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Yesterday Ben Smith and David Paul Kuhn of the Politico.com wrote that Rudy Giuliani’s defeat and subsequent endorsement of John McCain signaled the end of “9/11 politics.”

They went on to say,
_________

“Rudy Giuliani’s distant third-place finish in Florida may put an end to his bid for president, and it seems also to mark the beginning of the end of a period in Republican politics that began on Sept. 11, 2001.”
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The article does raise a valid point that 9/11 no longer has the emotional significance for most Americans’ that it once did. Despite this fact, the consequences of September eleventh are still with us in many forms; the war in the Afghani and Iraqi theaters, the expensive federal budget on national security, the straining of the United States military and intelligence infrastructure, and the threat of nuclear proliferation throughout the world are all issues brought to the forefront of America’s consciousness because of what happened at the World Trade Center. All of these issues are still discussed daily in the foreign policy and national security community and to say that they will go away simply because Rudy Giuliani’s campaign has come to an end is simply incorrect.

The sub-prime mortgage crisis has been exacerbated by the Fed’s continual rate cuts, which were a reaction by Greenspan to attempt and stabilize the financial markets after the uncertainty caused by 9/11.

There is no question that the Giuliani campaign collapsed because of his reliance on 9/11 as a political punch line; yet to suggest that September 11th will not hold a prominent place in both Republican and Democratic politics for many years to come is absurd. 9/11 has radically changed how American’s view the world and their perception of our place in it; it has given cause to two wars which have subsequently strained the nation’s relationship with other actors in the international system. The spot light that 9/11 put on the Middle East has also given rise to the massive amount of speculation in the oil markets and has provided dictators like Putin to exert more control over their populations.

Eight years after 9/11 we are still learning about the ramifications on the economy, international politics, war and peace, civil liberties, and our way of life as a whole. September 11th was an event that will define the first 20 years of this new millennium and to dismiss it based upon the incompetency of one political campaign is not only arrogant, but dangerous.

Popularity: 37% [?]

Today was the most significant day in the 2008 presidential race. Rudy Giuliani and John Edwards have dropped out of the presidential race and both will turn support to the remaining candidates. As of today, for the first time since this campaign began, both the Democrats and the Republicans are now embroiled in two way races. John McCain and Mitt Romney will battle it out for the Republican nomination and Barrack Obama and Hillary Clinton will duke it out over Super Tuesday.

The biggest news in the interim is Rudy Giuliani’s impending withdrawal and endorsement of John McCain. With Rudy out of the race it will unite the moderates of the Republican party and combine their support with those of the independents who have so far given McCain South Carolina and New Hampshire. Additionally, with Rudy out of the race John McCain becomes the defacto national security candidate.

Mitt Romney still has the monetary advantage, but as it looks right now McCain is ahead in primary states on both seaboards and with a winner-take all system on the Republican side I am betting that McCain will tie up the nomination on Super-Tuesday. Romney will rely on a western strategy to wrap up delegates but the big states that McCain will win are worth many more delegates than the likes of Utah, Colorado, and Montana. Either Republicans will accept John McCain’s candidacy on Tuesday and he will walk to the nomination or they will show up strong for Romney in an attempt to stop the “Maverick” candidate. Either way, the plurality system inherent in most February fifth states means that we will likely know who the Republican nominee will be by next Wednesday.

The Democratic story is very different. Most Democratic states are not winner take all; rather candidates are awarded delegates based on districts. This means that after Super-Tuesday Hillary Clinton and Barrack Obama could be within 100 delegates of one another.

With the Democratic race so close, it is very possible that John Edward’s support-or lack their of-of either candidate could make or of the Democrats campaigns. If John Edward’s does not endorse anyone before super-Tuesday, his followers will likely turn towards Hillary Clinton. The Clinton’s will only be injured by Edward’s withdrawal if he endorses Obama. Although during the debates it often seemed that Edwards was aligned with Obama, it appears that the Clinton’s have been heavily courting Edwards for the past few weeks. According to NBC news, Edwards has spoken several times today with the Clinton’s and it is not even known if he has communicated with the Obama campaign. Either way, with the Democratic nomination being as close as it is, John Edwards has the power to put either Hillary or Barrack over the top.

Only one thing is certain going into February fifth, no political pundits predicted that there would only be four viable candidates remaining this early in the race.

