“I don’t get why this is so controversial on FR.”
You have been gently promoting Romney since at least December of 2006, you must have noticed the level of dislike for him here at FR, there is a reason why he is at about 6% on a conservative site.
It is predictable that conservatives will react strongly to the claim that Romney is their natural choice.
“Gently promoting?” More like “attempting not to automatically disqualify.” He deserves at least that much. He’s not McCain.