Santorum and Gingrich seem determined to repeat history and hand the election over to Obama for a second term. And nobody knows history better than Mr. Gingrich (Santorum does not seem to care about history and would that we all believe what he says and just vote for him).

Over the years, I have not been a big fan of Dick Morris as he always seemed to me to have similar DNA to that of Gingrich, Blagojevich, and Trump — that of possessing stratospheric levels of self-esteem, leading to frequent bouts of condescending rhetoric. But I must admit, his analysis these last several months has been quite reasonable, measured, intelligent, and spot-on (what has gotten into him?!!).

There have been four conventions with since 1960 with “floor fights” — two Democrat and two Republican (’64, ’68, ’72, and ’76). In all four cases, the resulting nominee lost the general election!

Both Santorum and Gingrich now know they cannot win the nomination by garnering enough delegates outright with the remaining schedule of states in the primary cycle. Their only hope?

To force a floor fight at the end of August, which leaves virtually no time to take the fight to Obama before the November election. History is totally on Obama’s side if Republicans opt for a floor fight at the convention — Obama knows it; Santorum knows it; and Gingrich knows it. And since this is true, both Gingrich and Santorum (and any person that votes for either of them) effectively acknowledge they want Obama to be President in a second term.

Listen carefully to the simple logic laid out here by Morris about voting in Alabama and Mississippi:

Four years ago, I was an ardent supporter of Governor Romney, fully expecting him to win against Huckabee and McCain. Even when the trend was for McCain to win, I wanted nothing more than for Governor Romney to take it all the way to the convention and force the showdown. Absolutely!

Instead, he did the right thing. He stood down and went all out in support of McCain — becoming his strongest surrogate — even raising $20 million for him! Why? Governor Romney decided to do everything within his influence to unify all Republicans early behind the obvious winner in order to build the strongest campaign possible against the Democrat nominee. Like millions of Romney supporters, I was very disappointed. I wanted to go all the way and fight it out, knowing that my candidate was the right candidate. What would Mitt do in this very situation? We know what Mitt did!

Quoting Dick Morris from this video clip:

“This fight is over!” “It’s over.”

“Anybody who votes for Gingrich or Santorum in Mississippi, Alabama, Missouri, or Illinois is basically voting for a deadlocked convention.”

“Vote for Romney now…Why? Because I want to beat Obama, and you can’t do that if you go to into the convention without a candidate. Not if your convention is the last week of August.”

“It’s over. We’ve made our choice. Romney has 54% of the delegates at this point.“

What drives Santorum and Gingrich at this point, when they know that their only chance is a knock-down, dragged-out fight at the convention? For they know that the result of that process is sure victory for Obama and the probable loss of more Senate and House seats. Obviously, Gingrich and Santorum are highly motivated to stay in the race through the convention, for they have said as much. What then is their motivation?

Ego? Revenge? Bigger book sales down the road? I would like to give them the benefit of the doubt. Four years ago at this time in the cycle, Governor Romney was in full campaign mode in support of our party’s candidate. Governor Romney fully subordinated his ego and personal ambition at that time and went to work! And you know what? He worked harder than any other surrogate on the campaign trail for John McCain! Look it up.

The title of this article states that Senator Santorum and Speaker Gingrich want Obama to be President for five more years. I do not believe they do. However, their desire to do whatever they can to take the Republican race to a floor fight at the convention in late Summer will certainly seal the deal for Obama and they know it. Those who vote for them at this point, know it as well.

If it is true that they do not want Obama to have a second term as President, then they are motivated by something other than solid Republican principles — indeed, they are driven by ulterior motives not associated with the best interests of this great nation.

Well, the final results aren’t final yet . . . but it’s clear that Romney won this important swing state’s caucus, and won it big. (Update . . . Romney did get just over 50%, but the entrance poll results have just been revised this morning, so much of what you see quoted below is somewhat off from what the linked poll says NOW. Sorry, I’m not going back and re-calculating things at this point).

