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For those of you seeking additional insight beyond the mere political, I highly recommend the writing of our friends over at Article 6 Blog. Their research is second to none and their writing is intellectually stimulating as they bring to light those who attempt to obfuscate or otherwise distract from truth. Their exposure of the ignorant I find to be refreshing; even cathartic. Frankly, I am inspired by their tireless efforts to promote the most qualified presidential candidate this country has presented in decades — these three men, Lowell, Reynolds, and Schroeder provide an invaluable service to America as they inform us and denounce the ignorant among us.

Craig and Dad

Many of you leave comments in the published posts here at Mitt Romney Central referring to overt bigotry you have discovered in your research of those who support candidates opposing Governor Romney or you ask why Governor Romney does not seem “to connect” to many in the South. Keeping up on the work of Lowell, Reynolds, and Schroeder will help you understand that Governor Romney’s remarkable success to date is all the more impressive when you understand who opposes him out of ignorance, fear, or bigoted agenda.

The kind of resistance we are seeing right now against Governor Romney in the underground is nothing compared to what is brewing in the Obama camp.

Lowell, Reynolds, and Schroeder often refer to “The Question” — What is it? —-> CLICK

Who are these guys? What drives them? ——> CLICK

Two Recent Samples from Article 6 Blog:

HUMOR: Related to Obama Having No Flaws or Weaknesses

Or this recent post by John Schroeder about a Santorum surrogate, soon to become an Obama surrogate:

THINGS ARE ABOUT TO GET REALLY INTERESTING

As a frequent visitor to MRC, you may have wondered why we generally do not write about or report on the obvious religious undertones that “reporters” touch on in their coded missives. Maybe you have considered us ignorant to the obvious — we are not. Maybe you have considered us shy on the subject — we are not.

An important guiding principle of the MRC contributors is to promote Governor Romney’s candidacy with fact, truth, the record, and light. In part, we feel confident in doing so because we know our candidate will overcome the unseemly no matter how passionate his opponents are in promoting the dark side. Additionally, we are confident that others more qualified than we will handle the subject — they are Article 6 Blog.

The Wall Street Journal yesterday carried three insightful articles by authors Kimberley Strassel, Michael Medved (in Romney’s camp), and Danny Yadron. Each one contributes to the narrative that Gov. Romney is the very best of the five remaining candidates to be our next President.

MUST WATCH: Before I get to the articles, this video clip of Charles Krauthammer is great. He is one of the very best, most objective political analysts alive in my opinion — and definitely one of the brightest. He hits all the important points of the race in this clip — tells why Santorum cannot win; uses the “Buckley Rule” as to how to pick the best conservative candidate; says Gingrich should be “holding court”; and best of all: he wants Romney in the White House! First time Krauthammer has come right out to give such a strong opinion in favor of Governor Romney ——–>

“I actually like Romney, I think he’s a very good man, and he will make a very good President. I’d like to see him in the White House and I’d have no hesitation supporting him. It’s the Buckley Rule: He always said that in any election vote for the most conservative candidate who can win! In my analysis, Santorum has no chance of winning the White House in the general election. It’s an election about the economy and what energizes Santorum is social issues — it’s the wrong year for social issues.” ~ Charles Krauthammer

Strassel makes some good points in her article, but the main point of her article is missed completely in a key paragraph:

Though only—and this is key—if he has locked in those core voters on the other side of the Divide. Yet the Romney campaign seems to be taking for granted that they will ultimately jump to his side. In the upcoming Mississippi and Alabama primaries, the campaign will continue to target more upscale urban and suburban communities. A senior campaign aide airily dismissed Mr. Romney’s Super Tuesday weaknesses, noting: “The areas we didn’t do as well in are rural and they are more anti-Obama.” Meaning, who else are these guys going to vote for come November?

How about: no one. They could stay home.

FALSE!

She totally missed the point of Romney’s aide above! Those who are voting in large blocks for Romney are the more affluent, college grads, older voters, etc. Those in the rural areas voting for say Santorum, and who are more anti-Obama, are more ideological. She implies these would stay home in the general. This is simply not born out at all. If their ideal candidate does not make it, their greater passion against Obama will be realized by voting for Gov. Romney. I have yet to see any of these voters interviewed on TV to say they will not vote if Romney is the nominee. They will come out in droves.

