Attention

The opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not represent our advertisers

Friday, December 06, 2013

Op-Ed: Why Romney Didn't Get Enough Votes To Win

It is a different world, and a different America. Obama is part of that different America, knows it, and knows how to tap into it. That is why he won.

The most charitable way of explaining the electionresults of 2012 is that Americans voted for the status quo – for the incumbent President and for a divided Congress. They must enjoy gridlock, partisanship, incompetence, economic stagnation and avoidance of responsibility. And fewer people voted.

But as we awake from the nightmare, it is important to eschew the facile explanations for the Romney defeat that will prevail among the chattering classes. Romney did not lose because of the effects of Hurricane Sandy that devastated this area, nor did he lose because he ran a poor campaign, nor did he lose because the Republicans could have chosen better candidates, nor did he lose because Obama benefited from a slight uptick in the economy due to the business cycle.

Romney lost because he didn’t get enough votes to win.

That might seem obvious, but not for the obvious reasons. Romney lost because the conservative virtues – the traditional American virtues – of liberty, hard work, free enterprise, private initiative and aspirations to moral greatness – no longer inspire or animate a majority of the electorate. The notion of the “Reagan Democrat” is one cliché that should be permanently retired.

Ronald Reagan himself could not win an election in today’s America.

More

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Completely wrong.
Romney lost because he was chosen by the RNC to be the candidate and not by the republican voters.

Anonymous said...

Romney lost because he was ruined in the primaries, for being revealed for what he really is. A Mass. moderate, who was afraid to run on either his private or public record.

Anonymous said...

Excellent Article.

For the above posters. It really doesn't matter any more that he lost. People voted for "stuff". Those who didn't were outnumbered.

They just didn't want the jobs.
So, they will not be getting them.

Unemployment is still rising.

Good luck folks.

Anonymous said...

Romney was a white version of obama. He shared many of the same stances on issues, and would have been worse imo. Neither is/was good enough to lead this country.

Anonymous said...

We now know without a doubt that the current president lied about the essentials of his ACA, misleading everyone to get re-elected. The difference last Nov. in winning and losing in Ohio was slight, with the facts known today, Obama loses that state, Fl,a couple more,and the outcome is different. He knew that then, and deliberately lied. The better person lost because he is not a politician first, because the liberal media heavily favored Obama and wouldn't ask tough questions and hold him accountable, because Romney's fundraisers were intimidated by the IRS, because they have allowed Benghazi to remain a fourth level story. Too much is made of how presidents are elected, way over analyzed... it's simple ... look at history, it's a popularity contest, the majority of the voters are influenced by their candidate's appearance, personality, and charm. It's not that difficult, it may be important to know what a candidate stands for, but that's not why people vote for them, otherwise, if people truly understood Obama, he would not get elected. He's been given a pass and people voted for his style not his lack of substance. If it was, the man who is a problem solver and who could have remedied many of our economic problems would have been elected. Think about it, it's more about looks than it is about resume'. Really, did McCain,an old white guy with years of experience, have a chance against a young,completely inexperienced Obama? Did either GHW Bush or Bob Dole have a chance against Bill Clinton, did Dukakis have any chance against Reagan, Al Gore lost because GW Bush was more likable, and John Kerry is an elitist with too much aloofness. It's simply a popularity contest and Obama's first election was a social election, not a ideological election...never is. No different than your high school elections.

I will Always be a little BOY said...

Romney never would have given me FREE CELL PHONES, FREE CAR and INSURANCE PAID FOR, FREE HOUSING, FREE FOOD STAMPS, FREE UTILITIES, FREE FREE FREE

Anonymous said...

Because the election was rigged!!

DUH!!!

Anonymous said...

Anonymous said...
Romney was a white version of obama. He shared many of the same stances on issues, and would have been worse imo. Neither is/was good enough to lead this country.

December 6, 2013 at 12:41 PM

You are an idiot!!

Anonymous said...

December 6, 2013 at 12:41 PM said....No different than your high school elections."

Why do you think he spent so much time in colleges!