Mitt Romney: Candidate By Default

I wrote this a couple of weeks ago, so maybe it isn't as accurate as it was.  Some polls show Cain is ahead right now, but whatever, it could be true in a couple more weeks.

I saw a couple articles in the last week or so saying Mitt Romney is back in the lead for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination.  The funny part is that it isn't really because Mitt has done much to improve his standing, so much as his rivals (Bachmann, Perry, Cain) have been stumbling.  So as my headline says, right now he's the candidate by default.

If things remain that way, it'll be interesting to see just how much excitement he can muster.  Can you rally the people when you only got the nomination by being less crappy than the rest of the field?  That seems more likely to breed voter apathy.

Not being a Republican, I haven't followed Romney with much interest.  I think his biggest attribute is that he LOOKS presidential.  Like the kind of guy you would cast as the president in a movie.  You know the whole middle-aged white guy with the graying temples that make him seem wiser than he probably is.  That might be all a lot of voters need, especially when the opposition is a black guy.  (OK, half-black guy, but he LOOKS black, which is all that matters for most people.)

What annoys me is how people in Michigan get behind Romney because he's from here.  Sure he was born here and his dad was the governor back before I was born.  He doesn't live here.  He was never governor here.  Except for campaign appearances I don't think he ever spends any time here.  Yet people here act like he's "one of us."  Yeah, right.  Especially when he said the Big 3 should go under:

Yeah, he's a real friend to Michigan.

I'm not sure, what's Romney's slogan?  "I'm Not the Other Guy"?  That seems to sum up his candidacy so far.

Of course I try not to get too far ahead of myself in predictions or anything.  When I do I remember that at this point in the last presidential election cycle it was supposed to be Hillary vs. Rudy the next November.  Yeah, that didn't turn out so well for either of them, did it?

But short of the Pizza Man, is there anyone who can challenge Candidate-By-Default Romney?  Vee shall see...