Ms. Strassel has spotted a slight change in Romney’s message that others of late have also discovered. Rather than refer to the middle “class” or any class, he is now talking about the ability of any American to reach their goals and dreams related to a much better standard of living – those dreams to which we all aspire. Reagan was naturally outstanding in this type of message. Gov. Romney has been delivering this message for awhile now; it is one important reason people are leaving Santorum for Romney. Strassel concludes her piece here: CLICK HERE TO CONTINUE READING…

Matt Romney and his wife, Laurie, representing Mitt

Mitt Romney today made the following statement on winning all 9 delegates in Guam:

I am grateful to have won all nine delegates in Guam, and I am pleased that my son Matt was able to visit the island on my behalf and be there for the caucuses. The people of Guam have always stood bravely for America and the values we hold dear. Today we stand together in our efforts to secure the future that this nation deserves. I am honored to have won the Guam caucuses, an important milestone in my quest to restore America to the principles and practices that made us great.

Photo provided by Reuters

UPDATE: Romney wins all 9 delegates in Northern Marianas caucus.

Mitt Romney made the following statement on winning all 9 delegates in the Northern Mariana Islands:

“The Northern Mariana Islands may be far away from the mainland, but one of the great things about our democracy is that every voice has a chance to be heard in selecting a presidential candidate. Now the voters of the Northern Mariana Islands—nearly 8,000 miles from Washington, D.C.—have spoken. And what they’ve said today is that they want to bring change to their beautiful islands by bringing change to our nation’s capital. My son Matt told me about his visit to Saipan and the warm reception he received, and I am honored and delighted to have the support of all nine of the CNMI’s delegates.”

Check out our updated Primary Results and Delegate Count. It’ll be interesting to see how many delegates Santorum and Gingrich officially end up getting out of Wyoming tomorrow.

UPDATE by Jayde – How Mitt “Guamney” Is Putting Santorum Away

Romney’s wins, big and obscure, are giving him a dramatic lead in the currency that counts: Delegates. On to Samoa!

Mitt Romney’s victories today in Guam and the Northern Marianas Islands were greeted with amusement yesterday afternoon by the political class, as the time difference from the Pacific Ocean allowed Saturday’s news to break Friday.

But Romney’s sweeps in the obscure caucuses are part of the reason that the Republican professional class has begun to write off the nomination. With the exception of a strong showing in the non-binding Minnesota caucuses, the victories of Romney’s main rival, Rick Santorum, have been symbolic; Romney’s victories and second-place finishes have brought him the currency of the nomination fight, delegates.

(emphasis added) Continue reading here.

Matt Romney, son of Mitt Romney, is greeted by Victor Cruz, Republican Party of Guam Vice Chairman, after he and his wife Laurie arrived at the A.B. Won Pat Intl Airport, Guam. March 8, 2012 (Photo Rick Cruz/Pacific Daily)

The “Cheerful One” puts his sights on Rick Santorum and joins the ranks of those seeking to vet the vest. My guess is Team Romney has to be thrilled to see this video and secretly wishing there were a way for they could give it more play – it clearly helps Mitt more than anyone else.

UNRAVELING…Unraveling…. unraveling….

~Nate G.

The project will illustrate with ads and speeches “how Barack Obama’s policies have hurt the middle class, given more and more people concerns about their jobs and prices, and put downward pressure on households.” Added the insider, “what Obama has done so far hasn’t worked and, when needed, he didn’t lead.”

The campaign will offer Romney’s alternative story-line: that he is a business and political leader who has a plan to fix the economy and bring back jobs.

Read more at WashingtonExaminer.com

Mitt Romney made the following statement on the Senate vote to block the Keystone XL pipeline:

President Obama has once again blocked the Keystone XL pipeline today. He personally lobbied Senate Democrats to vote against the project, asking them to eliminate jobs and reroute desperately needed Canadian oil away from the United States and toward China. This decision makes a mockery of his so-called ‘all-of-the-above’ energy strategy and is the latest reminder that he has taken unprecedented steps to stifle energy production and drive up energy prices in this country, all while wasting billions of dollars on failed green projects. His political strategists may think that he can continue saying one thing about energy while doing exactly the opposite, but I will spend this campaign reminding the American people of his actual record and proposing policies that will guarantee our economy the reliable, affordable supply of energy we need.

