Mitt’s Bumpy Ride In Michigan

Mitt Romney’s literature and signs have been at every Republican event for years. He had quite an organization in 2008 with signs that said, “Michigan for Mitt,” with the cute reference of the appearance of the lower peninsula being a mitten, and Mitt’s name, well, it’s just precious.

But here we are, 9 days from Michigan’s Presidential Primary, which the GOP in Michigan moved up and lost half of it’s delegates as a result, and now Mitt has to actually compete.

Mitt lost Iowa, Missouri, Colorado, South Carolina, and Minnesota, and may lose Maine. He has so far won New Hampshire, Nevada and Florida.

So as I read what is happening downstate and about how wonderful Mitt is, I noticed how the press says Romney has not defended the auto bailout, and that it will hurt him. Michigan Republicans defend the auto-bailout because Michigan is the auto industry and it’s too big to fail, etc.

But the auto rescue is an awkward issue in a state in which both Republicans and Democrats wholeheartedly supported it.

Even if he wins Michigan, Mr Romney will still be dogged by the auto rescue in the general election. Mr Patterson, a supporter, says: “That’s something that Mitt is going to have to address.”

Then I typed, “Mitt Romney supported auto bailouts,” into my little google search thingy and I found out that he flip-flopped on that issue too. He was for it before he was against it. Gee, and the Michigan GOPers can’t figure out why there isn’t more loyalty to a guy who left Michigan 50 years ago, and is the son of the moderate Republican Governor who introduced the first sales tax in Michigan.

The Romney Campaign introduced an ad in which Romney is driving around his “hometown” of Detroit, with the classic boarded up Detroit homes and desolation, and he says with a straight face, “President Obama did all these things the liberals have wanted to do for years….and Detroit families are hurting.” Meanwhile, everyone is thinking, um, Mitt, you signed Romneycare, universal healthcare for Massachusetts and gave Obama the blueprint for something the liberals have wanted to do for a hundred years. Which is worse, a liberal doing what liberals do, or a Republican enabler?

I have read that Tim Pawlenty is coming up north to Traverse City to speak on behalf of Mitt Romney, even though Pawlenty’s Minnesota was won by Santorum. Oh well, I’m sure no one will bring that up. Mention cherries, Tim, that’ll have ‘em eating out of your hand.

Meanwhile, I read with great humor this article that I thought was a parody, but it’s actually true. Mitt thinks Michigan is just so wonderful, and he loves the trees and the water and the sky, the clouds, the cars, the lets see, what else is Michigan about? Oh, and driving cars…

Bumpy rides are inevitable in Michigan because our roads suck. If Jennifer Granholm hadn’t gone green and squandered piles of money on green initiatives, perhaps we would have some left for the roads, but our Republican Governor Snyder who endorsed Romney has the big fix. He wants to raise our gas taxes another 10 cents a gallon and raise our vehicle registrations $60 a year so he can get federal matching funds for more of their precious high speed rail projects downstate. Michigan got the federal funds that were rejected by Florida’s Republican governor, which should show everyone what kind of Republican Snyder is.

He is, in fact, the perfect type of Republican to endorse Romney. Governor Snyder is a progressive liberal, and holds the distinguished honor of being one of two Republican Governors (the other is Chris Christy) who simultaneously support Governor Romney and refuse to join other Republican Governors in trying to fight Obamacare. In fact, Governor Snyder is fighting his Republican House of Representatives and his super-majority of Republicans in the Senate to try to make deals with Democrats to spend money we don’t have on projects nobody wants like DRIC. Our Republican Governor has a bad reputation with Americans for Prosperity, but a great relationship with environmentalist radicals. I think you get the picture.

If I was Mitt Romney, and was trying to defend my actions in the Democrat-controlled liberal state of Massachusetts, I would distance myself from Snyder, who is presently ignoring the fact that Michigan is led by Republicans and is instead breaking his neck to reach across the aisle. I mean, if Romney’s defense of Romneycare is that it was the most conservative thing he could have done in a veto-proof Dem majority, what’s Snyder’s excuse?

Right now, Michigan is at a crossroads. Republicans have to stop being sorry they breathe, and fight the Democrats instead of offering them a seat at the table. With this Governor, it won’t happen, and he will completely demolish the Republican Party as a result.

It is the same for the country. I believe that if Mitt is our nominee, that he will not be able to distance himself from Obama’s key legislation that got everyone fired up in 2010. Party Republicans have to realize that their voters are not happy with them when they reach across the aisle, especially now when America has two choices, tyranny or a long, tough, brutal slog toward liberty.

I think that it speaks volumes that Romney can’t speed through Michigan with nary a hair out of place. If an unthinkable moment for the Romney campaign comes February 28th, Michigan voters will have the stopped the ‘Romney electability’ crapola once and for all, and Mitt’s bumpy ride will have left him stranded.