By Mona Austin
Article Background: In 2012, the Republican party flaked on then candidate Mitt Romney when he did not deliver a win in his bid for the White House. For years, the distance between the former Massachusetts governor and the GOP was clear. Yet, still loyal to the party, Romney entertained a possible second run, but could not drum up enough early support and said he would not re-run for the 2016 presidency. Last week her re-emerged in opposition of current His voice did not go unnoticed. Here I share an unpublished piece I wrote one month after the defeat that foreshadows the turmoil that now exists in the party and recognizes Romney's significant .
It happened a month ago.
Gov. Mitt Romney was "shell shocked" after being defeated in his bid for the White House by incumbent president Barack Obama.
The impact of the loss stunned Romney into silence. He was not seen in the media for weeks since he conceded on election night. Other than Laura Ingram, conservative talking heads are tongue-tied about Gov. Romney. Republican pundits are only talking about what happened and how to re-image the party. No one seems to want to mention the the man they were supposedly backing let alone show any appreciation for him.
What happened?
White male dominance in the form of Romney, Todd Akin, and Robert Murdock is in part, what happened. The candidate flip flopping on key issues and insulting half of the nation is what happened. Nonetheless, he deserves more credit for running a tighter race than McCain in 2008, making some progress for the Grand Old Party. Pretending Romney never existed won't do anything to advance the party.
(By the way, wasn't the RNC supposed to rectify long standing perceptions about Conservatives? Black Republicans Mia Love, Artur Davis and several women were a part of their attempted "big tent" showing at the Republican convention. The representation of diversity on the stage would have been a more convincing narrative had the American people plugged their ears when Romney said 47% of them wanted hand outs. His apology was useless subterfuge that ultimately contributed to derailing his run.)
The Republican party does have a real image problem that will get abysmal if its ideologies around race, women, work and war are not reset. Its problem is that in a nation of diversity and change, most of its leaders have a one size fits all mentality. It's problem is stern, non-inclusive, white, male, antebellum and so focused on partisanship the party often seems heartless and alienating--even toward its own constituents. The problem is also that any support is a matter of business and playing the political game, being more loyal to the party than to its people. A clear example of this was when staffers got out of cabs on the same night of the loss and could not pay their fare with campaign issued credit cards. The cards were not working immediately following the announcement of the loss. The secret service was also done instantly, Garrath Haake a campaign worker said on MSNBC. They were cut off just like that. It's scary. I was listening to a news program when the reporter attempted to find out what Romney would do next. One of his former staffers said he does not think we will hear from the again; Romney will just "fade" away. However, he did formally say goodbye and thank his team in Boston on Wednesday.
After Romney put his life and family on the line for the GOP, shouldn't someone prominent from the Republican fold acknowledge his valiant effort? Maybe the old political saying is true; in politics there are "no permanent friends, no permanent enemies." As a man who dedicated years of his adult life to public service, who has politics in his DNA (both of his parents were elected officials), I doubt this defeat will snuff out Romney's political ambitions as he may be accustomed to this impermanence.
In his acceptance speech President Obama says he plans to work with Romney. Will he answer the call? In this world of strange bedfellows, a world where Pres. Bill Clinton set aside his differences to become President Obama's crony --in fact he was the chief surrogate that helped secure Obama's second term-- perhaps some good can still come of Romney's work.
Going forward the Republican party would benefit from the advice in a Willie Nelson song: "You got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold them. Know when to walkaway, know when to run. . ."
Written on 11/9/12.
Article Background: In 2012, the Republican party flaked on then candidate Mitt Romney when he did not deliver a win in his bid for the White House. For years, the distance between the former Massachusetts governor and the GOP was clear. Yet, still loyal to the party, Romney entertained a possible second run, but could not drum up enough early support and said he would not re-run for the 2016 presidency. Last week her re-emerged in opposition of current His voice did not go unnoticed. Here I share an unpublished piece I wrote one month after the defeat that foreshadows the turmoil that now exists in the party and recognizes Romney's significant .
It happened a month ago.
Gov. Mitt Romney was "shell shocked" after being defeated in his bid for the White House by incumbent president Barack Obama.
The impact of the loss stunned Romney into silence. He was not seen in the media for weeks since he conceded on election night. Other than Laura Ingram, conservative talking heads are tongue-tied about Gov. Romney. Republican pundits are only talking about what happened and how to re-image the party. No one seems to want to mention the the man they were supposedly backing let alone show any appreciation for him.
What happened?
White male dominance in the form of Romney, Todd Akin, and Robert Murdock is in part, what happened. The candidate flip flopping on key issues and insulting half of the nation is what happened. Nonetheless, he deserves more credit for running a tighter race than McCain in 2008, making some progress for the Grand Old Party. Pretending Romney never existed won't do anything to advance the party.
(By the way, wasn't the RNC supposed to rectify long standing perceptions about Conservatives? Black Republicans Mia Love, Artur Davis and several women were a part of their attempted "big tent" showing at the Republican convention. The representation of diversity on the stage would have been a more convincing narrative had the American people plugged their ears when Romney said 47% of them wanted hand outs. His apology was useless subterfuge that ultimately contributed to derailing his run.)
The Republican party does have a real image problem that will get abysmal if its ideologies around race, women, work and war are not reset. Its problem is that in a nation of diversity and change, most of its leaders have a one size fits all mentality. It's problem is stern, non-inclusive, white, male, antebellum and so focused on partisanship the party often seems heartless and alienating--even toward its own constituents. The problem is also that any support is a matter of business and playing the political game, being more loyal to the party than to its people. A clear example of this was when staffers got out of cabs on the same night of the loss and could not pay their fare with campaign issued credit cards. The cards were not working immediately following the announcement of the loss. The secret service was also done instantly, Garrath Haake a campaign worker said on MSNBC. They were cut off just like that. It's scary. I was listening to a news program when the reporter attempted to find out what Romney would do next. One of his former staffers said he does not think we will hear from the again; Romney will just "fade" away. However, he did formally say goodbye and thank his team in Boston on Wednesday.
After Romney put his life and family on the line for the GOP, shouldn't someone prominent from the Republican fold acknowledge his valiant effort? Maybe the old political saying is true; in politics there are "no permanent friends, no permanent enemies." As a man who dedicated years of his adult life to public service, who has politics in his DNA (both of his parents were elected officials), I doubt this defeat will snuff out Romney's political ambitions as he may be accustomed to this impermanence.
In his acceptance speech President Obama says he plans to work with Romney. Will he answer the call? In this world of strange bedfellows, a world where Pres. Bill Clinton set aside his differences to become President Obama's crony --in fact he was the chief surrogate that helped secure Obama's second term-- perhaps some good can still come of Romney's work.
Going forward the Republican party would benefit from the advice in a Willie Nelson song: "You got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold them. Know when to walkaway, know when to run. . ."
Written on 11/9/12.