On the heels of the largest newspaper in Alabama endorsing Mitt, former Alabama Gov. Bob Riley: Romney Has the Experience and Plan to Get the Country Working Again.

Charles Djou: Hawaii Voters Have the Chance to Vote for a Proven Leader on Tuesday.

Mitt Romney today announced endorsements in Jackson County, Mississippi. Read them below the fold. CLICK HERE TO CONTINUE READING…

Submitted by John Stevens. Stevens is an electrical engineer and the founder/operator of aboutMittRomney.com, a grass-roots website not associated with any PAC or campaign. AboutMittRomney.com is an excellent resource for a thorough study of Mitt Romney on the issues.

John Stevens - AboutMittRomney.com

7. Immigration. Mitt Romney has a solid record and platform addressing illegal immigration.

Rick Santorum says things that sound good, but as NY Times best seller and popular conservative pundit Ann Coulter explained, he has a record that has perpetuated illegal immigration, including voting against even the voluntary use of e-verify, and he has a platform that will continue to perpetuate the problem, which includes continued opposition to the use of e-verify.

6. Washington Outsider. This hardly needs any commentary. Rick Santorum spent 16 years as a Washington insider as a congressman (4 years in the house and 12 years in the senate), and since then over the last five years has remained there as a consultant to lobbying firms and other companies wanting a Washington insider’s services. The executive director of the watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington explained that Santorum “was a huge part of pay-to-play politics during one of the dirtiest eras in Washington.”

By contrast Mitt Romney has never worked inside the beltway, and he has never worked as a consultant to lobbying firms.

5. Executive experience. Mitt Romney has experience running and rescuing billion dollar enterprises, including governing a state, while Rick Santorum has no executive experience.

Massachusetts had the 11th largest economy in the nation, and it was doing worse than the rest of the country, ranking 50th in its increase in unemployment and bleeding fast when he took over. He balanced the multi-billion dollar Massachusetts state budget which had billions in structural deficit, leaving a $2 billion surplus. The year he left office, the state was 12th in the nation in its improvement in the unemployment rate, which was decreasing and substantially lower than when he took office.

What better training and experience for a person to take over the multi-trillion dollar enterprise called the federal government, which is well over 15 trillion dollars in debt and sinking fast? This reason alone is more than ample reason, hands down, to support Mitt Romney over any of the remaining contenders as the future executive of the country.

4. Electability – The ability to beat the incumbent in a general election. There has been much ballyhoo lately about how Senator Rick Santorum is as electable as Governor Mitt Romney. To use Senator Santorum’s not so eloquent words, “This is just crap!” And this is why:

History: There has only been one person in history to defeat an incumbent president, whose government experience was limited to being a legislator and senator. That was the Republican President Benjamin Harrison (1889-93), but he also had the credential of being a Civil War hero and General. He did such a poor job, that after one term the voters reelected his defeated predecessor, Grover Cleveland, to a second term. Since then, the country has never replaced a president with a senator having no executive government experience. But voters do like to replace presidents with governors, such as when Ronald Reagan defeated President Carter and Bill Clinton defeated President Bush.

Polls: While Santorum’s polling against Barak Obama improved a little for a short while, Romney has often tied or beat Obama in the polls and still has a better polling average than Santorum. More telling, Romney has fared far better than Santorum in polls of battleground states and among independents.

Credentials: From the previously mentioned executive experience to the credentials listed below, Mitt Romney has the résumé and the experience that makes him more electable.

3. Business and economic understanding and experience. Graduating in the top of his class in Harvard in both business and law, Mitt Romney went on to create and save many businesses. Having someone who understands business, jobs and the economy is near the top in my criteria for a desired presidential candidate.

