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By tradition, the Speaker of the House of Commons is all faux modesty; on being elected, s/he is dragged, supposedly unwillingly, to the presiding chair. ("The mock reluctance dates from the days when the Speaker, as mouthpiece of the House, had to bear unpleasant tidings to the King (between 1399 and 1535, seven Speakers were beheaded).")
That affected reluctance to high office was one of two things that jumped to mind on reading that a group seeking to "draft" Sarah Palin to run in 2012 has formed (their website's here).
The other thing that jumped to mind was the old saw one occasionally sees on t-shirts: "lead me not into temptation. I know my way."
Our RSS feed
wasting time
Yeah, I can't bear it when pols waste our time with false modesty and feigned reluctance. Politics as theater can be really aggravating.
In contrast to the "will-she, won't she" Palin parade, notice that Mitt Romney has a clear, succinct, and sensible editorial in NYT today about the big 3 automakers.
It shows me that Romney fundamentally gets it, in a way that many other bullshitting pols really don't. I never really got the sense that for example McCain or Palin broke through the cant layer to a truly felt understanding of economics. The things they said during their campaign always felt to me like they were reciting things on partially blind faith.
In contrast, this stuff really feels like bread-and-butter raison d'etre stuff coming from Romney. If, as seems likely today, we are still suffering from debilitating economic challenges in 2010, Romney is positioned best.
And since I'm really bored by the post-election hot stove of cabinet appointment rumors, I'll make a few 2012 predictions. Even though I am generally opposed to the constant election cycle and never-ending presidential campaigns. Here goes:
1. Mitt Romney is the frontrunner for the 2012 GOP nom. It'll be his nom to lose.
2. The kranky news desk projects that the commonwealth of Massachusetts and its 11 electoral votes will go to Barack Obama. He hasn't been sworn in yet for his first term, and he already has an 11-0 lead for 2012.
badump-bump! I'll be here all week. Try the veal.
__________
I have often said, and oftener think, that this world is a comedy for those who think, and a tragedy for those who feel. -Horace Walpole
Romney gets it?
Romney gets it? Not from what I saw and heard at the Republican Convention. Or maybe I should ask which of the "Romney's" we've seen gets it?
Chris
based on the editorial
I'll cheerfully agree that to the extent that Romney is viewed by conservatives as let's say Kerryesque, he did much to bring that on himself. I do think it's been greatly exaggerated, though. I never thought Romney was anywhere near as liberal-leaning as was suggested. In addition to fiscal conservative bonafides that few folks ever questioned, He has in my mind always been conservative socially, and I never diverged from that view regardless of whatever conciliatory tones he may have occasionally adopted. And remember, he was MY governor, so I got a good view for a long time.
Anyways, in my post above I am definitely talking about how the editorial I cited shows that he gets it. Economically.
I have no thoughts on what his convention appearance showed about what he "gets" in general.
But I suppose there is an open question about how and whether supporters of each party will reorrder their priorities due to economic circumstances.
In essence, I am arguing that if you think due to economic circumstances that it's really important to have someone with a high-level grasp of economics and executive practice, Romney fits that bill much better than any of the other currently know viable options.
__________
I have often said, and oftener think, that this world is a comedy for those who think, and a tragedy for those who feel. -Horace Walpole