I’ve been knocking Bill Kristol for a whole. As far as I am concerned he can just fade away. Red State is usually where I go for an uplift. Traveling with work colleagues both dem and rep. They have all concluded Obama’s got it. There is noomentum for Romney and it seems like everyone is giving advice that is largely being ignored. At NRO Corner they suggest Romney give a 30 minute Presidential style address. I would argue he give some time to Ryan in that. That seems desparate, but I am desaparate. Even if we lose, I’d like to lose having made the choice clear. Voters don’t blame Obama for the economy. There needs to be more. Tell us Mitt why we should vote for you, please.

What do you mean “Romney can win”? Of course he can win – and I believe he will. Will it be close? Of course. There are the 47% after all. But a lot of those 47% want jobs and want to be self sufficient – I just hired two this past month – Could the Romney campaign do a better job? Of course. But I don’t think running an election campaign against both Obama and the media is easy. I don’t know who the “elite” are or even what “they” are saying and I really don’t care. I send Romney money and I work as hard as I can with folks I know in other states (Alabama is already Romney country) to get the message out. We can and we will elect Romney!!!!!

Even the establishment morons must realise that Romney still has a chance, whether it’s his last chance or not, but a chance nonetheless.
I’m thinking about something like this: Mitt spends the first debate laying out clearer, more substantive policy plans and themes, and uses the flexibility from Obama’s unfamiliarity with these new positions to escape unfair criticism and instead turn the tables on Obama. Then, the day after, he re-launches his campaign on the steps of Capitol Hill, formally presenting a refreshed and elaborated version of his Plan for a Stronger Middle Class with Republicans from all across the country at his side, and goes on a high-profile tour of the battleground states hammering the theme of opportunity and freedom vs. dependency, with more town hall events as well. At the next debate, which will be the Vice-Presidential one, we can hopefully count on Paul Ryan to rebut Joe Biden’s talking points and immediately go on the offensive. By that time, the conversation would be focused on each candidate’s vision, which makes things VERY difficult for Chicago, and makes the last shreds of Obama-Biden’s foreign policy credentials irrelevant. With that, and no more gaffes or silly mistakes, Boston will control the narrative till November 6, and beyond, hopefully.
But that means Romney must quickly establish his credibility on policy, hitting home the contrasts between himself and Obama in terms of their records, whether in business or public service. And he must defend his character. Same thing for Ryan. Both of them have pretty appealing stories. Voters must know that Romney and Ryan are competent and compassionate before they can trust their vision. And it also means they must prosecute a much sharper and more vigorous case against four more years.
Oh, yeah, and the Neocons at the Weekly Standard sure have the nerve.

proudmarinemom is exactly right. If you do not name names, you are as culpable as the elites you (rightfully) damn. Whether Romney wins or loses, we must never be led by these people again. We must never contribute or support candidates who hire or kowtow to them. But unless we know who they are … as many as we can identify … then we cannot ostracize them and rebuild our Party and our movement without them.

Name names.

Mitt Romney is probably the finest man to ever run for President. His charitable acts over the years are a true mirror of this man’s beautiful soul. Unfortunately, he is running against the worst dirtbag that has ever won the office. Mitt is also having to run against Obama’s multi-billion dollar smear campaign. I say multi-billion as having the entire Mainstream Media in your hip pocket is worth untold billions. Nevertheless, Mitt is still very much in the game and I can’t believe the number of idiots who still plan on voting for Obama. Everyone is urging Mitt to get down in the mud with Obama, but I think Mitt would be better served by being “Reaganesque”, which he is, and post weekly speeches as someone else suggested, showing his vision, which he has, for saving our great Country. All said, I think Mitt is going to win in a landslide!!

Everybody in the Republican party is afraid this is not winnable because Obama is black. They have watched the media react with cries of RACIST! on virtually every comment. My suggestion is that the Super-Pac needs to get busy and point out all of the cases where the chair has been empty. I can think of several cases. Then point out that while racism is not pretty, what we are seeing is the Affirmative Action President.

He GOT there, despite no programs, no background vetting, only because he cried HOPE! and CHANGE!. Well, we have lost hope because, to use his metaphor, instead of pushing the car out of the ditch and onto the road, he actually has pushed it farther down into a ravine. Now stands there and tells us that it will make a great flower-pot.

He has allowed our guns to go to Mexican cartels to kill both Mexican and American citizens. Whether he even knew about the program is immaterial. Harry Truman said “The buck stops here” and we have to point out that he is the one NOT calling for removal of the mis-managers in DOJ.

