Mitt Woes

The Right and Romney - NYTimes.com

...But however justifiable the latest (and by no means the last, I’m sure) wave of conservative angst over Romney’s problems may be, it should also be noted that the likely Republican nominee would be in far worse shape for the fall campaign if he had listened to many of his critics on the right, and taken their advice on how to brand himself instead. His “I’m not concerned about the very poor” comments were embedded in an attempt — however clumsy and faltering — to define himself as a champion of the hard-pressed middle class, and to distance himself both from the “just expand the welfare state” politics of the left and the “just cut taxes on the wealthy, and the rest will take care of itself” politics that too often defines the contemporary right. He may not have hit that sweet spot, but at least he knows that the sweet spot exists. Whereas many conservatives seem convinced that the best way for Romney to counteract his image as an out-of-touch Richie Rich is to embrace policies that are only likely to confirm that stereotype...