He’s got 43% of the vote with 43% of precincts reporting, but the results of Clark County (Las Vegas) as not coming in as fast as expected. Don’t fret though Romney fans, Mitt will win a majority of the votes and I’m guessing he’ll be somewhere between 52-55% of the total vote when all is said and done. If things track as closely as they are in the entrance polls, Clark County should go for Mitt by over 60% (and they’ve nailed the non-Clark County…rest of NV…percentage at 43%, exactly how the real results have turned out)

Debunking the “Romney won Nevada because of the Mormon factor” myth:

Yes, Mitt dominated among LDS voters with 90% choosing Romney, BUT (and it’s a very big “but”), EVEN IF NOT A SINGLE MORMON WENT TO VOTE, ROMNEY WOULD HAVE WON THE STATE WITH A 42%-26% margin over Gingrich.  Romney won Catholics 52%-19% over Newt and “White Evangelical/Born Again” by a solid margin of 46%-26% over the former Speaker.

Debunking the “See, the poor won’t vote for Romney” myth:

On CNN’s coverage tonight, the anchors/pundits seemed to be getting as much mileage as possible out of the fact that the only economic demographic that Romney did NOT win was those that make $30,000 or less (which were only 10% of the voters in NV last night).  They were trying to tie this to Romney’s “I’m not concerned about the very poor” comment and even went on to conclude that this “underscores the fact that blue-collar workers, who you can’t win without their support, do not see that this is a guy that will fight for them.”  SERIOUSLY?!?!?  I realize that these pundits aren’t statisticians, but it’s pretty straightforward to figure out why he didn’t win this demographic.  First off, he hardly “lost” this demographic.  Paul and Newt both got 31%, and Mitt got 30%, a virtual 3 way tie for first.  Secondly, the age of the voter is VERY determinative of income when looking at your youngest age group especially.  Voters aged 18-29 were only 8% of the vote (quite similar to the 10% in that income of $30K or less), and Paul won that group 40% to 39% over Romney.  Paul has been wining the young college-aged voters in almost every state . . . it’s his base and he’s definitely turning out this group of folks that do not typically vote in a GOP primary.  Good for Paul. But these college kids are a HUGE portion of the “makes less than $30,000 year” group, and I don’t think anyone would consider college kids “the very poor,” they are just in a temporary low-income stage of their lives.

“Strong Moral Character;” Mitt good, Newt Very Very Bad:

In perhaps the most revealing entrance poll finding, those that felt a candidate having “Strong Moral Character” was their number one trait they sought in a President, Mitt got 54% of the vote … Newt got 1% of those voters.  No, that is not a typo, ONE PERCENT (Paul got 32% and Santorum got 13%).  Looks like Nevada voters are pretty good judges of character, eh?  THIS IS WHY YOU’RE LOSING NEWT!! YOU BLAME MITT FOR YOUR LAGGING VOTE TALLIES, BUT YOU NEED TO LOOK IN THE MIRROR BUDDY!

Debunking the “Strong Conservatives and Tea Party voters don’t like Romney” myth:

Like New Hampshire and Florida, Romney, once again, won self-identified conservatives and supporters of the Tea Party in Nevada.  This time though, he won A MAJORITY of these groups.  Romney beat Newt 54%-21% among conservative voters and 50%-23% among Tea Party supporters.  Yet I still see pundit after pundit say that Romney still has a lot of work to do to appeal to conservatives (while they “obviously” love Newt).  CAN THEY NOT READ A POLL?!?  Among “very conservative” voters he Mitt still won 49%-24% over Newt, and even beat him 39%-30% among those “strongly supportive of Tea Party.”  Some narratives are hard to kill, but when a state in the Northeast (NH), Southeast (FL), and West (NV) all show Romney winning conservatives and Tea Party supporters I think it’s proof positive against that media meme. The real take-away/new-media-narrative should be that Newt has work to do to appeal to as many conservatives as Romney has been.

Odds and Ends:

The Economy was the number one (even by a majority) issue on voters minds, and Romney carried these voters by 62%.  By an even larger margin, the candidate quality of “Can Defeat Obama” was number one, and Romney absolutely dominated here with 73% of the vote.  WOW!  ”Right Experience” was the top quality to only 15% of voters, but Romney cleaned up here too with 55% (Rick Santorum pulled in a whopping 1% here).   Romney also continues to dominate the Suburbs winning with 69% there; historically this is a key demographic for winning a general election.

