WASHINGTON — During a fundraiser at Lucky Strike Lanes last week, 2008 presidential contender Mitt Romney stepped up to roll his first ball down the bowling alley as newly elected Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown and others cheered him on.Strike!
“Now, that felt really good,” Romney recalls happily, saying he hadn’t picked up a bowling ball in years before the $150-a-head event for his political action committee in Washington’s Chinatown. “That doesn’t mean I did that the whole evening, but I did get off to a good start.”
One pin at a time, the former Massachusetts governor is laying the groundwork for a second presidential bid.
While former Alaska governor Sarah Palin sparks more passion among many Republicans and former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee conveys more folksy charm, Romney is waging the most deliberate and methodical campaign of any GOP presidential contender in at least two decades for the nomination in 2012.
After spending the first year of Barack Obama‘s presidency out of the public eye, Romney will launch a 19-state, three-month tour next week to promote his new book, No Apology: The Case for American Greatness. Included are speeches and appearances in the states that hold early contests in 2012, including Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina.
The book’s subtitle might as well be The Case for Mitt Romney.
At the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Saturday, Romney, 62, finished second in a straw poll to libertarian Texas Rep. Ron Paul but well ahead of more likely 2012 rivals.
CPAC: Energized conservatives pound on DemocratsNOVEMBER POLL: GOP support for potential contenders
Many establishment conservatives who once viewed Romney with suspicion because of his roots in liberal Massachusetts and his past support of abortion and gay rights have been won over, says Tony Fabrizio, a GOP pollster who ran the straw poll.
“They view him as one of the party’s elder statesmen,” Fabrizio says. “They see him as more thoughtful and measured than before, with nothing to prove. He’s earned his spurs.”
However, he adds that Romney’s appeal to the emerging Tea Party movement, which views Palin as a particular hero, hasn’t been tested. And “Romney-care,” the health care plan he signed as governor that is cited by some Democrats as a model, could prove problematic among Republicans.
Romney’s 323-page book is laced with lists and policy prescriptions — three “pillars,” 14 priority points, 64 agenda items — that focus mostly on the economy and national security. He defends the Bay State health care plan and argues it differs in fundamental ways from the one congressional Democrats have drafted, noting that it didn’t include a tax increase or government-run plan.
But he doesn’t discuss his conversion from supporting abortion rights while running in his home state to opposing them when he sought national office. Nor does he try to explain or defend his Mormon faith, an issue in 2008.
In an interview, Romney dismisses a question about abortion. “I’ve got nothing new to add on that,” he says. “My position on that is the same as it was in the 2008 presidential election.”
And the refusal of some to support a Mormon? “There will always be some who do, and that’s unfortunate,” he says. But for most Americans, “when it comes to voting, and they think about who’s going to lead the country, they select the person that they think will do the best job.”
Through the book, Romney hopes to set a campaign agenda and settle the rap that his views reflect more political calculation than core conviction.
Questions in the 2008 campaign about his authenticity reflected “a very skillful campaign technique employed by those running against me and by the DNC (Democratic National Committee),” he says in his hotel suite before heading downstairs to address the crowd at CPAC. “I think it is entirely inaccurate. But, you know, that’s politics. …
“The nice thing about having a book is, it’s all there,” he goes on, gesturing to stacks of the book towering on a nearby table. He has been autographing copies for supporters. “That describes exactly where I stand.”
Call him Mr. Fix-It
Romney hasn’t announced he will run for president again.
“At this stage, we’re really just pushing that off and anticipate that we’re not going to give it time for consideration until after the November elections,” he says. Until then, he says his focus will be on helping to elect congressional and state candidates.
Even so, Romney has moved more clearly toward a 2012 presidential campaign than any other Republican.
He has appeared at fundraisers for local and state candidates, written a book that will serve as a campaign reference point, and maintained an organization at Free and Strong America, his political action committee. Last week, he named Matt Rhoades, a veteran of his 2008 campaign operation, as executive director.
Last year, Romney’s PAC raised $2.9 million. It contributed $9,000 in “seed money” to Brown’s successful campaign to fill the Senate seat of the late Democratic icon Edward Kennedy and let Brown use lists of donors to raise money. Contributions also went to local candidates in New Hampshire — for the state Legislature and for mayor in Manchester and Franklin — where the nation’s first presidential primary is held.
Romney shows more gray in his hair than he did in 2008, displays an easier confidence in an interview and articulates a clearer message on the stump: Call him Mr. Fix-It.
He points to his résumé as a turnaround artist for businesses — he was CEO of Bain & Co., a management consulting firm — and for the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.
“His profile fits the needs of the times,” says Romney adviser Kevin Madden. “Many Americans see an economy that is teetering on the brink and a Washington that is out of control with spending. There doesn’t seem to be any management or order, and institutions seem broken. … His whole career has been about fixing broken things, whether it’s Massachusetts’ budget, whether it’s businesses or whether it was the Olympics.”
