will get the nod too.

Obama just handed the presidency to him, or to whoever is the GOP frontrunner. Take it, it's yours! Mazel tov!

If not, better start praying hard, fast. Obama will need all the heavenly help he can get, because he won't get it from anywhere else.

Obama's and Clinton's successful campaign to convince the public that this is a liberal policy because it forces "deadbeats" to buy private health insurance just like "the rest of us" thereby creating a level playing field, makes Romney and Gingrich look like moderates by comparison, thereby elevating their stature in the national discourse.

I'm sure once he gets elected with a repuke congress,you'll see his true colors. He isn't a moderate that's for sure.

Exactly, but it's all relative, and compared to the others he will certainly come across that way. He played the moderate card here in Mass and it worked. If there was a stronger GOP field my theory would be way out there, but Bachmann, Cain and Palin are mere novelties. They won't win anything, which is why I'd love to see any of those three get the nod. :)

I do think that, currently at least, Romney is Obama's biggest threat.

Romney is going nowhere.

an extortionist" tour and get plenty of help from Hax News and cnn. Obama will push this to gain independents and the center vote, and romney will be in the same position if not worse since he ducked this entire manufactured crisis.

:)

he will have much differentiation between himself and Obama.

think about it...Obama didn't raise taxes....so that argument is void. Although, on the
other hand, that puts Obama in a bad place he will certainly have to finesse. He will
be asked if he wants the Bush tax cuts to expire. He will want Dems to think he will and
no-tax advocates to think he won't.

Not sure how your statement about Obama caving on SS and Medicare could be made? What
is he going to do say, "Ha Ha, Obama saved your benefits, what a nut?" How do you see
this playing out?

Obama's only hope is that the economy picks up and jobs start growing. I will be very
curious to see how Romney will show how he could make things better since Obama hasn't
raised taxes nor has he gotten rid of the loopholes.

Obama is only a fake Republican.

In that situation, people will always elect the
real Republican.

Obama's finished.

Tesha

They're going to *GET* some kind of Republican no matter
what happens. One will be from the opposition party and
our party could be united to work against them during their
term of office. The other one appears to be "from our party"
and it's very hard to get people to work against a politician
"from our own party", even if they do the other party's work
for them.

This is precisely the problem we have with Obama that we would
*NOT* have had with McCain.

Tesha

I had forgotten this. Yes, that's so true, unfortunately, for Obama.

Bachmann will have too much baggage to haul with her.
Perry has shot himself in the foot on several arenas.
The others are irrelevent.

The guy is a total clown and actually elicits a visceral reaction of nausea from me (I think it's the hair....and the smarminess). But looking at the rest of the field, he's the only one that's even in the ballpark of being an acceptable U.S. President. And for that reason, there is probably 0 chance the Pub electorate nominates him, even though they should.

when Mitt Romney is the only remaining semi-sane Republicrat out there.

Scary, isn't it? :scared:

Romney and Obama are nearly identical on most issues.

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

Romney loses against Obama--the Mormon thing is insurmountable for Evangelical voters, imo. A "credible" Republican wins, easily.

A significant majority of that money (90%+) came from corporations via PACS. That seems like a disproportionate amount from this particular State.

OTOH Romney wanted the Auto Industry to fail, Romney also wanted the US to go into Default. I wonder how that helps?

It all seems like the on going dichotomy that is Romney and his presidential electability.

I think it hurts him within certain factions, for sure, but for the most part I don't think many people care about that.

from every xtian rooftop and by every xtian spokeshole on TV.