Turnout Issue:

Newt and some liberals keeps saying that Mitt’s trying to suppress turnout in order to win.  When we look at the field compared to 2008, however, I don’t think it’s any surprise that turnout is lower.  Last time around there was much more diversity, and much more famous personalities in the field.  You had a Pro-Choice candidate with strong personal appeal/popularity in Rudy Giuliani, War Hero John McCain, popular actor Fred Thompson, and folksy former pastor Mike Huckabee in addition to Mitt and Paul all in the race this far into the process.  Substituting character-challenged Gingrich and personality/experience-challenged Rick Santorum in place of Giuliani, McCain, Thompson, and Huckabee is beyond even comparing apples and oranges. They all had more money and organization that either Newt or Rick too and that is how turnout is driven. Like all of Newt’s complaints/excuses, this one rings hollow as well.

CONGRATS MITT AND NEVADA!! ANOTHER GREAT WIN FOR ROMNEY!!

From USA Today:

NASHUA, N.H. – Iowa: Won by a whisker. New Hampshire: Won in a walk.

Can Mitt Romney be stopped for the Republican presidential nomination? There is time, his opponents say, although perhaps not much. To be precise, another 10 days to unleash a barrage against the front-runner and persuade conservatives to coalesce around an alternative who then could carry the South Carolina primary.

On Tuesday night, though, the confetti cannons were being fired at Romney’s victory party. He achieved what no non-incumbent Republican has ever done: win both the Iowa caucuses, dominated by evangelical Christians, and the New Hampshire primary, with its live-free-or-die independents.

“Thank you, New Hampshire,” Romney told an exuberant victory party. “You know, tonight we celebrate. Tomorrow, we go back to work.”

After watching one rival after another soar and then crash, the slow and steady candidate prevailed in this year’s opening contests — and succeeded in the state where his presidential ambitions crumbled four years ago as Arizona Sen. John McCain surged from behind to defeat him.

If he also manages to win the Palmetto State on Jan. 21 — scoring what South Carolina GOP strategist Chip Felkel admiringly calls “the trifecta” — supporters and opponents say the former Massachusetts governor credibly could claim to be the presumptive Republican presidential nomination.

. . . .

The Romney camp is braced for what one top strategist called “a war” in South Carolina, a state known for its bruising primary politics. The TV ads and two debates are likely to be the harshest to date

A majority of voters in New Hampshire said Romney would be the strongest general-election candidate, and he was seen as broadly acceptable.

. . . .

Nationally, he is showing growing strength. In the daily Gallup Poll, he has ticked up to 30% for the first time; Gingrich is second at 18%. That puts history on Romney’s side: Since 1976, the candidate who led nationally after the New Hampshire primary has won the nomination.

What’s more, Romney is the only candidate whom a majority of both conservative and moderate Republicans see as an “acceptable” nominee, according to a Gallup Poll taken Thursday through Sunday.

. . . .

The next goal for Team Romney: a Trifecta.

Also, watch Mitt’s new South Carolina ad:

Finally, listen to the radio ad below the fold. Read more…

I love this photograph! Has Mr. Gingrich ever looked that good? And the fact that Governor Romney is brighter makes it all the better.

I’m looking for your thoughts (in comments) to this question: In the history of the United States, has there ever been a Republican candidate, running for POTUS for his first term, to ever win both the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary? If so, who are they? [I don't know]. I don’t think any Republican President ever won these first two states in his first election for President. If true, what kind of news would it be if GMR wins New Hampshire next Tuesday? I think that news should be HUGE! I bet the MSM gives it little coverage, if any.

Two days ago I stated, “The more [candidates] that attend the South Carolina barbeques, the better for Romney in my opinion. Romney will continue to rack up the endorsements to the detriment of all the others and they will all fight for the crumbs that fall from the Romney table. I say, go for it.”

Politico’s Martin reports yesterday much of the same, though some are saying the race may be near conclusion. This statement feels like the reporting of a Russian chess match!:

Because of the divided nature of the opposition and Romney’s organizational and financial advantages, GOP elites made the case Wednesday that there was no clear way he could be stopped.

