As Noam Scheiber notes, he’s in the process of becoming a stealth frontrunner:
For all the attention Rudy Giuliani got with that Pat Robertson endorsement earlier this week, the numbers increasingly suggest Romney is going to be the GOP nominee. According to Pollster.com, Romney’s up 14 points in Iowa (28.6 to Huckabee’s 14.8; Rudy is third at 13.7), has a steady and slightly widening lead in New Hampshire (28.8 to Rudy’s 21.4), and, perhaps most interestingly, has begun to surge in South Carolina lately (he’s now in a close third at 16.1, behind Thompson’s 18.9 and Rudy’s 19.8; Romney was languishing around 10 percent there only a few months ago.) Michigan, too, is looking better and better for him. Pollster.com shows Romney in second with 19.5 to Rudy’s 21.7, but Rudy has been trending down there for the last several months, while Romney has been trending up.
On top of the poll numbers, Romney has the personal resources to hold Rudy at bay spending-wise, particularly in a tough fundraising climate for Republicans. So while it’s true that Rudy hasn’t begun his big advertising blitz yet, Romney can respond with overwhelming force once he does.
It’s really quite interesting. While Giuliani leads the pack in national polls of the Republican candidates, it’s Romney who’s in the lead in each of the early primary states whether you’re looking at Iowa, New Hampshire, or South Carolina.
Let’s say those polls hold out, and Romney wins two of the first three contests — or even all three — do you really think it will be long before Giuliani’s inevitability starts looking a whole lot less inevitable ?
I’ll admit I haven’t paid much attention to Mitt Romney so far, though what I do know hasn’t impressed me much at all. Perhaps it’s time I started taking a more critical look at the former Massachusetts Governor.
November 11th, 2007 at 11:55 am
You definitely need to look more closely at Romney. He’s brilliant, a strong, experienced leader, and brings no personal baggage to the race for Team Clinton to attack. He has laid out comprehensive plans for virtually every issue - all available on his website, and all logical and well thought out.
There is no question that he is the candidate to beat. When it becomes a race between an optimistic, well-spoken, assertive, squeaky clean guy like Mitt and a shady, waffling evasive player like Hillary, the contrast will be striking.
Just think about the response to Sarkozy. America loves someone who loves America, and Governor Romney excels at that most of all.
November 11th, 2007 at 12:19 pm
I agree that voters should investigate Mitt Romney more than they have. That investigation, however, will result in Mitt Romney’s polling numbers falling off. The Democrats will make light of Romney’s revolving stances on important conservative value issues such as pro-life and elimination of taxes which, of course will expose him as being more of a liberal than a conservative. His religion will prove to be the proverbial nail-in-his-coffin. It’s sad to think that the true conservatives in the Republican race languish in 4th & 5th in the polls–Ron Paul and Mike Huckabee. Maybe the current GOP membership is not as conservative as they say they are or want to be.
November 11th, 2007 at 12:34 pm
[...] really quite interesting,” writes Doug Mataconis in a Below the Beltway post titled Why Isn’t Anyone Paying Attention To Mitt Romney? While Giuliani leads the pack in national polls of the Republican candidates, it’s Romney who’s [...]
November 11th, 2007 at 2:59 pm
Romney is the man. This country NEEDS him right now!
November 11th, 2007 at 3:00 pm
Romney is the best candidate hands down.
November 11th, 2007 at 9:05 pm
Mitt Romney will be an amazingly good President. He is so smart, so articulate, and so honest!! He is the most conservative. Huckabee has been caught in some lies during his campaign, and don’t forget he was brought up before the Arkansas ethics committee 12 times, and convicted of 5 of them.. Why in the world is this not news???? Ron Paul is a complete kook. There is no way that guy will ever get out of the batter’s box. And let him run third party, he’ll pull more from the left than from the Republicans.