Popularity: 30% [?]

Had I taken some of these thoughts into consideration I would not have predicted Romney to win Florida and despite what Ryan says about my Romney bias, my thoughts were based upon analysis of polling information that showed the economy as the top issue for Floridians, and his rising numbers in the polls. The below analysis by Jay Cost is terrific and I suggest that anyone interested in what occurred in the Sunshine State read it over.

On a side note-it looks as if contrary to what the pundits thought a couple weeks ago, the Republican nomination might be locked up be February 6th and the Democrats may now be the party to go to the convention.

Here’s a portion of “How McCain Won” by Jay Cost:

John McCain won Florida by putting together the same basic voting coalition he forged in New Hampshire and South Carolina. What is impressive is that he did it in a closed primary. Registered Independents and Democrats were not allowed to vote, but McCain still won. Let’s take a look at how he did it:

McCain once again won those who are disenchanted by the Bush presidency. Most Florida Republicans (68%) approve of the Bush administration. Romney won them, 35% to 28%. McCain, however, scored an overwhelming, 20-point victory among the 32% of voters who disapprove. I think this is one of the evolving stories of the Republican contest. If you like Bush, you go to Romney (or one of the other candidates). If you dislike Bush, you go to McCain.

Popularity: 42% [?]

Last week, during their endorsement of John McCain as the Republican nominee, The New York Times included some choice words for a mayor they supported at one time, Rudy Giuliani.

“The real Mr. Giuliani, whom many New Yorkers came to know and mistrust, is a narrow, obsessively secretive, vindictive man who saw no need to limit police power…”

Giuliani, they asserted, was not the same man as he was during his mayoral tenure. While his campaign has not fared well in most states, Florida seems to be the fighting ground for his candidacy. As he’s currently in fifth place [without a win in any early primary or caucuses], Giuliani needs to hold Florida to show America that he is electable. Fortunately, if current trends hold, Mr. Giuliani will place third in tonight’s primary, behind established frontrunners John McCain and Mitt Romney.

That outcome is better not just for the other Republican candidates, but for America as well. With Giuiliani out of the race, America will be safe from a President who intended to encroach upon their vital Constitutional rights, and a President who would endanger relations with the international community. An America without Rudy Giuliani is an America prepared to confront fearmongering, and an America prepared to blaze the path to a successful future and a new American era. Below, you’ll find a more descriptive analysis of our viewpoints.

The Candidate of Fear

by Zach

As the Republican Party has moved more towards religious and social conservatism, only one candidate has managed to stay in the race without espousing his socially conservative beliefs. Rudolph Giuliani, former mayor of New York City, was that candidate. Unfortunately for his campaign, he’s proved to be far from the ideal social conservative most Republican voters are looking for.  His pro-choice beliefs, while in line with the ideals of many mainstream voters, did not play well with conservatives either.  While I admire Rudy’s resistance to conservative social pressures, the Republicans did not.

Voters should consider themselves lucky. The centerpiece of Giuliani’s campaign has been September 11th. Whereas most Republican candidates used the main focuses of their campaign as a jumping off point for other issues, Giuliani relied at times only on his “tough guy” national security viewpoint. When voters disagreed, Giuliani was always there to tell them that he was the mayor of New York City on 9/11. It’s true. False, however, are most of Giuliani’s comments about the aftermath of September 11th.

September 11th was the worst terrorist tragedy America has ever seen. Yet there are some actions Giuliani took during his tenure as mayor that could have prevented dozens of casualties. Giuliani’s anti-terror headquarters, the $13 million Emergency Operations Center, opened in a building right across the street from the World Trade Center, ignoring the risks posed by terrorist attacks like that of Ramzi Yousef in 1993. Even Giuliani’s emergency management director, Jerome M. Hauer, has criticized his handling of the 9/11 tragedy, claiming Mr. Giuliani is running on a “Grand Illusion.” Giuliani made other errors that contributed to a slower emergency response on 9/11. Procedural lapses in the production of radios and flame retardant firefighter uniforms may have elevated the death toll for first responders. Giuliani’s been criticized for his reaction to the environmental and health concerns of the attacks as well. Giuliani ran a “slipshod, haphazard, uncoordinated, unfocused response” to the health challenges of the attacks. As a result, more than 70% of WTC first responders now suffer long term ills, mainly from breathing in debris that Mayor Giuliani told them was safe. As a result, many firefighters have spoken out against Mayor Giuliani’s campaign.