Check mate?…No. Check?…No. And there certainly is no gloating warranted — ever. In fact, Governor Romney’s continued humility as he works hard to secure the support of conservative icons is most impressive — indeed. But to that quote above from Politico, does it get much better than that after one caucus win from a tiny state like Iowa? I don’t think so.

What excites me the most though is that I know for sure Governor Romney will never take anything for granted and his work ethic and integrity will never allow him to let up until he has secured all 1,150 delegates. The 2007-2008 “college try” schooled all of us in this important political journey.

The article continues,

A veteran House Republican who is ostensibly neutral said: “I sort of think it’s over, right?”

“South Carolina and Florida are the nails in the coffin, which is why the right is so mad — they see it coming but the dominoes are falling just right for Mitt as they did for [John] McCain,” said the House member. “The party establishment does not want this intra-warfare much longer so we can focus on just Obama rather than the oddballs on the stage that can’t even remember the DOE or EPA.”

Indeed, Perry’s move was akin to dumping a bucket of cold water on Santorum, who won a significant moral victory in losing to Romney by just eight votes in Iowa and has already raised $1 million since last night.

In announcing that he was going forward with his campaign and heading to South Carolina, Perry ensured that the crucial primary there later this month would feature a third conservative vying to be the Romney alternative — fracturing the vote of the party base.

The entire article shows how nasty big league politics can be. The article describes a planned meeting in Texas in which conspirators would “take down Romney” and the response of Gary Bauer (“a high-profile Christian conservative”) to that possibility:

Bauer said he’d withdraw from participating if it was intended to plot against the former Massachusetts governor.

(emphasis added)

Nice, huh? This is not the bush leagues folks. We are in the majors now — the playoffs heading to the World Series, but with far more serious implications for this nation and the world. Governor Romney will never let up.

Indeed, the race is far from over.

Was President Reagan thinking of Newt Gingrich here?:

Politics is not a bad profession. If you succeed there are many rewards, if you disgrace yourself you can always write a book. — Ronald Reagan

Click here to watch Senator McCain’s Endorsement of Gov. Romney, then read the official campaign announcement below.

Senator John McCain Stands With Mitt

Mitt Romney today announced the support of Senator John McCain and his wife Cindy. “Few Americans have sacrificed so much for their country and it is an honor to have Senator & Mrs. McCain’s support,” said Mitt Romney. “For his entire life, Senator McCain has been a committed public servant and is an example for all those seeking higher office.”

“Few Americans have sacrificed so much for their country – it is an honor to have Senator & Mrs. McCain’s support,” said Mitt Romney. “For his entire life, Senator McCain has been a committed public servant and is an example for all those seeking higher office. Senator McCain has been a leader in the fight to stop the growth of government and make government more accountable to taxpayers. With his leadership on cutting spending in the Senate, we can rein in out-of-control federal spending, and restore confidence in government. I look forward to campaigning with Senator McCain and working with him on the issues important to our national and economic security.”

Announcing his support, Senator John McCain said, “The time has arrived for Republicans to choose a presidential nominee; a new standard bearer who has the ability and determination to defeat President Obama and the strongest commitment to returning America to prosperity and defending our interests and values overseas. I’m pleased to have made my choice, and to endorse Governor Mitt Romney for the Republican nomination for President.”

“These last few years have been a terribly tough time for Americans, and President Obama’s policies have failed to address effectively the problems of weak economic growth and persistent joblessness that have caused so many sleepless nights for so many Americans,” continued Senator McCain. “The Obama administration has ignored the most serious challenges threatening our future – a fifteen trillion dollar debt, and the job destroying effects of a complex, unfair and incomprehensible tax code, bankrupt entitlement programs, and unnecessary government regulations. We can overcome these challenges as we have overcome every challenge in our past, but only if our country changes leaders.”

“Governor Romney offers us the commonsense reforms of government policy that are necessary to turn around our economy,” said Senator McCain. “His record of accomplishment in government and business are a testament to his leadership abilities. His commitment to a strong defense and principled diplomacy will earn the world’s respect for American leadership.”

