Reach out to conservatives. So
far this primary season, Romney has appeared to keep the GOP’s most con- servative elements at arm’s length. The concern that Romney may
be indifferent, if not hostile, to social conservatives is one reason leaders James Dobson, Gary Bauer, and Don Wildmon have been holding invita- tion-only meetings in Texas to find a consensus alternative to the former Massachusetts governor. Without kowtowing, Romney
needs to find a way to reach out to them and show he genuinely cares about their heartfelt cause. Emphasize electability at every
ROMNEY’S RUN A slim win in Iowa propelled Romney over Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich, and Rick Perry.
took office facing a $3 billion budget shortfall, and left the state with a $2 billion rainy-day fund. During his ten- ure, unemployment in Massachusetts dropped from 5.6 to 4.6 percent. Massachusetts, hard hit by the
bursting tech bubble, lagged in job creation overall, ranking 47th out of the 50 states in generating new jobs. Emphasizing his fiscal stewardship in Massachusetts, including his three attempts to reduce state income taxes, would help Romney align himself with GOP conservatives. Talk up his business background. Romney’s leadership and business experience may be a big advantage over President Obama in the general election. Romney is widely credited
with rescuing the 2002 Winter Olym- pic Games from a looming disaster, and he founded Bain Capital, a firm that helped launch or rebuild major brands such as The Sports Authority, Domino’s Pizza, and Staples. Incessantly lambaste Obama’s big-government philosophy. Romney says he cast over 800 vetoes to rein in a state legislature dominated by Democrats. There’s no reason he can’t exploit this to strengthen his appeal to conservatives. “Mitt Romney’s best chance of win-
ning over conservatives is to stress how much more appealing his philos- ophy is versus that of Barack Obama,” InsiderAdvantage pollster Matt Tow- ery advises.
turn. Some polls indicate electability may be just as important to conserva- tives this cycle as ideological purity is. Towery says, “Combined with his argument that he has a vastly superior organization and fund- raising machine, Rom- ney could or should con- tinue to play to his ability to defeat Obama, which in recent polls seems much stronger than that of his GOP rivals.”
Indeed, Romney’s chances of win-
ning the Republican nomination may hinge on whether the “anybody-but- Obama” sentiment is even stronger than the “anybody-but-Romney” movement that is supported by some conservatives. Ironically, according to Sabato, the person Republicans can thank most for their laser-beam focus on electability is none other than Barack Obama himself. “Republicans are united in wanting
to oust Obama,” Sabato comments, “and this year they seem especially loath to do anything that might indi- rectly help to reelect the president. Contrast this with 2008, when some GOP voters openly mused that Obama might be better than McCain.”
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