Free Republic

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney on Monday clarified that he supports extending the payroll tax cut, opening him up to charges of flip-flopping from Democrats. "I would like to see the payroll tax cut extended just because I know that working families are really feeling the pinch right now -- middle-class Americans are having a hard time," Romney told conservative talk radio host Michael Medved

The Washington establishment, ever a font of wisdom, has chosen its candidate. Mitt Romney’s victory in the Republican primaries, the insiders say, is a fait accompli. They claim he’s the most electable, the safe bet. Fine; let’s play along for the moment and consider what the Democrats have in store for him in the general election......

First Thoughts: Romney's Clear Path By NBC’s Chuck Todd, Mark Murray, Domenico Montanaro, and Brooke Brower *** Romney’s clear path: After Herman Cain’s defiant news conference on Tuesday and after Rick Perry’s brain freeze at Wednesday night’s CNBC debate, Mitt Romney’s path to the GOP presidential nomination is now WIDE open. In fact, not since Bob Dole in 1996 has a candidate been such a clear front-runner right before the primaries and caucuses begin. The ’96 comparison is also instructive: Dole still lost New Hampshire to Pat Buchanan. What this all means: While Romney looks to be on his way...

Was it wise for Mitt Romney to offer any opinion on Herman Cain’s campaign crisis? Romney tells George Stephanopoulos in an interview today that he finds the allegations “serious” and particularly disturbing,” although Romney declines to answer whether they are disqualifying if true. All he says in that regard is that Cain has to address the allegations directly: Mitt Romney today for the first time characterized sexual harassment allegations facing fellow GOP candidate Herman Cain as “particularly disturbing.”“These are serious allegations, George,” said Romney in an exclusive interview with George Stephanopoulos that aired on ABC News and Yahoo. ”And they’re...

Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney says allegations that rival Herman Cain groped a former employee are "particularly disturbing" and must be addressed. Romney told ABC News/ Yahoo! on Tuesday that he will not judge whether Sharon Bialek's claims against Cain are true. He declined to say whether they are disqualifying. ... Romney .. "These are serious allegations and they're going to have to be addressed."

In a February 2008, Herman Cain used his syndicated column to endorse a candidate in the Republican primary. His choice? Mitt Romney. The former Massachusetts governor struck Cain as best equipped to "focus on the right problems" and make the "tough decisions" to solve them: "Romney has done that as a chief executive officer in business, as a governor and as head of the U.S. Olympics," Cain wrote, adding the noteworthy judgment that "he has done so while balancing political consequences, but not compromising fundamental principles of the founding of this country or free-market economics." Romneycare apparently wasn't seen as...

This is a collection of links to bolster my contention that Dick Marriott, former treasurer and former head of the National Restaurant Association, maintains connections with the NRA. I apologize for the the sporadic way in which I will be posting links. I am baby-sitting for my adorable grandson and will be cooking for guests today. Dick Marriott is a close friend of Mitt Rommey, who is named after Dick's father, J. Willard Marriott.

What is Mitt Romney peddling? If you said a bicycle you'd be partially right. Partially right just like Mitt's politics. He seems to have the Obamaesque ability to take both sides of any issue simultaneously. The establishment Republican intelligentsia seem to think that's a winning combination.

A day after refusing to oppose repeal of Kasich’s measure, Romney waffled about his straddle, saying he opposed repeal “110 percent.” He did not, however, endorse the anti-mandate measure, remaining semi-faithful to the trans-Appalachian codicil pertaining to principles, thereby seeming to lack the courage of his absence of convictions. Romney, supposedly the Republican most electable next November, is a recidivist reviser of his principles who is not only becoming less electable; he might damage GOP chances of capturing the Senate. Republican successes down the ticket will depend on the energies of the Tea Party and other conservatives, who will be...

Rove is very much in a “do I have to do everything myself” mode these days, which is why he’s also running the GOP’s congressional campaign as an independently funded venture. Here he is practically acting as a Romney surrogate on Fox and attacking Herman Cain, because actual Romney surrogates seem unable to.