2. Fiscal Discipline. In addition to keeping businesses in the black (profitable), Mitt Romney has demonstrated fiscal discipline in government. When he took office, he revamped the existing budget, balancing it, then balanced all four budgets during his term in office without raising taxes, although some fees were raised and some corporate tax loopholes were closed. Rick Santorum on the other hand has been roundly criticized by peers and others for enthusiastically over-indulging in seeking increased earmarks and spending.

1. Turn-around artist. The skill, ability, credentials and track record of turning struggling or failing enterprises around is Mitt Romney’s most impressive and appealing quality. The action I most would like to see occur with the federal government, with its runaway deficit spending, and with the U.S. economy, is a fiscal turnaround. Mitt Romney has a spectacular record and ability turning things around. This needs duplicating at the federal level.

~John Stevens

Santorum and Gingrich should be asked continuously why they stay in the race until they admit they are driven by self-interest. Ron Paul has already given his answer.

What would Mitt Romney do right now if the tables were turned and he were in Gingrich’s or Santorum’s shoes? No guessing needed. We only need to look to 2008 for the answer. At about this time in the race in 2008, Governor Romney dropped out of the race and did a lot of heavy lifting for Senator McCain. He and Huckabee knew there was no practical way either of them could win the nomination and yet Huckabee stayed in three months longer out of self-interest (to inflate his value to FOX News).

Do Character, Principles, and Integrity Matter?

By David Parker

Vince Haley, an advisor to Newt Gingrich seriously suggested that Mitt Romney bow out of the race and allow the “conservatives” a debate on how to take on Obama. Although, he couldn’t have been serious, could he? What Mr. Haley fails to recognize is that the only true and principled conservative in the race, whose life reflects immeasurable integrity, is not Newt Gingrich nor Rick Santorum, but Mitt Romney. Actions always trump words, and character, principle and integrity are self-evident in what one does and not what one says. Character, principle and integrity are borne out in how a person lives their life — are they self-absorbed or committed to the service of others, and how is such manifest?

David Parker

In a brief retrospective — in February 2008, having lost Florida and fully aware of the complexion of the impending 26 state Super Tuesday campaign, Governor Romney quickly realized that math can be a stubborn thing. Notwithstanding that he would prevail in certain states on Super Tuesday, and could continue to contest with John McCain and Mike Huckabee for the Republican nomination, the question arose — but to what end? Personal accommodation for ego’s sake? Power and influence at the 2008 Convention? Notoriety and fame? Denigration of the other candidates? Vindictiveness for the rough and tumble campaign that preceded Super Tuesday? A want to be right when everyone else was wrong? Advocacy for posture and position?

Mitt Romney knew that he would not win the nomination outright; the math wouldn’t bear it out. He also knew that the general campaign against the Democratic nominee, whether Obama or Clinton, would be hard fought and difficult at best. He could have continued his pursuit of the nomination, even to the Convention, but in doing so would only impinge on the Republican Party’s coalescing to the greater good. For to shorten the time window of the Party’s competing in the general election would severely impact much needed Party unity, Party fundraising and advocation of Party principles and its conservative platform in a hotly contested general election. So Mitt Romney willingly subordinated his personal interest to the greater good of the Country, in spite of very vocal protests to the contrary by his supporters. The audible response at CPAC was very evident — he was then and is now, a solid fiscal and social conservative and those at CPAC knew it. His speech at CPAC in 2008 and the actions that followed thereafter clearly illustrate that Mitt Romney is a man of principle, character and integrity — he put Country and Party first, and subordinated personal interest.

He stood with and supported the presumptive nominee, John McCain, and then went to work — he was one of the most active surrogates for Senator McCain and was a catalyst to raise in excess of $20 million for the general campaign. As the Democratic Party subsequently chose their nominee, Barack Obama, Mitt Romney pressed forward knowing how critical it was to stand with the Republican nominee and advocate for the conservative values that made America great! It was the Republican Party’s only shot to derail the pending disaster. To quote Senator McCain, “no one worked harder for my campaign.” Mitt Romney proved his character and integrity by recognizing and accepting early-on the pragmatic realities, subordinating his self-interest, and acting on core values and principles to assure viability in the pending general election. CLICK HERE TO CONTINUE READING…

William McGurn of The Wall Street Journal wrote this outstanding opinion piece that was published last Tuesday, titled, REAGAN WAS A SURE LOSER TOO.

