There has been plenty of Mitt Romney bashing in Republican circles since President Obama routed him on Nov. 6. But don’t expect any apologies from chief Romney strategist Stuart Stevens.
In a Washington Post op-ed titled “Mitt Romney: A good man. The right fight.” Stevens lauds Romney’s fundraising efforts and defense of “conservative economics,” while slamming the Democrats for having a “shortage of loyalty and an abundance of self-loathing.”
Stevens’ diatribe reads almost like a rehash of the infamous “47% video” released by Mother Jones back in September that some say crushed Romney’s chances of winning the presidency.
He brags that Romney “carried the majority of every economic group except those with less than $50,000 a year in household income.”
Interesting, as low income voters—defined as people earning less than $50,000—made up 41% of the 2012 electorate.
“Yes, the Republican Party has problems, but as we go forward, let’s remember that any party that captures the majority of the middle class must be doing something right,” Stevens insists. He goes on to suggest that the press felt “morally conflicted about being critical” of the first African-American president. “There was a time not so long ago when the problems of the Democratic Party revolved around being too liberal and too dependent on minorities. Obama turned those problems into advantages and rode that strategy to victory. But he was a charismatic African American president with a billion dollars, no primary and a media that often felt morally conflicted about being critical. How easy is that to replicate?” writes Stevens. Stevens could be right. Obama’s efforts were not easy to replicate as evidenced by the –and try not to laugh now — 47% of the popular vote Romney appears to have received as the tally continues to crystalize.
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