How does the liberal media turn a positive for a Republican front-runner into a negative? Ask Mike Allen of Politico. Instead of focusing on the political pluses of Chris Christie's endorsement of Mitt Romney, Allen has twisted the event into a negative that revealed the "very ruthless" efficiency of the Romney campaign. Moreover, if there's a politician around today who thinks for himself, it's Christie. Yet Allen insinuated that rather than making a reasoned decision, Christie was "roped" into endorsing Romney. Allen made his sour-grape remarks on today's Morning Joe. View the video here.

ANN COULTER, AUTHOR: It's a good ad. It's probably Romney's biggest problem, and that was a very strong ad, though I must say there are differences between doing it just in a state and doing it nationally. You can leave a state. You can't leave the country, or at least not quite as easy. And the other thing is, I mean, the country has spoken. They do not want national health care. Romney himself has said, whatever he says about -- about what he did in Massachusetts, he says his first day in office, he will issue 50 state waivers...

Ann Coulter on the GOP Presidential field.

Two new sets of Republicans are feeling deflated today -- the Chris Christie hopefuls and the Sarah Palin stalwarts. The Christie decision didn't surprise me, perhaps because I grew up in Jersey. In fact, Christie and I attended the same high school! Anyway, Jerseyans are many things (not all of them nice), but slick dissemblers we are not. When Christie said, repeatedly, and in ever more colorful terms, that he wasn't running, I believed him. And, while I understand the boomlet for him, I'm also a little relieved to see that he is indeed a truthful guy. Sarah Palin, by...

First on CNN: Conservative group to target Romney "If you support the principles of the Republican Party platform, as I do, then it's important that we make sure the GOP nominates someone who has supported and fought for those principles. On almost every single important issue facing America today, Mitt Romney has fought against conservatives and Republicans. He's been a liberal on fiscal issues, a liberal on social issues, and a liberal on national security issues," says Lloyd Marcus, Chairman of Campaign to Defeat Barack Obama, in a statement to CNN. EXCERPTED - Read Full Story HERE And here's the...

After Rick Perry’s wobbly performance shifted some momentum back to Mitt Romney, conservatives began another round of speculation about his appeal in the early-primary states. It seems that his religious affiliation remains a serious problem for him. USA Today reported on latest Gallup poll question: Although three of four Americans say they would support a presidential candidate who is an active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, the Gallup Poll finds that 22% say they would not. That figure has not changed much since Gallup started measuring opinion on this subject in 1967. One difference comes...

Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney is on pace to raise between $11 million and $13 million for the latest fund-raising quarter, a haul that would be much lower than the $18.2 million haul he brought in during the previous three months, according to a source familiar with the campaign’s finances. Romney’s strong performance in a trio of recent debates had helped his fund-raising by motivating his existing supporters, but it was not enough to move some of the fence-sitters over to his camp, according to the source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the campaign has not publicly...

Right now, it’s not easy being Mitt Romney. Every time he turns around, conservatives are looking for someone new to embrace, someone Who Isn’t Him. This week, following Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s partial implosion at the Orlando, Fla., GOP debate, the hot ticket is Chris Christie. On Wednesday, Romney had his game face on when asked about Christie, who continues to deny he’s running even as calls for such a candidacy from some in the Republican establishment grow louder and louder. Initially, Romney suggested to the crew on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” that the media were just stirring up trouble, but...

In May, when Mitt Romney's status as the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination appeared secure, the former Massachusetts governor sought to address his most pressing political liability when he promised to repeal and replace President Obama’s national health care reform law. In the same speech, which received lukewarm reviews at the time, Romney signaled that he would not back away from the mandate-driven plan he enacted in 2006, which remained anathema to Republican primary voters. “I did what I believed was right for the people of my state,” Romney said in his address at the University of Michigan. In...

CONCORD, N.H. -- More than 25 protesters turned out before a Tea Party Express rally this evening to protest not President Obama, but Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney. “We do not need leadership that puts their finger up, sees which way the wind’s blowing and then all of a sudden changes their mind and goes back in that direction,” Tim Carter, a leader of the Lakes Region Tea Party in New Hampshire. “If you look at Mitt’s past voting record, I think that’s what you’re going to see.” “When you come to less government, which the Tea Party stands for,...