Romney: McCain's “Not the Best Match-Up" Against Obama

It is only a matter of time now.

Soon, Mitt Romney will be praising Barack Obama.

Yes, of course, the former governor of Massachusetts, whose own campaign for the presidency gave new meaning to the term "costly misadventure" -- Romney loaned his quest $45 million losing so many key contests to Arizona Senator John McCain and Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee that the blow-dried one finally had to admit Republican were just not that into him-- is currently leading the chorus of criticism of the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee.

Romney would really, really… really like to be nominated for vice president. And he thinks he will impress his fellow partisans by spouting all manner of nonsense. Imagine the kid who tried to make the team, failed and then became the loudest voice in the cheering section – in the tradition of segregation-era Ole Miss cheerleader Trent Lott – and you have a pretty good sense of how the former governor is spending his summer vacation.

Romney recently predicted fall victory for the Republican who beat him for the nomination, suggesting that: "people are going to focus on Senator McCain, his vision for our economy, his vision for foreign policy, his years of experience, as opposed to somebody, Barack Obama, [who is] well-spoken, but extraordinarily naive, particularly as it comes to both (the economy and foreign policy)."

That may sound a little harsh.

But, if pattern holds, Romney will change his tune if and when Obama is elected.

One of the most determined hustlers in American politics – a once passionate proponent of a woman's right to choose who, when he started looking to electoral battlefields outside pro-choice Massachusetts, suddenly became a passionate opponent of a woman's right to choose – Romney knows how to change his tune. (As McCain explained about Romney: "He's consistently taken at least two sides of every issue, sometimes more than two.")

Here is Romney talking about McCain in January, when the two were competing in the critical Florida Republican primary race: "I simply don't think that the people of Florida are gonna say the nominee of our party ought to be a person who on more than one occasion has expressed lack of understanding of our economy at a time when the economy is the number one issue that people are talking about…"

Rejecting the suggestion that McCain's military experience made the Arizona senator a foreign policy whiz, Romney told MSNBC in January that, "Our great presidents have not been generals or wannabe generals or anything like that. They've been people who have great judgment, capacity to do the difficult things in challenging times." In general, argued Romney, McCain adopts views that are "outside the mainstream of conservative Republican thought."

In particular, Romney said, McCain is a "quintessential Washington insider, a man who has been there 25 years, knows all the lobbyists, knows all the Democrats all the Republican, knows who owes who, has favors to repay and scores to settle."

Now, Romney says that when voters "focus on Senator McCain," they will be dazzled by "his years of experience" in, well, uh, Washington.

So Obama shouldn't sweat it.

Mitt Romney is just trying to promote himself – this time as a vice presidential prospect.

It's a lot like in January, after Obama had surged ahead of more senior Democratic presidential contenders such as Delaware Senator Joe Biden and Connecticut Senator Chris Dodd, when Romney said."I think Barack Obama would be able to do to John McCain exactly what he was able to do to the other senators who are running on the Democratic side."

Arguing that the senator from Arizona simply was "not the best match-up" against Obama, Romney said: "I frankly don't think that Senator McCain, despite his service and his length of experience, that that's going to be able to stand up to the message that Barack Obama has brought forward."

Instead of responding to Romney, Obama should borrow a page from McCain, who was asked during the primary-season about Romney's attacks and declined to respond.

"Never get into a wrestling match with a pig," explained McCain. "You both get dirty -- and the pig likes it."

Comments (14)

1. Oh, if only...

   Although never too sure just how many evangelicals LVLIB represents (may not be many)...

   love to see our local Reverand go absolutely ape-s**t and vote for Baldwin over the fact that McCain nominated a "Temple Mormon" to be a "heartbeat away".

   BTW, folks, back from vacation. Miss me?

   Did I miss anything? FRANKGRITS come up with any new "jokes" ("Two colored boys walk into a bar...one's runniing for President...")?

   HAPP still talking economic "happy talk" from Rush, while the Secretary of the Treasury says "things could get worse"?

   PONTI still re-fighting the Swift Boat wars of 2004?

   MARYBRET still coming up with new ways that "Democrats are worse people than Repubs"? (and then quietly backing down when his contention is proved false?)

   Posted by Maskdelta at 07/21/2008 @ 09:16am

2. BTW, folks, back from vacation. Miss me?

   Did I miss anything? FRANKGRITS come up with any new "jokes"

   Posted by Maskdelta at 07/21/2008 @ 09:16am

   About frickin time you showed up. I thought you may have had one too many 'technical difficulties' and said screw it.

   FG is no longer with us. All posts gone. However, ALL of yours are back.

   Posted by Benchrest at 07/21/2008 @ 09:43am

3. Hi Freta.

   JoMa wants to meet me in Austin for drinks.

   hsuB/cHeney is Al Qaeda or vice versa.