NOTE: I had to truncate this article — I highly recommend you read the entire article at the link above

Not since Herbert Hoover has a party out of power had such an opportunity to run against everything that troubles the American family—prices, interest rates, unemployment, taxes, or the fear for the future of their old age or the future of their children—than is now presented to the Republican Party.

The Republicans, however, haven’t figured this out. This is their basic problem. They have no strategy for defeating an Obama administration that is highly vulnerable on both domestic and foreign policy.

That’s the conventional wisdom in a nutshell, isn’t it?

It will come as no surprise that these words appeared in a Feb. 29 column in the New York Times. They are reproduced here exactly as written, save for one small adjustment.

The president whose failings they describe is Jimmy Carter, not Barack Obama. The lines were written in 1980, not 2012. The author was the then-dean of conventional wisdom, James “Scotty” Reston. The headline was “Jimmy Carter’s Luck,” a reference to Reagan’s victory in the New Hampshire primary three days earlier.

It appears the conventional wisdom hasn’t changed much. Today’s narrative holds that however weak President Obama’s hand, Republicans find themselves in no position to capitalize on it. A glance back to where we were at this exact point in the 1980 primaries suggests otherwise.

The Republican candidates in early 1980 (from left): Philip Crane, John Connally, John Anderson, Howard Baker, Bob Dole, Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush (photo: Bettmann/Corbis)

Then as now, the Republican primaries opened with a bang, when George H.W. Bush upset Ronald Reagan in the Iowa caucuses. By late February, this loss would lead to Reagan’s firing of his campaign manager, John Sears, in a disagreement over strategy.

Then, as now, Republicans feared that an unhappy contender might bolt the party to mount an independent campaign. In 1980, that was liberal John Anderson, not libertarian Ron Paul. Mr. Anderson did end up running as an independent, whereas Mr. Paul will likely be constrained by the effect a third-party run would have on the future prospects for his Republican son, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul.

Then as now, the chattering classes wondered aloud whether a candidate who could win the Republican nomination could prevail against President Carter in November. On March 1, former President Gerald Ford amplified that view when he told a New York Times reporter, “Every place I go and everything I hear, there is the growing, growing sentiment that Governor Reagan cannot win the election.”

Then as now, some put their hopes on a late entry, in the same way that some now pine for Jeb Bush or Mitch Daniels or Chris Christie to enter the race. In the same interview where Mr. Ford predicted that Reagan’s nomination would mean a repeat of 1964, he also declared himself open to a draft if there were a genuine “urging” by the party.

In retrospect, we forget how seriously the Ford possibility was taken, or how popular it was in the polls, or how lingering its effects would be (at the convention, there would be speculation about a “co-presidency”). A Harris Poll released just about this time in 1980 bolstered the case for Mr. Ford by reporting that, in a head-to-head matchup, Ford (the noncandidate) would trounce President Carter 55% to 44%. The same poll showed Reagan (the front-runner) trailing Carter 58% to 40%.

Nor was candidate Reagan without baggage. As governor, Reagan had pushed through the largest tax hike in California’s history, had signed one of the nation’s most liberal abortion laws, and—as George H.W. Bush pointed out—presided over the doubling of the state budget over his eight-year tenure, to $10.2 billion when he left office from $4.6 billion when he entered.
[...]
Later he would face Santorum-like fears about his social message, especially after appearing at a mass gathering of Christian fundamentalists and evangelicals. A minister with whom he’d shared a stage was taped saying “we’re being attacked by satanic forces,” which Times columnist Anthony Lewis declared “the scariest piece of television” he’d seen in some time.

President Reagan

Yes, the parallels to 1980 take you only so far, and Mitt Romney is no Ronald Reagan. Still, at this same point in his campaign for the GOP nomination, neither was Reagan. The President Reagan we rightly admire for bringing down the Berlin Wall, reviving the U.S. economy, and attracting into the GOP millions of disaffected Democrats was still to come.
[...]

[emphasis added]

Quotes by President Ronald Reagan:

“Welfare’s purpose should be to eliminate, as far as possible, the need for its own existence.”

“When you can’t make them see the light, make them feel the heat.”