Strike!
“Now, that felt really good,” Romney recalls happily, saying he hadn’t picked up a bowling ball in years before the $150-a-head event for his political action committee in Washington’s Chinatown. “That doesn’t mean I did that the whole evening, but I did get off to a good start.”
One pin at a time, the former Massachusetts governor is laying the groundwork for a second presidential bid.
While former Alaska governor Sarah Palin sparks more passion among many Republicans and former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee conveys more folksy charm, Romney is waging the most deliberate and methodical campaign of any GOP presidential contender in at least two decades for the nomination in 2012.
After spending the first year of Barack Obama‘s presidency out of the public eye, Romney will launch a 19-state, three-month tour next week to promote his new book, No Apology: The Case for American Greatness. Included are speeches and appearances in the states that hold early contests in 2012, including Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina.
The book’s subtitle might as well be The Case for Mitt Romney.
At the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Saturday, Romney, 62, finished second in a straw poll to libertarian Texas Rep. Ron Paul but well ahead of more likely 2012 rivals.
Many establishment conservatives who once viewed Romney with suspicion because of his roots in liberal Massachusetts and his past support of abortion and gay rights have been won over, says Tony Fabrizio, a GOP pollster who ran the straw poll.
“They view him as one of the party’s elder statesmen,” Fabrizio says. “They see him as more thoughtful and measured than before, with nothing to prove. He’s earned his spurs.”
However, he adds that Romney’s appeal to the emerging Tea Party movement, which views Palin as a particular hero, hasn’t been tested. And “Romney-care,” the health care plan he signed as governor that is cited by some Democrats as a model, could prove problematic among Republicans.
Romney’s 323-page book is laced with lists and policy prescriptions — three “pillars,” 14 priority points, 64 agenda items — that focus mostly on the economy and national security. He defends the Bay State health care plan and argues it differs in fundamental ways from the one congressional Democrats have drafted, noting that it didn’t include a tax increase or government-run plan.
But he doesn’t discuss his conversion from supporting abortion rights while running in his home state to opposing them when he sought national office. Nor does he try to explain or defend his Mormon faith, an issue in 2008.
In an interview, Romney dismisses a question about abortion. “I’ve got nothing new to add on that,” he says. “My position on that is the same as it was in the 2008 presidential election.”
And the refusal of some to support a Mormon? “There will always be some who do, and that’s unfortunate,” he says. But for most Americans, “when it comes to voting, and they think about who’s going to lead the country, they select the person that they think will do the best job.”
Through the book, Romney hopes to set a campaign agenda and settle the rap that his views reflect more political calculation than core conviction.
Questions in the 2008 campaign about his authenticity reflected “a very skillful campaign technique employed by those running against me and by the DNC (Democratic National Committee),” he says in his hotel suite before heading downstairs to address the crowd at CPAC. “I think it is entirely inaccurate. But, you know, that’s politics. …
“The nice thing about having a book is, it’s all there,” he goes on, gesturing to stacks of the book towering on a nearby table. He has been autographing copies for supporters. “That describes exactly where I stand.”
Call him Mr. Fix-It
Romney hasn’t announced he will run for president again.
“At this stage, we’re really just pushing that off and anticipate that we’re not going to give it time for consideration until after the November elections,” he says. Until then, he says his focus will be on helping to elect congressional and state candidates.
Even so, Romney has moved more clearly toward a 2012 presidential campaign than any other Republican.
He has appeared at fundraisers for local and state candidates, written a book that will serve as a campaign reference point, and maintained an organization at Free and Strong America, his political action committee. Last week, he named Matt Rhoades, a veteran of his 2008 campaign operation, as executive director.
Last year, Romney’s PAC raised $2.9 million. It contributed $9,000 in “seed money” to Brown’s successful campaign to fill the Senate seat of the late Democratic icon Edward Kennedy and let Brown use lists of donors to raise money. Contributions also went to local candidates in New Hampshire — for the state Legislature and for mayor in Manchester and Franklin — where the nation’s first presidential primary is held.
Romney shows more gray in his hair than he did in 2008, displays an easier confidence in an interview and articulates a clearer message on the stump: Call him Mr. Fix-It.
He points to his résumé as a turnaround artist for businesses — he was CEO of Bain & Co., a management consulting firm — and for the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.
“His profile fits the needs of the times,” says Romney adviser Kevin Madden. “Many Americans see an economy that is teetering on the brink and a Washington that is out of control with spending. There doesn’t seem to be any management or order, and institutions seem broken. … His whole career has been about fixing broken things, whether it’s Massachusetts’ budget, whether it’s businesses or whether it was the Olympics.”
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