“I had the privilege of running against Governor Romney for the nomination four years ago, and I know he is a tough competitor,” said Senator McCain. “I have no doubt he is the best candidate we can nominate. And I am proud to support him for President.”

UPDATE: Gov. Romney and Sen. McCain were guests on Hannity:

Check out Mitt’s new radio ad for New Hampshire below the fold. Read more…

I found this video today of Mitt Romney speaking at the NRA convention in Louisville, Kentucky back in May of 2008. He spoke in behalf of John McCain, a few months after bowing out of the 2008 GOP Presidential primary race in support of McCain.

I can remember at the time how disappointed I was and that how I was not a fan of McCain who I felt ran a dirty campaign. I can still remember how hard it was for me to vote for him in the general election.

This post isn’t about that, this is about the character of Mitt Romney who could have just as easily walked away after the primaries and left McCain to fend for himself. I know I would have. Romney didn’t.

He knew what was in store for America as he points out in the following video of that speech he made at the NRA. He was doing everything in his power to keep Obama from winning the Presidency. I still share the vision of America he spoke of here:

The annual Conservative Political Action Conference is upon us! Thousands of conservatives are converging on the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in Washington, DC to listen to speakers and discussion panels featuring the most prominent conservative leaders of our nation. The 3-day conference also features a highly anticipated straw poll for GOP 2012 contenders (guess who we are rooting for.)

Let’s do this in Q&A format… (please note all times are Eastern)

Q: JUST TELL US… WHEN IS MITT ROMNEY GOING TO SPEAK?
A: Okay, okay. Romney is set to speak Friday morning at 10:30.

Q: Will I be able to watch somehow if I’m not there in person?
A: I believe live video will be available for the whole conference. Go to http://video.cpac.org/ and register. There are videos of speakers from last year available right now. Update: Live video is also available here: http://www.politico.com/livestream/
Q: Who will be the Keynote Speaker this year?
A: Florida Rep. Allen West was confirmed just yesterday to give the closing Keynote speech on Saturday. Glenn Beck was the Keynote speaker last year, and Rush Limbaugh the year before that. Sarah Palin was actually invited to give the speech, but turned it down last week citing a very busy February schedule.

Q: When does the straw poll voting close?
A: Friday 5:00 PM

Q: When are the results of the straw poll announced?
A: Saturday 5:15 PM

Q: Who will be on the ballot for the straw poll?
A: 1. Michele Bachmann, 2. Haley Barbour, 3. Herman Cain, 4. Chris Christie, 5. Mitch Daniels, 6. Newt Gingrich, 7. Mike Huckabee, 8. Jon Huntsman, 9. Gary Johnson, 10. Sarah Palin, 11. Ron Paul, 12. Tim Pawlenty, 13. Mitt Romney, 14. Rick Santorum, 15. John Thune, 16. Other, 17. Undecided

Q: Will Mitt Romney win the straw poll?
A: Doubtful. Ron Paul won last year and is favored to repeat this year as well. The Campaign for Liberty has made no secret of its intention to flood the poll for Ron Paul, just as they were successful at doing last year. Mitt Romney did win the poll in the years 2007 – 2009. My guess is he’ll take a strong second.

Q: Do you know the results of past years?
A: As a matter of fact I do..
2010: Paul 31, Romney 22, Palin 7, Pawlenty 6, Pence 5, six others
2009: Romney 20, Jindal 14, Paul 13, Palin 13, Gingrich 10, Huckabee 7, four others
2008: Romney* 35, McCain* 34, Huckabee 12, Paul 12
2007: Romney 21, Giuliani 17, Brownback 15, Gingrich 14, McCain 12
2006: George Allen 22, McCain 20, Giuliani 12, Rice 10, Frist 6, Tancredo 5, Romney 5, Gingrich 5, Santorum 3, Pataki 3

** It should be noted that Romney announced the suspension of his campaign during his 2008 speech. Prior to his speech 25% of the votes were already in, with Romney leading McCain 44-27. The remaining votes placed after Romney’s speech were in McCain’s favor 37-32.

Q: Do you have video of Romney’s speeches in past years?
A: Yes, we have 2010, 2009, 2008, and 2007. All include video and transcript.

