Posted on 01/20/2008 9:34:59 AM PST by barryg
Mitt Romney had it all — money, looks, organization, endorsements and a seasoned staff.
But he still couldn’t crack South Carolina. There was something about the former Massachusetts governor that turned off Palmetto State voters.
He couldn’t connect with them no matter how hard he tried.
“He came across as a luxury car salesman,” said Francis Marion University political scientist Neal Thigpen, a Republican.
Romney spent about $280,000 a week to make his name known across South Carolina.
That was $3 million last year, in South Carolina alone.
He still flopped.
Realizing he couldn’t win here, Romney fled South Carolina last week with no plans to return. He hopped a plane to Nevada to claim his caucus win there Saturday.
The way South Carolinians saw it, Romney was ceding the state to three rivals — U.S. Sen. John McCain of Arizona, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and former U.S. Sen. Fred Thompson of Tennessee.
Romney made a mistake earlier in the month when he pulled all of his money out of South Carolina to go campaigning in Michigan, said Clemson University professor Dave Woodard.
“His timing was just terrible,” said Woodard, a Republican. “It couldn’t have been worse. What Romney was saying was, ‘I really don’t care about South Carolina.’
“He left us at the altar.”
Romney’s campaign never did catch fire here. After a brief period leading in S.C. polls last fall, he lost steam, slumping to third, fourth or fifth in the polls.
Why? Three reasons.
Romney is from Massachusetts, automatically making him suspect in South Carolina. Voters here don’t trust politicians from the home of Teddy Kennedy, Mike Dukakis and John Kerry.
Voters also questioned Romney’s conservative credentials. His flip-flopping on key social issues — abortion and gay rights —caused S.C. voters to wonder about his claims of being a conservative.
Among S.C. voters who told exit pollsters Saturday the main reason they voted for a candidate was because he “says what he believes,” Romney finished last among the five candidates who actively campaigned here.
Romney’s Mormon faith also hurt him among evangelical voters in the Republican primary. Many Southern Baptists, who comprise the largest denomination in the state, see Mormonism as a cult. Romney ran fourth among S.C. voters who identified themselves in exit polls as born-again or evangelical Christians.
However, Thigpen rejects the notion that Romney lost South Carolina because of his faith.
“It wasn’t his faith,” he said. “It was his phonyism.”
Romney’s decision to pack up to Nevada and its caucus were an attempt to build on his lone primary victory, in Michigan. Romney also won Wyoming’s little-watched caucus.
His departure from South Carolina served to lower expectations for him here, even though he started to advertise again in the primary’s days and made a get-out-the-vote effort.
The other high-profile Republican candidates decided to ignore Nevada in favor of South Carolina with its history of creating and demolishing Republican hopefuls.
For Romney, Nevada presented a particular opportunity. His faith was an asset in that state with its large Mormon population.
One in four Nevada caucus-goers was Mormon; 95 percent supported Romney, according to entrance polls there.
Romney aides have attributed their candidate’s Iowa caucus loss to suspicion about his faith among evangelicals, who rallied behind Huckabee, a Baptist preacher.
Thigpen said Romney made a wise decision to travel to Nevada.
“Why kick a dead horse?” he asked, referring to South Carolina. “Why waste your money on something that doesn’t look promising?”
But in essentially declaring that South Carolina didn’t count, Romney missed a chance to prove he can be a winning candidate nationwide.
South Carolina is “a test-tube state,” said Chip Felker, a Greenville-based Republican consultant. “If you win here, you have shown you can win elsewhere.”
“They” are going to have stuff on anyone the GOP runs.
If they don’t, they’ll make stuff up!
It’s a fight.
Romney WINS. He’s proving that, over and over.
You've already been refuted by the same liar that you're shilling and spamming for.
"I signed an assault weapon ban in Massachusetts governor because it provided for a relaxation of licensing requirements for gun owners in Massachusetts, which was a big plus." --"Mitt" Romney
Oh, and he supported the federal Brady Bill.
"The Brady Bill has changed over time, and, of course, technology has changed over time. I would have supported the original assault weapon ban." --"Mitt" Romney
Good luck to your guy. Apparently, I no longer have a dog in this hunt.
When was the last time a high-powered businessman became president? Look at the election of 1992, held when a mild recession was already going away. Clinton won easily campaigning on the economy and promoting his economic mush.
That’s the spirit.
Welcome to Free Republic.
How about Rick Santorum as McCain’s VP?
A good man & I think he’d pull in Pennsylvania for the win.
You signed up today, to express concerns about “something” you don’t like about Romney?
James Carville? Is that you?...
Here’s one for you. Aside from Bush 41 (considered mainly from Texas), can you name the last NE Republican to be President?
JFK.
If Santorum couldn’t manage to get himself re-elected to his Senate seat, how would he help carry Pennsylvania in the Presidential election? (I agree he’s a good man, and was very disappointed when he was defeated, but I’m just trying to be realistic.)
The thing is, Mitt can bring Michigan into our column.
That would offset losing a big state like Ohio with room to spare, given the other Bush 2004 states.
Romney was outright slaughtered in S.C. losing 2:1 to McCain. What a complete loser, not even being able to break half the number of votes list that RINO McCain, the Romeny campaign is on life support and it may be time to pull the plug.
Santorum is another example of how the Conservative movement is dead, for now. McCain wouldn’t take him (My money would be on Lieberman) and Santorum lost his re-election bid in PA to a Liberal Democrat by 18%.
I believe Reagan supported the Brady bill. Does that mean he wasn’t conservative? Would you have voted for him given that?
Mitt has “carpetbagger” written all over him. Rudy’s brand is “damnyankee”.
LOL!...and how true!
The only reason Romney lost SC, is he refused to take a pro-Confederate flag position.
That’s hardly a national issue.
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Romney’s winning big, and people like him.
Rush Limbaugh likes him.
Ann Coulter likes him.
His family likes him.
He’s a good candidate! And he wins.
Santorum has gone on many radio shows in the past few weeks opposing McPain ....with good reason ...
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