Without 9/11, there is no substance to Mayor Giuliani’s campaign for the presidency. Despite snags in the public perception of his performance post-9/11, he continues to exploit the fears of Americans in negative and fearmongering campaign advertisements. His “Ready” advertisement has caused a stir among thousands of disgruntled viewers, as it portrays marching terrorists with dangerous voiceovers like “Leaders assassinated. Democracy attacked.” Preying on the fears of Americans is not the way to win a presidency. On the Democratic side, Barack Obama is winning praise for his optimistic and hopeful message for the future of America. Those who endorse him applaud his forward thinking and plans for an America that fits neatly into the new international balance. A Rudy Giuliani presidency, meanwhile, would do the opposite, driving Americans further away from the ideals of freedom that our country is based on.

Giuliani is an avid proponent of the REAL ID Act, a plan to issue a national ID card to all Americans. The REAL ID Act would create the potential for an even larger surveillance state. After President Bush broke FISA precedents illegally, does America really want a president who is openly prepared to spy on them? The ACLU notes that issuing a REAL ID “does nothing to protect against terrorism.” Giuliani, however, still espouses its benefits, and says he’d require Americans to use their “tamper proof ID card” to “work, pay taxes, get online, become a citizen, follow the rules.” In a draconian police state like Giuliani is proposing, Americans would be deprived of crucial rights granted to them by the Constitution. Giuliani is running not just against the majority of Americans’ policies, but against those of the United States Constitution as well.

His inability to capture the interest of Americans in early primary and caucus states like Iowa and New Hampshire led him to focus his efforts on tonight’s Florida primary. Dismal results in the aforementioned early contests have diminished any hope for a Giuliani presidency, and tonight’s loss will hopefully be the death knell to his campaign. Giuliani has the support of neoconservative war hawks, but lacks the support of any American political base. The Republicans don’t support him, his own New York City firemen don’t support him, and, most importantly, Americans do not support Rudolph Giuliani’s candidacy for President of the United States.

Giuliani: Avoiding a Lasting Peace

by Eftychis

In Giuliani’s Foreign Policy essay in Foreign Affairs magazine entitled, “Towards a Realistic Peace” he outlines his plan for strengthening America’s position in the international system. Mayor Giuliani faces two dilemmas with his foreign policy stance. The first is that 9/11 occurred almost seven years ago. The second is that there is nothing in his plan that differentiates him from any of the other Republican candidates; in particular there is nothing to indicate he has more understanding of national security or foreign affairs than legendary, veteran Senator John McCain. As we approach Florida and the subsequent Super-Tuesday primaries it is apparent that the economy belongs to Mitt Romney, social conservatives have found themselves aligned Mike Huckabee, libertarians with Ron Paul, and military and national security conservatives divided between McCain and Rudy Giuliani. In his piece in Foreign Affairs Giuliani writes that we are the, “9/11-generation.” While in many ways this is true, the 2008 election is about the “Iraq generation.” It could be argued that the consequences and ramifications of September 11th 2001 are only just beginning to manifest them across the world, but it is evident that the most contentious event to occur after the mass murder of American citizens at the world trade center is the Iraq war. Yet, Rudy Giuliani does nothing to explain to voters why he is more capable of managing this war than Senator John McCain. McCain stood up to President Bush’s failed military policy in Iraq when Rudy Giuliani was still reading neo-con talking points and now most of the foreign policy advisors who engineered the failed Iraq war have shifted over to the Giuliani campaign. Giuliani has hoped that GOP primary voters will support him because of his national security credentials but I see no evidence for him to make the case that his are any greater than the other candidates and there is nothing he can do to convince GOP voters that he is more capable of winning the war in Iraq than John McCain. If McCain has the war and Romney has the economy, what does Giuliani embody to appeal to voters with?

Popularity: 79% [?]

Our live coverage of President Bush’s 2008 State of the Union address is after the jump for those who would like to replay our live blogging. Thanks for joining us!

We’d like to recommend Slate’s interesting analysis of Bush’s language choice in the State of the Union.  It’s an interesting analysis of trends and the effect of current events on his wording. Lire le reste de cet article »

Popularity: 71% [?]

