Mitten Smitten with Mitt

Amy D. Goldstein writes a must-read paean to Romney at the American Thinker.

Have you noticed how all of the Republican candidates can barely conceal their contempt for Governor Mitt Romney? It goes way beyond the typical good-natured competition that usually is the hallmark of Republican contests. Senator McCain has snarled at Governor Romney in debates and Gov. Huckabee has tried to paint Romney as cold and uncaring, while Sen. Fred Thompson attacked Governor Romney right out of the box. This display of hatred usually is the hallmark of the Democrats.So, why do the other candidates hate Mitt Romney? Several reasons:

1. He can win. Governor Romney appeals to economic conservatives and could appeal to foreign policy conservatives based upon his understanding of the issues. Most non-partisan foreign policy wonks who have briefed the major candidates tell me that Romney “gets it” better than any other candidate — even better than those who have held high profile office for decades. Moreover, he is the candidate that the Democrats most fear.
2. Jealousy — from his hair to his appearance to his family to his money – these are all reasons for deep-seated, if unseemly, jealousy. This green-eyed monster makes its appearance in almost every speech or presentation, in the form of a joke, a jab or a veiled reference.
3. He isn’t beholden to interest groups.

Read the rest.

Goldstein articulates many of the reasons I have been coming around to the Mitt point of view. I know there are many who dislike him for his Mormonism and looks. First, the Mormons I have known have been some of the finest, most civic minded people it has ever been my honor to meet, and it is pure bigotry to hold his religion against him. Second, Reagan was incredibly good looking too. I was still under the spell of leftism during the Reagan years and remember how I and the other then-lefties hated Reagan back then, and much of the dislike was because he was a good looking movie actor with a full head of slicked-back black hair at the age of 70.

Like Reagan, Romney was a hard worker who had a successful career before he came to politics. His career taught him the executive skills a president needs in spades. He has the money to chart his own course, unbeholden to special interests or to fellow billionaire Soros.

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Technorati Tags: Mitt Romney, Politics, 2008 Presidential Race