Romney for POTUS? Dead Weight Finds New Life in GOP's Desperate Scramble For a Leader

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On November 6, 2012, Willard Mitt Romney lost what many Republicans had considered a winnable election to President Barack Obama with 47.2% of the electoral vote to the incumbent’s 51.1%. Even after Romney lurching right in a divisive Republican race, the Tea Party never embraced their party’s “severe conservative” standard bearer. He didn’t have much better luck with the general electorate; despite a few spikes in popularity, he never caught on with an American public that could not get past his stiffness and perceived lack of empathy for the 99%.

And so, despite the disbelief of conservatives up until the very end (Karl Rove furnishing a particularly memorable example) that their candidate could lose resoundingly to a President who had been struggling mightily in the polls leading up to the election, Romney went down hard.

One would think that after such a devastating electoral drubbing, the GOP would want America’s least favorite vulture capitalist to keep his head down and his mouth shut. Not so. Owing to the lack of a credible frontrunner in the 2016 GOP presidential crop, a small but vocal minority from the GOP’s business and “moderate” wings are calling for Romney to run again. Case in point: a WMUR poll released on Friday places Mitt Romney at 39% in New Hampshire, 22 points ahead of all other GOP presidential contenders. Yes, that Mitt Romney. The one who badly lost a presidential primary in 2008 and a presidential race in 2012. The one whom few Republicans could bring themselves to like in 2011-12. The one who tarnished the GOP brand by telling the truth about conservative ideology with his 47% remarks. The one who was unable to carry Massachusetts after serving as its governor for a full term. And perhaps worst of all, the cruel pet owner who trapped his poor dog to the roof of a car for a long road trip.

What accounts for this incredible reversal, one that even Mitt Romney’s relative popularity in New Hampshire can’t explain? Romney himself deserves some credit. Following his defeat, he kept silent for a while, allowing voters a chance to forget why they disliked him. Gradually, he eased his way back into the game, using his connections, fundraising potential and clout in the corporate world to raise gobs of money for the GOP. He has also been generous with high-profile, headline-grabbing endorsements. For example, Romney endorsed former Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown, who is currently running in New Hampshire against Democrat Jeanne Shaheen. Brown, perhaps emulating Romney’s sterling record of losing “winnable races,” trails Shaheen by double digits at 50% to 38%, a 6-point increase from the New Hampshire Democrat’s lead as of April. With a mixed record of endorsements and an impressive record as a fundraising piggy bank, Mitt Romney has cultivated an “elder statesman” image, an impressive feat considering that his biggest accomplishment was laying the foundation for the Affordable Care Act with Massachusetts’ “Romneycare.” All of this goes to show that even with the Tea Party braying about ideological purity 24/7, there is always a spot at the table for anyone who can bring home the bacon like good ol’ Mitt Romney.

For some Republicans, Romney deserves more than a spot at the table; they think he should sit at the head of it. Enter the draft Mitt campaign. Henry Decker published an informative article for the National Memo compiling recent instances of Mitt-mania in the GOP, complete with a number of revealing quotes. On Monday, Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) took to MSNBC’s Hardball, boldly proclaiming: “A hundred times he says he’s not, but Mitt Romney has always accomplished what he’s set out to do. I think he’s proven right on a lot of stuff. I happen to be in the camp that thinks he’s actually going to run, and I think he will be the next President of the United States.”

Chaffetz is not the only one getting a tingle up his leg from the prospect of a Mitt Romney comeback. Former GOP Congressman and MSNBC host Joe Scarborough, fundraiser Harold Hamm and other prominent Republicans have also jumped on the bandwagon. And it’s not only party big shots that are on board; 51,100 have signed a petition asking for Mitt to run again. That’s probably more voters than genuinely wanted to shake his hand in 2012.

At times, Romney cheerleading has gone beyond wishful thinking and taken a turn for the absurd. In an op-ed for Politico, former Assistant Treasury Secretary Emil Henry compared Romney’s prospects to Richard Nixon’s following the latter’s loss to John F. Kennedy in 1960. Never mind that Nixon was an experienced politician with a distinguished (for good or ill) career in the Senate and a tenure as Vice President under his belt (working alongside American hero Dwight D. Eisenhower, no less). Never mind that Nixon, for all his flaws, possessed a deep and comprehensive knowledge of foreign policy. Romney diehards will draw on even the most tenuous historical comparisons to breathe new life into a political dead man.

To be fair, many if not most Republicans are not keen on a Mitt Romney revival; he is far too moderate for the Tea Party base, and the cynical GOP establishment will probably think twice before giving a two-time loser with massive baggage a second chance. Nevertheless, the mere fact that the idea is being entertained in prestigious polls and given voice in prominent publications like Politico and popular channels like Fox News and MSNBC is a testament to the vacuum that no GOP presidential prospect has been able for fill. According to a Quinnipiac University poll released on Tuesday, no Republican has surpassed 10% from voters with the exception of Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky, who holds a narrow lead at 11%.

With Hillary Clinton’s favorability drifting down to earth, it is conceivable that the eventual Republican nominee could enter the race with less of a disadvantage than previously assumed. However, the GOP seems nowhere close to uniting behind a candidate, and the prospect of another long, divisive primary campaign looms large. This is the reality that gave rise to a “draft Mitt” delusion. A party at war with itself desperately grasps at the old and familiar to alleviate the anxiety that comes with an uncertain, likely chaotic future. Republicans don’t want to draft Mitt because they suddenly like him. They want to draft because he’s a security blanket, something solid and comforting to grasp (hence, his illusory lead in New Hampshire). Alas, security blankets are quickly discarded. Soon, the GOP will be back to feuding over which prospective 2016 candidate deserves over 10% approval.

To his credit, Romney has repeatedly claimed that he will not run for president in 2016, perhaps realizing that any nostalgic feelings of affection that segments of the GOP have for him would evaporate if he actually threw his old-fashioned, “aw shucks,” 1950s-style hat in the ring again. If Mitt Romney sticks to his guns for once, he might make the most sensible decision of his political career: passing on 2016.