I am making a bold prediction, but I believe that Romney will take Florida tomorrow.

I know Ryan already posted about McCain’s big endorsement from Governor Crist but the truth is the only real endorsement that matters in Florida is Jeb Bush’s and it is evident that he will not show his support for anyone prior to the state’s primary. While Crist may be able to help get slightly bigger crowds for McCain during stump speeches, he cannot overcome McCain’s two biggest challenges-he is too liberal and is doing nothing to address the housing crisis in his speeches while in Florida. On Meet the Press yesterday McCain said that the economic challenges the country faces are temporary and will be overcome; this may be true, but for the millions of voters whose houses have been foreclosed and whose stock portfolios are dwindling in value these words provide no consolation. Mitt Romney has the economy as his issue and as we can see from Michigan, McCain’s downplaying of the current state of the nations economic health does not benefit him.

Although the polls are not showing this, I believe that Joe Scarborough was right in his prediction today that Mitt Romney will win tomorrow. Many of the voters in central Florida who want to vote for Mike Huckabee have realized in the past two days that a vote for Huckabee is a vote for McCain and like Rudy, he simply does not represent their values. Additionally it appears that because of Romney’s economic experience many of the economic conservatives who had been supporting Rudy or Thompson are turning his way.

Despite McCain’s untrue attacks on Romney’s Iraq War record, he has been unable to change the topic of discussion. No matter how many times he mentions his support of the surge, it does not make the thousands of foreclosed houses in Florida go away. The issue on the forefront of everyones minds in Florida is the economy and nothing McCain can do will change that. Let us not forget where Rudy Giuliani currently sits in the polls, a distant third place. Rudy Giuliani has done nothing but espouse his national security experience for the past month in Florida and it has done nothing for him in the polls.

As long as the issue is the economy in the forefront of people’s minds Romney will out perform his competition.

Popularity: 38% [?]

The Florida debate was very different than any of the GOP debates we have seen so far. The format of the debate itself is not that different, but rather the circumstances surrounding it make it one of the most important discussions amongst the candidates thus far. This is the first debate to occur in either party after one of the major candidates dropped out; Fred Thompson was the only candidate perceived as having a chance to obtain his parties nomination who has so far dropped out. Unlike the past several debates in South Carolina, Iowa, and New Hampshire this event was more of an introduction for the candidates than a closing argument. Due to the tight primary schedule, none of the candidates with the exception of Giuliani have invested great amounts of time in the state thus far and it was their first opportunity to reach Floridian GOP primary voters on their local broadcast stations. Finally, the primary this debate is intended for has the potential to kill off another presidential bid; of course that is if Rudy Giuliani does not win in the sunshine state. With the high stakes surround tonight’s MSNBC debate it is also curious that it was such a passive event, indeed the whole affair was quite civil compared to Monday’s CNN run Democratic blood bath. The question worth asking is, with all of the pressure and importance of this debate, who came out on top? It was without a question Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney.

Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney

It should be first noted that Governor Romney has done something significant over the past three-weeks he has changed his image. In what has to be one of the more impressive political come backs in modern history, the Governor has recovered from two embarrassing defeats in Iowa and New Hampshire and has done so with a whole new approach. As one of his supporters from the beginning, I saw his comprehension of the economy along with his private sector experience and logical consultant based thinking to be his greatest strengths. For far too long his campaign marketed him as something he was not, the GOP candidate least offensive to the many different colored elephants underneath the GOP tent. He won Michigan and Nevada because he spoke to the voters in those states about the economy with a resonance, passion, and understanding that none of the other candidates can. Just as John McCain can discuss the war in Iraq with more authority than his rivals, Romney can do the same on the economy. Luckily for Romney, the focus of the election has shifted in the past two months from the war to the looming economic crisis. This truth along with his new found confidence in himself enabled him to steal the debate from McCain and Giuliani.

The first half an hour of the debate focused on the economy and Romney dominated those first thirty minutes. It became quickly evident that he has made a commitment to tell Floridians that he will turn-around their hurting economy and he was very effective in conveying that message. The fact that Romney has been able to remove some of the shine from his almost too polished demeanor has made him more appealing to voters, but what really helped him tonight was that none of his opponents questioned him on his record. In fact, they did something even stranger than not attack him-they engaged him in ways that provided him with openings to explain even more of his policies and to have even more air time. No one did poorly in tonight’s debate, but Romney just did better than his opponents. At one point I recall Governor Romney received two questions from the moderators and then two from the other candidates; because of this attempted gang up he was given an almost five minute monologue with the voters.

