I can see a scenario where Mitt could win presidency

[yurbud]

His real obstacle is getting past the flat earth, klansman, bible bangers in the GOP primaries, but once through that knuckledragger gauntlet, he could have a couple of things going for him:

• Romneycare. As much as Republicans hate it, it looks enough like Obama's health care reform to the casual observer, that they could conclude there isn't much difference between the two candidates, so independents and lightly attached Dems could figure the election isn't worth bothering with and stay home or even vote for Romney.
  
  
  
• Obama will not hit his corporate glass jaw. Romney will sell himself as an experienced businessman who will bring that know how and common sense to the White House. Karl Rove's political wisdom of hitting your opponents strength instead of (actually in addition to) his weakness is especially true here. Any of us here could think of a thousand ways to dismantle him on his business resume in a sentence or less, not the least of which is that Romney's business experience is exactly the kind that has destroyed our economy: outsourcing jobs and cannibalizing functional companies for short term profits. But how exactly is Obama going to stake that vampire without offending his patrons on Wall Street or drawing attention to all the Goldman Sachs execs and their bureaucratic enablers he has appointed to his economic team instead of having the Justice Department hunt them to ground and treat them like the economic terrorists they are?
  
  
• He's not an overt racist. At least grading on a GOP curve. At worst, Romney will return to the coded racism of the Reagan and Nixon, while the only subtlety left to the rest of the Republicans is that they don't openly use the N word (at least not their candidates) but I suspect that's because their scapegoats of choice lately are Muslims, Latinos, and gays with the order dictated by the needs of the moment. Whatever racial faux pas Romney makes, it won't even register compared to the recent track record of the GOP, making him look like Gandhi by comparison. This could get him the votes of some whites who somewhat agree with the xenophobia of the GOP, but don't want to admit to themselves that they are racist by voting for an overtly racist candidate. And would allow some Latinos and Muslims who like the GOP corporate toadying to vote for the Party without feeling like a Log Cabin Republican.

The Republicans could still draft an extremist platform, and Democrats could figure out some way to play ''gotcha,'' getting Romney to either endorse or repudiate some ugly or destructive proposals or statements of other Republicans, but without changing the basic math on these three issues, the election will be way, way closer than it needs to be.

[vroomvroom]

1. The Difference Between Obama and Romney is a bit Grey.

Which is why when they go head to head it will be tough for voters to distinguish the two when you look at teh underlying facts.
I just wish Obama would stand out by fighting for his base or for looking to reduce unemployment instead of looking to Geitner and his other wall street buddies to help big banks, as Romney wants to do too.

My fear is what Truman said: "Given a choice between a democrat who acts like a republican or a republican­, the people will always choose the republican­."

This could be the year of Romney...and if so i wouldnt be surprised.

[Drunken Irishman]

5. So let me get this straight...

Romney is pro-choice?
Romney is will advance gay rights?
Romney will appoint pro-choice judges to the Supreme Court?
Romney supports stem cell research?
Romney doesn't advocate Reaganomics?
Romney won't fight against legalizing gay marriage?
Romney doesn't believe in Don't Ask, Don't Tell?
Romney didn't want to put a gay marriage ban into GOP party platform?
Romney did support the auto bailout?
Romney doesn't want to lower the tax rate?
Romney doesn't support the Paul Ryan Kill Medicare plan?
Romney doesn't support the three-strikes law?
Romney is pro-union?
Romney doesn't support abolishing the federal Department of Education?
Romney doesn't support teaching of 'family values' in schools?
Romney doesn't oppose CAFE?
Romney doesn't support drilling in ANWR?
Romney supports gay adoptions?
Romney supports McCain-Feingold?
Romney doesn't believe waterboarding is torture?
Romney doesn't believe in enhanced interrogation techniques?
Romney doesn't want to double Guantanamo?
Romney supports the McCain-Kennedy immigration bill?
Romney supporters the DREAM Act?
Romney supports tuition breaks for minors of illegals?

Yup - just a bit of gray hair is all that's different between the two.

If Romney looks like Pres. Obama, it's not because Obama's the Republican - it's because Romney is more Democratic than the other Republicans.

But, after going over that list, I'm guessing a Romney presidency would be dramatically different than that of Obamas. Unless you can provide specific, recent quotes that suggests everything I posted above is false.

But you can't. Because I took all this information off his website.

[SkyDaddy7]

13. THANK-YOU!!!

I get so sick of hearing people here on DU make such claims...It is like Young Earth Creationist claiming the Earth is 6000yrs old or 9/11 Truthers claiming the Bush Administration was smart enough to pull off the biggest false flag OP in the history of the world & leave no proof...It is simply ABSURD!

[ClarkUSA]

14. Bravo! Thanks for shutting off the Geyser of Bullshit.

:applause:

[AtomicKitten]

23. Excellent post.

Thank you. :hi:

[Dawgs]

25. Assuming too much of the American public.

Perception and reality are two different things.

[yurbud]

30. could you post the link for when Obama repudiated Reaganomics?

That would be the best news of the day.

On a couple of the other issues you mentioned, like education, there ain't much daylight between Obama and the GOP.

I give the man his props when he does right though, like on gays in the military and taking back student loans from the banks.

I wish had used the same rationale from the student loan issue for his approach to health care reform.

[sallyseven]

11. Please don't say that.

Romney is a fraud. Don't listen to him he lies just like every other republican. He did nothing for Massachusetts. Romney care works because of Deval Patrick/

[Eagle Mall]

20. you mean like the difference between your opinion and and Repuke's?