He is the one who signed the Affordable Health Care Act, which has now been determined to be a massive taxing scheme and has lost the long-term care part of it. He took money out of Social Security to fund it to try to keep the illusion that it is really paying for itself.

He has allowed an Ambassador, which is the President’s own representative, to be killed. He has yammered about some film trailer, the film of which has never been released, as the cause, and failed to recognize our enemies who did these deeds and hold them accountable. He allowed an Ambassador to have less protection than his domestic policy adviser and the Ambassador is in a country that has elements hostile to the US.

These all need to be lined out as a man who does not have a picture of really living in this world, who instead chooses to try to run the country and lead the world from his world premises, not fact. Hit him as the socialist or communist he really is, not as just a nice guy who has it wrong.

This messaging will not be

Well said, Erick. Yes, we will burn down every bridge… with a vengeance. Bank on it.

I thought there was no reason to name names as we all already pretty much know the general parameters of who is involved. And to name names right now just puts us in a “not me” “yes you” situation when we should still be focusing, for now, on getting Romney elected.

Everyone needs to calm down. Mitt Romney didn’t just suddenly stop being a good politician. I think his campaign has a strategy and is working it. We all say over and over again how you can’t trust polls and then Obama gets one good week and we wail and gnash our teeth and scream at the Romney campaign. Negativity feeds on itself.

I don’t think he’s Reaganesque enough.
No one’s blaming him for not getting into the mud, in fact, Peggy Noonan thinks he’s been “small” and looks desperate (!)

You can’t offer change without also illustrating four more years of the same.
Of course, you’re right, but another problem with Boston’s strategy is also that they’ve failed to link Obama’s record directly to him and his policies.

This is a fantasy conspiracy theory.

Who are these “elitists” who “conspired to shut out other candidates”? How did they do that? How did they keep that a secret, given that it would have to be a truly national conspiracy?

Supposing Mitt Romney had stumbled badly in the primaries like Perry did. Then whom would the GOP have nominated then? Gingrich? Santorum? Pawlenty? We had a weak field because stronger Republicans *freely chose* not to run.

The GOP is not some cabal where secretive elitists plot to decide who gets to run and who doesn’t. You’re making the charge that elitists conspired to stop Ryan, Palin, Rubio, Thune, etc., from running for President? PROVE IT.

Ryan is on the Romney ticket. Why don’t you ask him to name the elitists who forced him to not declare his candidacy for President?

There’s a problem. Podcasts. I don’t know that I know how to access a podcast, don’t own any Apple products (never have and never will) and believe that thing I tote around and occasionally remember to turn on is a telephone without a land line. Admittedly, I don’t watch much commercial TV either, but a video would reach a lot of people who don’t “do” podcasts.

Read a headline with subhead last night that some polling outfit found Dear Leader ahead with the NASCAR crowd. IF that is true, you can chalk it up to the propaganda from the campaign/MSM and, in part, somebody thinking podcasts would be an answer to the propaganda.

Erick, Most media elites and conservative pundits opposed Romney from what I saw.
George Will, Peggy Noonan, Bill Kristol, Laura Ingraham, Michele Malkin, Sarah Palin, Mark Levin, Rush, Ed Morrissey, Fox News people, WSJ, Human Events, Tea Party, Evangelicals, and yourself………….everyone opposed Romney.

Only people I remember supporting Romney were Jennifer Rubin, Hugh Hewitt, and Ann Coulter. Couldn’t find anyone saying anything positive about him.

IMO he was and is the best and only candidate this year to support, which I did in 2008 and this time. I live in Massachusetts and saw the excellent job he did. That stopping/slowing down liberalism in a liberal state like Massachusetts as he did is just as conservative as advancing conservatism in a conservative state like Texas as Rick Perry did.
We have serious economic issues in a complex globalized economy that you need serious expertise to fix. It’s not the old days where you cut taxes and get out of the way as it’s gone the same way Woody Hayes’ 3 years and a cloud of dust became extinct. Santorum, Newt, Perry, Bachmann, Cain……none of them understand what’s really going on in the private Corporate sector of the economy where the most middle and upper middle class jobs are created leading to the only economic system that works, “Trickle Down economics” or ‘Supply Side/Reaganomics.”
I believe Romney wins this election. We all know the national polls are all skewed Democrat either intentionally to influence people Obama’s way or unintentionally following outdated 2008 voting data.