   Obama/Gore will transform Afghanistan into a renewable energy industry mecca for poppies...

   BTW, hsuB is a petty dic'tator.

   Apart from that, not much.

   Posted by hsuBfools at 07/21/2008 @ 09:58am

4. er, Frita

   Sorry, it's been such a long time...

   Posted by hsuBfools at 07/21/2008 @ 10:23am

5. FG is no longer with us. All posts gone. ----Posted by Benchrest at 07/21/2008 @ 09:43am

   Did he make another of his bi-monthly "I'm leaving this site...you idiots are just to stupid to realize what a political genius I am" declarations (followed by a "glorious return" 5-7 weeks later)...

   or just "blip out" (in which case he might still be posting...we just can't see it)?

   Posted by Maskdelta at 07/21/2008 @ 10:42am

6. Posted by hsuBfools at 07/21/2008 @ 09:58am

   After the speech at Netroots, HSUB...

   I will now officially wager my kid's college fund that Al Gore is nowhere near the 2008 Democratic ticket.

   I'll wager his college beer money that Gore never becomes President in ANY scenario. (A likely LARGER sum...heheh)

   Posted by Maskdelta at 07/21/2008 @ 10:44am

7. Posted by Maskdelta at 07/21/2008 @ 10:42am

   He blipped out. Looks like his past posts are back now. Who knows what's going on.

   Posted by Benchrest at 07/21/2008 @ 10:51am

8. Oh yeah, almost forgot. RIO is back. Now RedRiver.

   Posted by Benchrest at 07/21/2008 @ 10:52am

9. Posted by Benchrest at 07/21/2008 @ 10:52am

   Yeah, I noted Rio's return. Of course ranting about "secular regressives" always a dead giveaway.

   As to FRANK, he may be experiencing the same thing I did. In which case, he COULD resolve it by creating a new account...that is if he can figure out how to create a new E-MAIL account to use as basis.

   Lord, don't you know it's burning him up to be posting and nobody see his "genius"?

   LOL

   Posted by Maskdelta at 07/21/2008 @ 12:16pm

10. After the speech at Netroots, HSUB...

    I will now officially wager my kid's college fund that Al Gore is nowhere near the 2008 Democratic ticket.

    Posted by Maskdelta at 07/21/2008 @ 10:44am

    I take it either you don't plan for your kids, if you have any, to go to collage with your help or you're thinking nothing can 'change' that much from one day to the next.

    I would never wager 'my kids' future-- I'm in no way hsuB/cHeney-like.

    I still see Al Gore in there; can't pin point how it happens. It just does.

    Besides it's funner this way.

    Posted by hsuBfools at 07/21/2008 @ 2:28pm

11. Posted by hsuBfools at 07/21/2008 @ 2:28pm

    Fine...just don't pull a FRANKGRITS on us and want McCain to win so that "Al has another shot at it in 2012" if ....for SOME unimaginable reason...Obama doesn't pick Gore and Gore once asked, doesn't accept the #2 spot again.

    'kay?

    Posted by Maskdelta at 07/21/2008 @ 3:44pm

12. I still see Al Gore in there; can't pin point how it happens. It just does.

    Posted by hsuBfools at 07/21/2008 @ 2:28pm | ignore this person | warn this person

    Can not stop the true believers...

    Gore is done. He was done in 2000 when he conceded to Bush. When he failed to get a victory in a time of peace and prosperity. He will not take a another VP slot and the fantasy-driven-brokered-convention-that-will-magically-get-him-the-Pres- Nom will never happen.

    The Gore followers are almost as frustrating as the Nader crowd. Hey, vote Nader, cause at least voting for a gauranteed loser means you can say I told you so no matter who gets elected!!!!

    Gore is done. Done. Done. Done.

    Posted by BizarroRio at 07/21/2008 @ 3:46pm

13. Fine...just don't pull a FRANKGRITS on us and want McCain to win so that "Al has another shot at it in 2012" if ....for SOME unimaginable reason...Obama doesn't pick Gore and Gore once asked, doesn't accept the #2 spot again.

    'kay?

    Posted by Maskdelta at 07/21/2008 @ 3:44pm

    Hey, I might be a terrible psychic-- but I'm not crazy...

    Posted by hsuBfools at 07/21/2008 @ 10:16pm

14. So, in the slimmest of slim chances that McCain selects Romney, I may be forced to sit it out as I don't find any quality 3rd party candidates this year. I don't like Barr's positions either.

    Posted by lvliberty1 at 07/21/2008 @ 4:06pm

    you can always vote for barney.

    he's purple.

    Posted by frosty zoom at 07/21/2008 @ 11:49pm