Romney endorses McCain
February 16th, 2008, 5:49 am Hobbies Ideas
WASHINGTON Sixteen days ago, rivals Mitt Romney and Sen. John McCain picked at each other from various cities across Florida, but Thursday, Romney endorsed his former challenger based on the same message of a need for Republican unity he used when dropping out of the race last week.
Whether this unity will translate into a McCain-Romney ticket later this year was the million-dollar question Thursday, with the two politicians conveniently dodging it during the press conference at Romney’s campaign headquarters in Boston. Some experts say it is not likely.
“The first rule is that you pick a vice president that can carry his own state,” Republican consultant David E. Johnson, CEO of Strategic Vision.
Johnson said while Romney might have won the Massachusetts primary, it is unlikely he would help deliver the state’s electoral votes against whomever would win the Democratic nomination Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., or Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill. Romney may be the former governor, but the state is still heavily Democratic.
Herb London, president of Hudson Institute, a think tank, said McCain is going to need someone conservative, Southern and full of “youthful vitality” because McCain’s age likely will become more of an issue in the general election. Romney may like Kentucky Fried Chicken but that does not give him the Southern quality McCain needs.
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“I don’t see what Romney could bring to the ticket. He could deliver Utah, but what difference would that make?” London said. “Utah would go for the Republican anyway.”
Romney ran the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City and is member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and has a strong following in Utah. Voters in the state are the second-highest contributors to his campaign behind California.
London said Romney’s endorsement “solidifies his position in the Republican party” and that he is young enough to run again.
“He has a future in the Republican party,” London said.
Beyond the lack of Electoral College power, Johnson said there is “animosity between the two” that would likely limit McCain from selecting Romney to round out the ticket.
“Mitt Romney would jump at the chance and it would help McCain with conservative voters,” Johnson said, but there are issues between them that “run very deep and very personal.”
But at the press conference, Romney and McCain took the focus off their past tense relationship and instead looked to how their teaming up will help Republicans.
“We all know it was a hard campaign, primaries are tough,” McCain said. “Now we move forward together for the good of our party and the nation.”
Romney said, “Even when the contest was close and our disagreements were debated, the caliber of the man was apparent.” He said the two shared laughs at debates and even said hello to the other’s wife.
“I recognize it is time for us to put aside our differences and focus on the places where we think we have common ground,” Romney said. “Right now the Democrats are fighting, let us come together and make progress while they’re fighting.”
McCain said he looked forward to Romney campaigning not just for him but for House members, senators and governors also coming up for re-election in November.
“Gov. Romney will help me draw the stark differences that exist between myself and the things that he and I stand for and believe in and the Democratic candidates,” McCain said. “I look forward to his continued very important role of leadership in our party that he has exercised in the past and will exercise even more so in the future.”
The delay in endorsing McCain until Thursday, when Romney dropped out of the race at the Conservative Political Action Conference a week ago, could mean that Romney negotiated for a better speaking spot at the convention or has talked about other opportunities that might exist in a McCain administration, such as running the Republican National Committee, Johnson said.
Johnson said the endorsement shows he is a “good foot soldier” and looking down the road at 2012.
The move is another step in the quickly changing election landscape. In Florida, Romney and McCain attacked each other’s records before the Jan. 29 primary, which McCain ultimately won.
Then nine days ago, Romney was promising supporters he was in until the Republican National Convention even as McCain picked up far more delegates on Super Tuesday. Then a week ago, Romney dropped out of the race, leading to Thursday’s endorsement.
“With their rhetoric, our Democratic opponents are very skilled at striking heroic poses, but with our Republican nominee, we’re going to offer America the real thing,” Romney said, before introducing McCain as the next president of the United States.
Romney said he does not want Clinton or Obama both who want to stop the Iraq war to win, so supporting McCain brings more unity on the Republican side.
Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani also endorsed McCain when he dropped out of the race after the Florida primary on Jan. 29.
But former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee is still in the race, telling CNN’s Wolf Blitzer immediately after the Romney endorsement that “there are still a lot of Republicans in this country who have yet to vote.”
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