Participants in the GOP Debate on Thursday (L to R): Romney, McCain, Giuliani, Paul, and Huckabee

Romney walked away with the debate because he was able to differentiate himself from the other candidates through his discussion of the economy, his witty attacks on the Clinton’s, and his well-versed rebuttals to Tim Russet’s criticisms of his personal wealth. McCain and Rudy did not win because neither of them were able to grab an issue, the war is McCain’s strong suit but with the shifting focus towards the economy it is clear that he needs to branch out onto other issues. Giuliani’s problem is that he did nothing to convince Florida voters to support him over Mitt Romney for economic reasons; in fact Giuliani talked less about his economic achievements in New York than he has in past debates. Mike Huckabee went into this debate knowing that he will not do well in Florida and I believe he made a wise choice to stick to his social conservative stances and not try and promote himself as an economic or national security candidate. As usual, the other candidate who did very well was Ron Paul; like in most of the debates he partakes however he received very few questions. Another fault of McCain and Giuliani was that neither of them made an attempt to convince former Fred Thompson supporters not to drift towards Romney and polls indicate that the 9% of support Thompson had may be enough to put the Massachusetts Governor into first place. There are still several days until the Florida primary, but if I was a Floridian GOP voter with many foreclosed homes in my neighborhood and tonight was my first introduction to any of the candidates I believe I would have only seen one viable candidate on the stage.

Editor’s Note: Images were added to this post at 4PM on Friday, January 25th.

Popularity: 39% [?]

A WALL STREET JOURNAL ONLINE NEWS ROUNDUP

U.S. stocks looked set to enter a bear market Tuesday, with stock futures pointing to losses of roughly 5% after two days of relentless selling pressure in overseas markets on fears over a U.S. recession.

Less than two hours before the start of trading, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures dropped 516 to 11590. The S&P 500 futures sank 63.8 to 1261.5, and Nasdaq 100 futures fell 77.25 to 1772.25. Changes in futures do not always accurately predict early market moves after the opening bell.
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For the best coverage of the global recession I suggest the Financial Times, the Wall Street Journal, and Bloomberg for up to date information and accurate analysis.

Popularity: 27% [?]

It is no secret that Mitt Romney won the Michigan and Nevada primaries because of his strong economic background. While it is true that Romney faced little competition in Nevada and that he was a “native son” in Michigan, his business and executive experience is what put him over the top in the two primary states where the number one issue is the economy.

From the Detroit News-
The optimistic economic message former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney brought to his native state was a big reason he finished on top of Tuesday’s Republican primary here. A solid majority of both Republican and Democratic primary voters said their motivating issue was the economy, according to the National Election Pool exit poll.

According to CNN’s exit polling data from Nevada, Romney beat his rivals on the economy by overwhelming margins. For the Democrats in Michigan, the story was the same. The economy was the most important issue by nearly fifty percent with Iraq a distant second. While it may be too early to tell who is taking a lead in either primary elections, it is clear what issue is becoming-the economy.

About a week ago Goldman Sachs predict that the US economy will find itself in a recession in 2008; which means a decline in economic growth for more than two consecutive sessions (two quarters). Many market analysts believe that recession began prior to the new year with the series of poor fiscal news last December.

One of the least known but best indicators of economic health is the Baltic Dry Freight Index. The index measures the price of shipping dry bulk goods (iron ore, wheat, coal, soybeans, etc…) by sea in cargo ships. A decline in this index means there are less consumers for those goods; currently the biggest consumers of those products are China, India, and the United States. The declining rates indicate a slow down in the global economy, a slow down that the dry bulk market will see before the retail and consumer reports here in the United States. The bulk market also suffers from a problem that much of the economy does. It had built new vessels anticipating continued demand, but the demand from China and India has decreased which means that there is no need for the hundreds of new ships on order. This parallels what has been happening in many other markets, there is a massive surplus of new homes across the US and Europe and thus housing prices have slumped; the same has happened with the automotive market and in other consumer areas such as electronics. On the flip side, supply for natural resources has not caught up to demand so natural gas, oil, grain, corn, copper, and even milk prices have soured anywhere from 4-50% over the past year alone. Consumers are being faced with high mortgage rates, a dollar worth less, and greater expense at their grocery store and the gas station. The dollar will simply not get you as far in 2008 as it did in 2007.