[Eagle Mall]

21. it's sad how deeply some hold their grudge against Obama.

[no_hypocrisy]

2. Two more scenarios:

1. Economy gets so bad that dems will vote for anyone but Obama, and
2. Mitt doesn't come off as crazy as the rest of them. Not much, but better still.

[yurbud]

3. the second is pretty much a lock if he can get through the primaries.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

7. I disagree with #1

No matter how bad the economy gets (which is still largely the fault of the GOP and nearly everybody knows it on some level), any sane Democrat I know wouldn't vote for a Republican for POTUS. Maybe they get so disgusted that they choose not to vote but if they get to the polls, they're NOT going to just vote for "anyone but Obama" IMHO.

2. Yeah, Mitt isn't the devil incarnate spawn that most of them are, however compared to Obama, I still don't think the "likeability" factor is there with him. :shrug:

[spin]

4. There are two problems that I can see with Mitt ...

1) He has no charisma.

2) He's a Mormon.

Before I get flamed, my mother and my stepfather became Mormon and did their best to convert me, but I love coffee and beer. They drank some terrible concoction called Postem and avoided beer. However the basic principals of Mormonism seem as reasonable as many other religions although I will admit that I haven't done any in depth studies.

But in my limited experience with fundamental Christians, many seem to feel that Mormonism is a cult. Many would never vote for a Mormon.

My experience with the religion has been relatively positive. Most Mormons that I met seemed to be good people.

Of course, if the economy doesn't improve significantly by the election, a candidate like Mitt Romney could win in a close election.

I personally believe that the ecomony will be showing strong signs of recovery by that time. If so, Obama will have little problem winning a second term if faced by any candidate with the appeal of Mitt Romney.

updated for fat fingers

[emulatorloo]

6. "Obama will not hit his corporate glass jaw". Are you taking bets on that?

Because I believe the opposite, especially during the debate.

[Pirate Smile]

15. Me too. The ads about what Romney did as a corporate vulture would be brutal - as Huckabee said -

Romney is the guy that laid you off (and sent your job to China).

Romney seems more acceptable the FEWER times you see him. He does NOT "wear well". I'm kind of amazed at just how phony and inauthentic he really comes off as - it is amazing. The fact that even a lot of Republicans despise him helps too. A Tea Party candidate to siphon off votes would be nice.

[yurbud]

29. I hope you are right, but Obama's track record in office doesn't bode well for that.

[RBInMaine]

8. I can see a scenario where this post can take a swim in a toilet bowl. Go troll elsewhere.

[Blue-Jay]

9. I can see magical elves when I punch myself in the head.

[KingFlorez]

10. Number Three remains to be seen

If it gets down to the wire, he certainly will be.

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

12. One issue you conveniently forget: Mittens is from Michigan. He declared

that the car industry should be allowed to go bankrupt. The industry turned around, is creating jobs, and paid back their LOANS to American taxpayers!!

He still has to get through the primaries.

I don't think so! Mittens has a lot of problems.

Your concern is duly noted.

[yurbud]

31. I hope you are right.

[JoePhilly]

16. Better convert to Fundie Baptist too.

[QuintanarooBoy]

17. Romney getting through the primaries? In today's GOP?

:rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl:

[dionysus]

18. sure you do.

[cottonseed]

19. I think it will be Reasonable vs Reasonable

Obama's got Hollywood (which I think is important) and I believe Business (corporate), in the end will swing for him. During debates they'll say the same things and Obama will make more sense (as he always seems to do when you actually listen to him). Everyone's pissed at Obama now because he doesn't seem to be "getting his message out there". Well, during the election he will (because that's what elections do), and people will agree with his "reasonable" assessment of things. I don't think he'll lose to Romney and I don't think anyone that could possibly beat him wants to run against him.

[Ikonoklast]

22. Mitt will be the nominee, but would lose in the general to a picture of Obama.

When asked, voters will reply, "The picture of Obama seemed more like a real, live, authentic person than a Mitt Romney."

[Dawgs]

24. Agree. Sad to see so many "lovers" sticking their head in the sand.

Romney could win because people are uninformed and ignorant; not because you have an agenda, or Obama is not worth re-electing.

[yurbud]

28. I think a lot of people are intentionally misinterpreting my post

I would like to see Romney elected as almost as little as any of the other GOP candidates since on the core economic and foreign policy issues, he will do the exact same job any of them would do, with the exception of Palin, who would go Khmer Rouge this time.

[Robbins]

26. No

Romney will move to the right In order to win the Nomination.

Romney Is a dream for democrats In the Longrun.Obama and his people can use all of ROmney's flipflippings to make case you can't
trust Romney.Think of Bush VS Kerry only this Obama Is Bush and Romney Is Kerry and the attacks are not lies.

Romney Is one of those who get rich while the rest suffer.Remember Mccain In 2008 with all the houses he owned and couldn't tell
you how many he actully owned.Romney will have even bigger problems.

ABC/Washington Post poll not withstanding most polls have Obama ahead right now.Just Imagne what will happen when Obama starts
to bring out Romney.Plus Romney's comments on what the auto Industry to fail IS going to be around his head If he IS the nominee.
Romney Is dead on arrival In Michigan In general election.

[mstinamotorcity]

27. Bullshit

bullshit,bullshit

[underpants]

32. No-as much of a suit & haircut cardboard cut out that he is he will not get the nomination

A Mormon is not going to get the nomination from the Party of the South

[davidpdx]

33. I think in addition he would have to pick an awful good VP candidate

Someone who isn't currently running and is solid. If he pulled a McCain and picked someone who is a nitwit, then he'd lose.