Q: Will any Team MRC members be there?
A: Yes, there will in fact be 5 of us there on site, and we will be joined by Jeff of NYforMitt as well. Nancy French of Evangelical for Mitt will also be in attendance. Aaron, Ross and David, are already there. Luke and I will be arriving on Friday.

Q: How will you guys be covering the on-goings at the conference?
A: Excellent question. We have been afforded a seat in the blogger’s lounge (yes, we’re legit) where we will do write-up for posting on our blog here. We will also be live-tweeting the entire conference from our mega-smart phones – providing news, insights, photos and video as quick as our stubby thumbs will permit. There is live widget at the top of our home page where you can follow all of our tweets. Another option is to follow the list directly on Twitter.com. Or, for the more impatient (and more adventurous) you can try this pre-configured tweetgrid: http://bit.ly/CPACTwits. The grid follows @RomneyCentral, @AaronGundy, @NateGundy, @C0mm1tt3d (Ross), @DavePulfoo, @LukeGundy, @NYforMitt,and @E4Mitt. Other suggested search terms: ‘#cpac11′, ‘Romney’, and ‘MittRomney’.

Q: Will there be any official meet up for Mitt fans and/or MRC readers?
A: I’m not sure. I’d like to call together a gathering to meet everyone and perhaps enjoy some refreshments, but do not have a time/location yet. We will advise if we pick a time and place to meet up. I would hope to do so Friday since that is when Romney is speaking and most supporters would be there.

Q: Do have a schedule of who is speaking and when?
A: Yes. Below is actually an abbreviated schedule. The full 19-page event schedule can be downloaded here: CPAC Schedule (PDF)

Thursday
9:15 Rep. Michelle Bachmann (MN)
9:45 Sen. Ron Johnson (WI)
10:15 Sen. Pat Toomey (PA)
11:15 Rep. Kristi Noem (SD)
11:45 Rep. Raul Labrador (ID)
12:00 Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (KY)
12:30 Newt Gingrich
1:00 Panel – Reagan at 100: Model for the Next Generation
2:00 Rick Santorum
2:30 Panel – Traditional Marriage and Society
3:15 Wayne LaPierre – CEO of NRA
3:45 Sen. Rand Paul (KY)
4:00 Award presentation to Donald Rumsfeld “Defender of the Constitution”
4:30 Rep. Paul Ryan (WI)

Friday
9:00 Panel – Public Attitudes Toward Security
9:30 Panel – Cutting Spending by the Spenders
10:30 Mitt Romney
11:00 Gov. Luis Fortuño (PR)
11:15 Rep. Tom Price (GA)
11:30 Rep. Marsha Blackburn (TN)
11:55 Presentation “Blogger of the Year” Award to Javier Manjarres of The Shark Tank
12:00 Panel – It’s the Spending Stupid! The Tea Party and the Political Landscape
1:00 Sen John Barrasso (WY)
1:30 Sen. John Thune (SD)
2:00 Sen. Mike Lee (UT)
2:15 Panel – Do We Need a Constitutional Amendment to Stop the Spending?
3:00 Tim Pawlenty
3:30 Rep. Ron Paul (TX)
4:00 Gov. Rick Perry (TX)
4:30 Herman Cain

Saturday
9:00 Andrew Breitbart
9:30 Gov. Haley Barbour (MS)
10:00 David Horowitz
10:15 Panel – Defending Free Speech on Campus
11:00 Rep. Connie Mack (FL)
11:30 Panel – Bleeding America Dry: The Threat of the Public Sector Unions
12:15 Panel – Repealing Obamacare: In the States, In Courts, and In Congress
1:00 Ambassador John Bolton
1:30 Panel – The Nuclear Threat: China and North Korea
2:20 Lifetime Achievement Award Presentation to Pat Boone
2:30 Panel – How to Think About Afghanistan
3:15 Jonah Goldberg
3:45 Ann Coulter
4:15 Rep. Peter Roskam (IL)
4:30 Panel – Changing the Conversation: Winning with Minorities, Women, and Independents
5:15 Straw Poll Results
5:30 Key Note Speaker Rep. Allen West (FL)

Q: Wow, sounds like a lot of fun and a lot of work. Anything I can do to help?
A: Yes, yes, and yes. Our costs to attend are substantial, and we are not paid for efforts. We could certainly appreciate sponsorship to help recoup some costs for the event (none of us being independently wealthy ) We’ve already raised $500, and would like to raise about $500 more. Donate at the link below, or buy something in our Mitt Romney 2012 store. All of our items in the store are already paid for now so any purchase would go directly to helping us out a CPAC. Thanks a ton!

