Mitt Trades His Integrity For A Mess Of Scottage! - Granite Grok

Mitt Trades His Integrity For A Mess Of Scottage!

Brown & Romney, Scamman Farm, July 2nd (Photo: NY Times)
Brown & Romney, Scamman Farm, July 2nd (Photo: NY Times)
I WAS going to title this article “Don’t do it, Mitt!”, but by the time I looked up from work to check the news, the deed was done.

Whatever you may think of his policies and politics, Mitt Romney is a man of honor and integrity, and there are so many stories of his charitable works and good deeds that he seems embarrassed when they are brought up. Mitt was a friend to Brown on the campaign trail in 2004 and 2010, and he’s clearly a friend now – there when Brown needs him: A friend, indeed.

Contrast that with the way Brown kept Romney at arm’s length in 2012 because (don’t laugh) Romney was too conservative in the primaries for Brown as the Magical Maverick Moderate (MMM, MMM, MMM) who preferred to show off pictures of himself with Obama during his losing re-election bid.

The Boston Globe detailed the strange reversals of the Romney-Brown relationship in its article on June 24th – here are some highlights:

The Romney-Brown political relationship goes back more than a decade. When Brown was a little known state representative running in a 2004 special election for state Senate, Romney campaigned with him, raised money for him, and even appeared in a television advertisement on Brown’s behalf.

Romney was also an early supporter of Brown’s during his upset 2010 special election victory over Attorney General Martha Coakley.

But in 2012, even as Brown and Romney shared political consultants, Brown was careful about how he couched his connection to the former governor, whom he endorsed in the GOP presidential primary. Rather than emphasize his links to the Republican, Brown showcased video of him with President Obama in an ad, working to burnish his bipartisan credentials.

An untrustworthy turncoat, you say? About as conservative as Arlen Specter, you say? Yeah, that about wraps it up for Scotty!

What about Governor Romney? How does this gambit play in Peoria, or more to the point, in Pelham, Pembroke, Peterborough, or Piermont? Right now, Gov. Romney denies vehemently any interest in 2016 beyond a well calculated endorsement, but NH has a long collective memory, and endorsing a candidate who isn’t a reliable vote for smaller government, and might still lose to Shaheen, could be harmful to Romney’s own reputation in the state.

Like I said, trading his integrity and long-term viability for a mess of Scottage.**

More coverage of the event from the Globe, here, including this paragraph:

But Wednesday, under a searing July sun, Romney reiterated he wasn’t running again and assured supporters and reporters that he was simply in New Hampshire to help elect Scott Brown as the Granite State’s newest senator.

“I got the bug to help Scott — that’s about it,” he said after delivering a speech that took direct aim at Obama and US Senator Jeanne Shaheen, whom Brown is vying to unseat.

Shorter: Governor who could have kicked Obama’s butt if he’d stayed on message endorses Senator who brags about phone calls from Obama!

Original H/T Townhall PM newsletter.

** Twisted, of course, from “A mess of pottage,” from the story of Esau, who traded his birthright for a mess of pottage – taken to mean foolishly accepting a short term ‘bargain’ instead of keeping one’s integrity for the long term. Hmmm, Governor?

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