The Trouble With Mitt

Let’s say you are an independent voter who is disappointed in President Obama.  Naturally, you turn to the GOP to find someone to vote for.  Without mentioning any names, your choices are:

--A Representative who hasn’t written any meaningful legislation in her time in Congress.  Moreover, she’s prone to uttering more bizarre gaffes than Sarah Palin on 3 Demerol and a double Scotch.

--A former pizza executive with NO political experience and a former board member of the Federal Reserve.  His 9-9-9 tax plan has been readily accepted by the Tea Party, more for it’s German connotations than anything. (Nein! Nein! Nein!)  He also has a bad habit of speaking his mind, even when the voices in his head are whispering some truly weird things.

--A disgraced former Speaker of the House who is best known for losing a shutdown battle with President Clinton.  Also, he tends to divorce wives who are in their sick beds recovering from cancer.

--A successful businessman and former Governor of one of the bluest states in the nation.  He’s signed into law health care reform that Obama modeled his Health Care package on, and he appears to be socially liberal.  Oh, and he’s a dedicated father and respected elder in his church.

We have a winner, no?  No matter what kind of conservatism you preach, Mitt Romney has the bases covered.  He also has a huge advantage in fundraising and organization.  So why is he neck-and-neck with Herman Cain in the polls right now?

Two words:  Tea Party.  They don’t trust Mitt, because he has shown a regular habit of crossing over to appeal to moderate voters.  In any other reality, this would be a good thing.  But to the “take no prisoners” Tea Party, compromise is capitulation.  The GOP has become so polarized, that the only candidate that has a ghost of a chance to attract swing voters and defeat Obama is the least palatable.

It appears that the base is stress testing any other candidate to see if they have legs.  First it was Michelle Bachmann, who won the Iowa Straw Poll.  Well, win is a loaded word.  She bought the Iowa Straw Poll.  She bribed people to vote for her by busing them in and giving them a concert afterwards from country superstar Randy Travis.  She got a bounce from that, which she squandered over the Summer.

Now it’s Herman Cain’s turn.  The former CEO of Godfather’s Pizza is riding high on his form of that old GOP favorite:  the Flat Tax.  On it’s face, his 9-9-9 Plan sounds pretty good.  Unfortunately, some clever folks did the math, and unless it was supplemented with a Carbon Tax or VAT (Value-Added Tax) similar to Europe, it wouldn’t come close to raising enough revenue.  Add to that Cain’s annoying habit of changing positions mid-interview, and we’ve got a lightweight that makes Obama’s pre-election résumé look like Henry Clay’s.

There is now talk that former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich will be getting his tires kicked.  While Gingrich is a smart man, he’s got some personal baggage that might make the Evangelicals in the party wince.  His marriage record is nothing to write home about.  He also doesn’t seem to resonate with the Tea Party, since he is a Washington insider.

While all these show horses are paraded out in front of the Republican base, there sits Mitt Romney, patiently waiting his turn.  Mitt’s got some baggage as well to deal with.  He’s an elder in the Mormon Church – a church Evangelicals don’t recognize.  He created Romneycare, which is the precursor to Obamacare.  He has a tendency to flip-flop on issues, such as a woman’s right to choose.  He’s also the wealthiest man running, and seems somewhat disconnected to the plight of the jobless.  As a corporate specialist who made his money buying up, then selling off parts of a business for great profit, he’s not necessarily a job creator.

It will be interesting to see how the GOP primaries play out.  Will Romney use his advantages to cruise to victory, or will he have to fight a bloody battle in state after state?  Will there be insurrection and backroom dealing at the convention in Tampa?  With an incumbent President with an impressive war chest and no primary challenge on the horizon, whoever wins the GOP nomination will need to mend any rifts in the party quickly—or be steamrolled.  The Tea Party won’t make it easy.  Will Mitt have it takes to lead the party to the White House?

I don’t know.  But it certainly will be interesting to watch!