So how does this effect the election? The two states where Mitt Romney and Hillary Clinton did best (Michigan and Nevada) are the two states with the highest foreclosure rates and highest unemployment rates of any in the country. The pain that the citizens in these two states are currently feeling will unfortunately be felt throughout the country by November of this year.

Jim Cramer made an interesting point the other day; since statisticians first began measuring personal per capita income the incumbent party or candidate ALWAYS looses the election when per capita income decreased. By November 2008 average per capita income will have decreased due to economic decline in the first several quarters of this year.

This would imply that the Democrats will win this election no matter what; but the question that arises is what happens when a business man is thrown into the equation. Indeed, Mitt Romney did win an election in the most liberal state in the country and was able to do so while the state faced a massive fiscal crisis. If economic news continues to become more dire over the next several months (and it almost certainly will) then Mitt Romney will have a big advantage over his rival John McCain. Indeed, even Rudy Giuliani could benefit from the change in voters’ number one issue. In Florida he is now focusing on his fiscal record as Mayor and how he turned around NYC’s languishing economy during the 1990s. Even Mike Huckabee’s populist message may begin to resonate more strongly as the economy takes a turn for the worse. The one who this does hurt is John McCain who has almost no economic credentials and even opposed the Bush tax cuts which are considered a staple of accepted conservative economic policy. In addition, McCain also finds himself on the wrong side of the issue that Republicans have claimed to be their second most important issue-illegal immigration.

In the Democratic primary this should also favor Hillary Clinton as she appears to have an upper hand over Senator Obama among voters who consider the economy to be the biggest issue. Many voters become nostalgic when they recall the great economy under Clinton.

I am always skeptical of those who heavily blame or give credit to Governors and Presidents for the quality of the economy that existed when they governed. Outside of having (some) control over the governments budget, there is little they can do to effect monetary policy (controlled by the Fed) and there is nothing they can do to tackle cyclical events in the economy. Despite their lack of control, the Commander and Chief can set tone and direction. FDR and then Reagan changed the direction of the nation’s fiscal vision most drastically during the 20th century. Romney and Clinton most certainly have the same vision for a strong future American economy but their means to try and achieve that end will be drastically different.

The pundits have not been able to use past data to predict this election because well quite frankly 2008 is different than any previous election. I still believe the Democrats will have a major advantage come this November, but even if that is the case I see little reason why a voter should choose a Senator to fix the economy over a business man and turnaround artist.

Popularity: 41% [?]

I am not a big Anne Coulter fan but I couldn’t resist posting this article. What she expresses are a lot of the sentiments I have been harboring over the last few weeks and I think she speaks for a lot of conservatives who are disgusted by the disillusionment of many Republicans and the fact that they have ignored the only qualified candidate.

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The Elephant in the Room
By Ann CoulterUnluckily for McCain, snowstorms in Michigan suppressed the turnout among Democratic “Independents” who planned to screw up the Republican primary by voting for our worst candidate. Democrats are notoriously unreliable voters in bad weather. Instead of putting on galoshes and going to the polls, they sit on their porches waiting for FEMA to rescue them.

In contrast to Michigan’s foul weather, New Hampshire was balmy on primary day, allowing McCain’s base — Democrats — to come out and vote for him.

Assuming any actual Republicans are voting for McCain — or for liberals’ new favorite candidate for us, Mike Huckabee — this column is for you.

I’ve been casually taking swipes at Mitt Romney for the past year based on the assumption that, in the end, Republicans would choose him as our nominee. My thinking was that Romney would be our nominee because he is manifestly the best candidate.

I had no idea that Republican voters in Iowa and New Hampshire planned to do absolutely zero research on the candidates and vote on the basis of random impulses.

Dear Republicans: Please do one-tenth as much research before casting a vote in a presidential election as you do before buying a new car.

One clue that Romney is our strongest candidate is the fact that Democrats keep viciously attacking him while expressing their deep respect for Mike Huckabee and John McCain.

This point was already extensively covered in Chapter 1 of “How To Talk to a Liberal (If You Must)”: Never take advice from your political enemies.