“While I take inspiration from the past, like most Americans, I live for the future.”

“Within the covers of the Bible are the answers for all the problems men face.”

“Without God, democracy will not and cannot long endure.”

“You can tell alot about a fellow’s character by his way of eating jellybeans.”

.

Jayde published a piece yesterday that had a link to the Dick Morris “After Super Tuesday” Op-Ed in The Hill (it is worth a complete read). Here are a couple of the more salient snippets (written prior to ST):

Neither Santorum nor Gingrich nor Paul can win this nomination prior to the convention unless one of them gets two-thirds of the remaining delegates. That is not going to happen. It is very unlikely that even together Santorum and Gingrich can win two-thirds of the remaining delegates.

So the only way either man can win the Republican nomination is by triggering a deadlock, denying Romney a majority and fighting it out on the convention floor.

That would be OK if the convention were in early July. But it is to be held during the very last week of August. If the Republican Party does not have a nominee until Sept. 1 and we have to spend the next six months watching these candidates beating the living hell out of one another, you can kiss our chances of defeating Obama goodbye.

So the bottom line is that Santorum’s and Gingrich’s only path to the nomination is to create a situation that virtually guarantees an Obama victory. Is it worth it, at that price? Can Santorum or Gingrich credibly challenge my math? Can they really maintain that deadlock is good for our party and that it is OK not to have a nominee until Sept. 1? Are they seriously going to argue that another six months of candidate-bashing is not going to irreparably injure our fortunes in November?

Based on Morris’s simple logic and math, I would argue that by RS and NG deciding to slog it out in the race, they do not really have the best interest of the nation in mind at all. They have self-interest at their core. Dick Morris is right.

The Wall Street Journal had some outstanding analysis of ST results yesterday from the front page, its Election2012 section, and both sides of the Op-Ed pages. Following are from those articles.

From “Romney Wins…” we have: CLICK HERE TO CONTINUE READING…

This just in…George Washington fails to rally troops at Valley Forge. Lack of decisive victory extremely problematic. Struggles to gain support of Continental Army. British rout imminent.

Signed,
CNN, MSNBC, FOX NEWS, Washington Post, NYT
[Anoymous, from FaceBook post]

So, what about the South? An important question it is with a few Southern states coming up. In yesterday’s WSJ article, “Race Heads South, Evangelical Terrain,” Governor Romney has some real advantages, and combined with weaknesses of RS and NG, we could see some pleasant surprises.

Mr. Romney’s performance in Mississippi and Alabama on March 13, and in Louisiana on March 24, could allow him to show new strength in a region where he has been badly beaten once—in South Carolina’s primary in January—and where his polling numbers until recently have been weak.
[...]
“I see Mississippi and Alabama as uphill battles for Romney,” said Henry Barbour, a Romney backer and GOP official in Mississippi, who is also a nephew of former Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour. “But we have an opportunity, by voting for Gov. Romney, to really help bring out the fat lady and end the nominating process.”
[...]
Supporters of both Mr. Gingrich and Mr. Romney see an opening to attack Mr. Santorum as a friend of organized labor, because of his votes in Congress against right-to-work legislation—an especially unpopular position in Southern states where anti-union sentiment runs strong.

The latest Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll, taken Feb. 29-March 1, found Mr. Gingrich’s support in the South dropping precipitously to 15%, from 45% of Southern GOP voters in January.

At the same time, support for Mr. Santorum among Southern Republicans had jumped to 31% from 18%. And Mr. Romney showed significant new strength in the region, with his support almost doubling to 39% from 21% in January.
[...]
“Sen. Santorum has a terrific record on social issues that will resonate well in Mississippi,” said Mr. Barbour. “But what matters most is jobs and the economy, and if we don’t get that core issue right, we’re going to fail.”

The pace at which primaries and caucuses arrive now is picking up, but by comparison to Super Tuesday, there are fewer states at each future date. This will allow a more concentrated effort and focus.

Many of you are either from the South or know people who live there — please do everything you can to assist in getting those you know, who are in Governor Romney’s camp, to help get out the vote.

UPDATE: CNN produced a short video on Ann Romney that I’m guessing you’ll enjoy.