Romney very likely may have been America´s last hope to avoid economic and social collapse. And even more frightening perhaps, civil war.

I am thoroughly disgusted with the elitism that pervades people´s thinking regarding politics. No, Romney is not ´better than the country´ and Mr. Nordlinger does him a diservice by presenting him as such. I know personally more than a dozen men and women who would make great senators and congressmen and half a dozen that I would seriously consider for the Presidency - not because they are ´better´ than anyone else, but because they are people who understand government.

In fact, I will go so far as this, this nation has more people capable of being a decent President than would ever be able to serve.

By the way, Mr. Nordlinger, none of the consevatives I know were upset or offended by Romeny´s comment about the poor. It was the progressive wing of the party - the ones who are now insisting that if we want to win we have to give stuff away just like the other party - who got their panties in a wad over that.

I do not argue that we would not have been better off had Romney won, however, he obviously couldn´t. Whether that was because the Republican leadership let him down by not preventing vote fraud (their apparent legal inability to prosecute it after the fact is a whole ´nother issue), or whether he failed to present his arguments clearly enough to bring out antipathetic voters, or whether we - as a nation - are simply to far gone down the ´gimmee´ path ( I believe that it was a combination of these factors), superb or not, Romney was unable to win this election.



Perhaps dealing with these rifts is a better way to spend our time and energy, rather than castigating each other.

What #1 said...Dear Mr. Nordlinger, Thank you for at least being ONE writer who can see what happened during this past "election". Mitt Romney was not simply running against obama, but the "msm", demonrats, AND a lot of "conservatives" in the GOP. Those facts, along with massive voter-fraud guaranteed a loss that should have been a landslide. He was demonized in ways I´ve not seen in all the years of paying attention to politics in this Country, and it was disgraceful. IMHO, the entire Country, and perhaps the World will pay for the mistake of putting obama back in the W.H.

#2, you may know a lot of folks who might make good Presidents but are they running,,for anything? If not, then comparing them to Gov. Romney is just fantasy, like making a Fantasy Football team. I know the beauty of this site is that we all get to be Monday morning quarterbacks but let´s remember how easy it is to talk and how hard it is to do. Gov. Romney gave his best for this country and for that, I admire him and will miss what he could have done forever.

Woulda, coulda, shoulda.

If you fail to make your case over a four year period, the failure is yours. Before his reliable defenders come out, I voted for him as did every member of my family through three generations who is eligible to vote.

You miss my point #4. I´m not saying that they could - or would - run for the Presidency. I am saying that the qualities that would make them a good President do not include that they are somehow superior to the rest of us.

I think that is a dangerous road that many in the Republican party have found themselves walking down. It is what leads to ´legacy´ seats in the House and Senate and the quashing of very good candidates - on every level - because they don´t have the right background or somehow haven´t ´paid their dues´.

Trying to select the best candidate does not mean they are our ´betters´.

I think Romney made his case quite well. It was certainly clear to me. But when the entire press cops is against you, the message doesn´t get out.

Thank you Mr. Nordlinger for articulating what has needed to be said. Also thanks to #3, I echo your thoughts.

#8 I agree the media blocked anything positive about Romney´s message. But, he had a weak team. And, if the team is a reflection of the top man then Romney is shown to be clueless too. With all the information about media bias clearly available to Republicans, they still act as if the playing field is even. Why not spend money on savvy media people to crack the iron curtain of bias. We have many ways to get out the message now that youtube and other means are in place. But, our ´leaders´ remain stagnant and old fashioned. White male country club...call them what you will but Repub leaders are not able to lead because they are not in tune with communication techniques. I keep hoping one Repub will understand that pretending the press/media is impartial is stupid. Go after the media. Hammer it every day.

In Post #8, I meant to write "press corps" rather than "press cops." But perhaps in this case it´s a distinction without a difference. What I really should have written was "press corpse."

The press has been overwhelmingly liberal since the Kennedy administration, or the newspaper strike that killed so many conservative broadsheets. Reagan won by a landslide despite the constant portrayals of him as a dunce and a tool of the rich. It´s the demographic that´s changed.

Romney may or may not have been a good or e en great President. He was, however, a lousy candidate. At the beginning of the primary cycle, as Romney´s team (and many LDotters I might add) castigated anyone who didn´t follow the Mr. electable meme, there were many of us that said what the left´s strategy would be to kneecap Mr. Romney, and they did Iir in lights.

Lousy candidates don´t win elections.

Just so, Mr. Nordlinger.
Mitt Romney didn´t let America down but her citizens sure did. Americans have the government they so richly deserve.

The electorate didn´t let Mitt Romney down. The Republican Party let the electorate down by not challenging this election and the massive amounts of voter fraud.

Mitt Romney was a good, decent, honest man who could have saved this country. Unfortunately, he failed to go after Obama with the same tenacity that he went after the other Republicans in the primary. He lost the election in the second and third debates, and his failure to challenge voter counts.

Pity for our country.

Those of you still clinging to the belief that Romney was a magnificent choice and candidate, oh, yeah, and that conservatives somehow stabbed him in the back, then open up your checkbooks and start writing it out to Romney2016.

You tried to sell something no one ever was going to buy and now you are stuck with a warehouse full of it. Sell it someplace else.

I dunno. It seems to me that there are still at least a few "clinging" to bitterness and vitriol about our 2012 nominee. I´ve supported a lot of candidates who were not my first choice over the years. Sometimes, it´s just a little more graceful to put a stopper in the it, my friend.

Romney, 2016!
Nixon lost the first round too.

The ABRs put no one Forward, so you have no reason to complain but I at least think you turned out unlike the Paulites who put forth a waste your vote candidate.

Romney was a breath of fresh air, experience and not a natural politician, he would´ve made a tremendous leader. Those rape comments of Aiken and Mourdock didn´t help.

Voting fraud definitely. Obama also charged up the low info gimme crowd with his kill Romney. I only hope that what goes around comes around with him and the media alike. Maybe one day we will find out those voting machines were tampered with like I´m convinced they were.