~Nate Gunderson

You heard it here, folks. Just before the Jets beat the Patriots out of the NFL playoffs, their owner was Mitt Romney’s travel buddy. POLITICO reports:

New York Jets owner Woody Johnson, the Johnson & Johnson heir and a prominent support of Mitt Romney, traveled to Israel with Romney last week after his team beat the Colts in Indianapolis, a person familiar with the trip said.

Johnson joined Romney in meetings Wednesday and Thursday with Israeli officials, then flew back to the States in time to see the Jets beat the Patriots Sunday.

It’s worth noting that Johnson is a former McCain guy who put together a fundraiser that brought in $7 million on a single night for a McCain’s camp, which at that time was in dire need of a financial boost.

Another interesting side-note: Woody Johnson was on a conference call with other deep-pocketed Romney supporters back in November. On the call, Johnson made a point that many, many former McCain and Giuliani supporters in the Tri-state area were ready and willing to jump behind a Romney bid — they just needed the go-ahead from Mitt and they’d be ready to open the Rolodex and make some calls. To which Mitt graciously replied something along these lines: “Wow. That’s great… I appreciate that.”


-Aaron Gundy- Follow @AaronGundy on Twitter

From the Clarus Research Group: (source – pdf)

If the next presidential election were held today, and the two candidates were Democrat Barack Obama and Republican __________, for whom would you vote? (asked of 1050 registered voters)
45 Obama, 41 Romney
47 Obama, 39 Huckabee
49 Obama, 37 Jeb Bush
48 Obama, 36 Gingrich
52 Obama, 34 Palin

———————————————————————————

If the following candidates were seeking the next Republican Presidential nomination, which ONE would now most likely favor… (ROTATE NAMES)? (asked of 415 Republicans and Republican leaning independents)
29 Romney
19 Huckabee
18 Palin
13 Gingrich
8 Jeb Bush
1 Thune
1 Daniels
2 Other
10 unsure

———————————————————————————

Of the following possible Republican presidential nominees, which ONE do you think would have the best chance to beat Barack Obama in the general election… (ROTATE NAMES)? (asked of 415 Republicans and Republican leaning independents)
42 Romney
14 Huckabee
11 Palin
10 Gingrich
8 Jeb Bush
2 Thune
1 Daniels
15 unsure

———————————————————————————

Which ONE of the following do you regard as the major spokesperson for the Republican Party today –(ROTATE NAMES)? (asked of 415 Republicans and Republican leaning independents)
14 Romney
14 McCain
10 Gingrich
9 Beck
9 Limbaugh
8 George W. Bush
6 Palin
5 Boehner
5 Hannity
4 Cheney
3 McConnell
2 Steele
1 Other (volunteered)
12 Not sure/No answer

———————————————————————————

My thoughts: Romney is within margin or error with Obama, leads 2012 hopeful, is clearly seen as the most electable in a general, AND is viewed as the party spokesman for the Republican party….. It is looking very good for Romney in 2012.

~Nate G.

Lifenews adds a bit of their own analysis

Also released today was a PPP poll showing Mitt in the early lead in Ohio and Wisconsin

7:00 PM Update: New CNN Opinion Research Poll
Please give me your best guess — if Barack Obama decides to run for re-election, do you think he
will win the presidential election in 2012, or do you think he will lose?
Will win 44%
Will lose 54%
No opinion 2%

Which candidate you would be most likely to support for the Republican nomination for President in the year 2012?
Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney 22%
Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin 18%
Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee 17%
Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich 8%
Texas Congressman Ron Paul 8%
Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty 5%
Former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum 5%
Indiana Congressman Mike Pence 4%
Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour 1%
Someone else (vol.) 8%
None/ No one (vol.) 2%
No opinion 3%