Turn on any cable news show right now, and you will see Democratic pundits attacking Romney, calling him a “flip-flopper,” and heaping praise on McCain and Huckleberry — almost as if they were reading some sort of “talking points.”

Doesn’t that raise the tiniest suspicions in any of you? Are you too busy boning up on Consumer Reports’ reviews of microwave ovens to spend one day thinking about who should be the next leader of the free world? Are you familiar with our “no exchange/no return” policy on presidential candidates? Voting for McCain because he was a POW a quarter-century ago or Huckabee because he was a Baptist preacher is like buying a new car because you like the color.

The candidate Republicans should be clamoring for is the one liberals are feverishly denouncing. That is Mitt Romney by a landslide.

New York Times columnist Frank Rich says Romney “is trying to sell himself as a leader,” but he “is actually a follower and a panderer, as confirmed by his flip-flops on nearly every issue.”

But Rich is in a swoon over Huckabee. I haven’t seen Rich this excited since they announced “Hairspray” was coming to Broadway.

Rich has continued to hyperventilate over “populist” charmer Huckabee even after it came to light that Huckabee had called homosexuality an “abomination.” Normally, any aspersions on sodomy or any favorable mentions of Christianity would lead to at least a dozen hysterical columns by Frank Rich.

Rich treated Mel Gibson’s movie “The Passion of the Christ” as if it were a Leni Riefenstahl Nazi propaganda film. (On a whim, I checked to see if Rich had actually compared Gibson to Riefenstahl in one of his many “Passion” reviews and yes, of course he had.)

Curiously, however, Huckabee’s Christianity doesn’t bother Rich. In column after column, Rich hails Huckabee as the only legitimate leader of the Republican Party. This is like a girl in high school who hates you telling you your hair looks great.

Liberals claim to be enraged at Romney for being a “flip-flopper.” I’ve looked and looked, and the only issue I can find that Romney has “flipped” on is abortion. When running for office in Massachusetts — or, for short, “the Soviet Union” — Romney said that Massachusetts was a pro-choice state and that he would not seek to change laws on abortion.

Romney’s first race was against Sen. Teddy Kennedy — whom he came closer to beating than any Republican ever had. If Romney needed to quote “The Communist Manifesto” to take out that corpulent drunk, all men of good will would owe him a debt of gratitude.

Even when Romney was claiming to support Roe v. Wade, he won the endorsement of Massachusetts Citizens for Life — a group I trust more than the editorial board of The New York Times. Romney’s Democratic opponents always won the endorsements of the very same pro-choice groups now attacking him as a “flip-flopper.”

After his term as governor, NARAL Pro-Choice America assailed Romney, saying: “(A)s governor he initially expressed pro-choice beliefs but had a generally anti-choice record. His position on choice has changed. His position is now anti-choice.”

Pro-abortion groups like the Republican Majority for Choice — the evil doppelganger to my own group, Democratic Majority for Life — are now running videos attacking Romney for “flip-flopping” on abortion.

Of all the Republican candidates for president, Romney and Rudy Giuliani are the only ones who had to be elected in pro-choice districts. Romney governed as a pro-lifer and has been viciously attacked by pro-abortion groups.

By contrast, Giuliani cleverly avoids the heinous “flip-flopper” label by continuing to embrace baby-killing. (Rudy flip-flops only on trivial matters like illegal immigration and his own marital vows.)

And, of course, Romney is a Mormon. Even a loser Mormon like Sen. Harry Reid claims to be pro-life. So having a candidate with a wacky religion isn’t all bad.

At worst, Romney will turn out to be a moderate Republican — a high-IQ, articulate, moral, wildly successful, moderate Republican. Of the top five Republican candidates for president, Romney is the only one who hasn’t dumped his first wife (as well as the second, in the case of Giuliani) — except Huckabee. And unlike Huckabee, Romney doesn’t have a son who hanged a dog at summer camp. So there won’t be any intern issues and there won’t be any Billy Carter issues.

It’s also possible that Romney will turn out to be a conservative Republican — at least more conservative than he was as governor of Massachusetts. Whatever problems Romney’s Mormonism gives voters, remember: Bill Clinton came in third in heavily Mormon Utah in 1992.

Copyright 2008, Ann Coulter

Popularity: 17% [?]