Technology and Offshore Outsourcing have been killing US jobs creation since 2001 combining with the other 2 jobs pressures government and competition putting you out of business. We need policies reducing the cost of doing business in the US while eliminating tax incentives to send jobs overseas creating a profit incentive for companies to create jobs here again reducing taxes, government regulations, and mandates.

Mitt Romney understands the complexities. He’ll win. “Are you better off today than you were 4 years ago?” That’s the only question that matters.

I think most’s answer would be “no.”

And who are they? Inquiring minds want to know. Why should the voters sit idly by and watch as the GOP eats its own? We want out of this mess that Comrade Obama has created and we care nothing for butt munches who are trying to save their own skin and retire with a fat government pension.
Romney needs to ignore these people, they need to be muzzled and we,as voters, need to stay focused on the mission.

I think we live in an era where everyone, whether the big media voices or us average net posters, have the time to over digest everything. I like Romney’s style. He’s upbeat, optimistic, yet strong when he needs to be. Non-conservatives want a likeable leader, not a talk radio host. What might appeal to our right of center ears isn’t necessarily what a housewife in Ohio is thinking right now as she tries to choose. If you’re Romney, and you realize you have to get a few more percent of female voters to win, what would you do? Get angry or be caring? Or both?…The more I think about this election, the more it reminds me of 1980. I wish someone who had the time would dig up some old opinion articles and TV spin from that era. I’d like to see just how many parallels we can draw. I’m guessing there were a lot of anti-Reagan pieces running, especially portraying him as a cowboy or out of touch. One major difference between now and then that helped to sink Carter: the 444 days of Iranian hostage captivity. Obama doesn’t have that big of a foreign albatross (yet), but he has enough other failings right now to drag him down to defeat. Let Romney and Ryan adjust their strategy to who is still undecided, and tell all of your disgruntled conservative friends to be sure and vote this time.

Like Erick says, it puts us in an us not them but Rove, for all his faults, hasn’t been one of the ones throwing Romney to the wolves.

Erick: I would like your opinion but it seems the main criticism of Romney from the so called media elite is that Romney refuses to tack back to the center. Could it be the most data driven person to run for the Presidency sees polling that shows that to be a losing proposition? I mean one person went so far as to saying you were running his campaign – we could only hope.

If you are going to bury Mitt Romney for not being Ronald Reagan…better dig that ditch miles deep and wide because Mitt Romney won’t be alone in that hole. Peggy Noonan has claimed greatness for years based on writing speeches for Ronald Reagan – it’s like Babe Ruth’s batboy claiming credit for 714 home runs.

Republicans need to learn the propaganda media is a much bigger problem than they think. It’s a fully integrated all out super pac wing of the Dems. It’s time for hostile media boot camp for Republicans, taught by people like Gingrich, Sununu, Christie etc….we need a strategic plan to combat the media on many levels. Cut that achilles heel microphone for DEMS and this country would be radically changed for the better, nearly overnight.

Romney’s campaign is fine. Complaining about Romney’s messaging is pretty nearsighted. It’s like hanging a 50 lb weight around a sprinters neck and wondering why he may be behind in a 100yd dash. Campaign surrogates need to hammer the media hard hard hard as the public is now figuring out the media is blatantly trying to rig the game for obama. Gingrich showed this support against the media is really on peoples’ minds and is just waiting to be tapped like he did effectively in a few primary debates.

But on to the real discussion. I’m debating getting a galaxy S3 or a galaxy Note II (when it comes out in Nov) soon, which one might be better?? It’s important since they are very popular world wide.

“Mitt Romney can win. He needs to hone his message. He needs to focus on the failings of this administration. But there is time and he can win.” -EE
There is nothing wrong with this sentiment. Quit picking on Erick. He’s calling it as he sees it. (And he’s calling it better than the refs from last night’s GB-Hawks game.)

“The staggering irony is that those of us who did not want Romney are now the ones defending him to the hilt while the elitist jerks are distancing themselves from Romney as quickly as possible —”
When I became a Tea Party member three years ago, I felt at the time — and said so at each opportunity — that we would have to capture the GOP, as the Goldwater people did in ’64, before we could hope to wreck the Democrats. It’s become increasingly obvious throughout this campaign that that still applies. I didn’t want Romney; still not sure about him — but every TP member I know (except a few Paulbots) supports him. He CAN win, but if he does the elites will claim the victory. So conservatives may win this battle, but the war with the party will go on.

Boehner and McConnell come to mind. Bill Kristol. Ditto Ohio historian on Brooks and Scarborough.