This is Romney's year to shine

(BRETT JOSHPE-Politico).Last February, on the opening day of the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney took the stage, trailing Arizona Sen. John McCain in the GOP presidential primary but gathering steam with the conservative faithful. He delivered a speech that would not be soon forgotten. “I entered this race because I love America,” Romney said. “And because I love America, in this time of war, I feel I have to now stand aside for our party and for our country.” “Nooooo,” the crowd exclaimed in a deflated, collective groan. At that point, the Republican nomination was all but settled. Although Romney won the weekend’s straw poll for the second year in a row, McCain easily won the Republican primary and then selected Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, instead of Romney, as his running mate. And although McCain ran for the presidency with dignity and restraint, he was never well-positioned to beat Barack Obama and his grass-roots money machine. The economic crisis that exploded in September simply made Obama’s victory a fait accompli.

This February, however, Romney is well-positioned to emerge as the leader of the party and the Republican front-runner in 2012. First, money is no obstacle. Romney can self-finance, but he is also a fundraising machine. He eagerly campaigned for McCain, raising record amounts for his White House run, a gesture for which he earned political capital within the Republican Party and should expect repayment at some point. He is also currently donating money through his political action committee to House Republicans who opposed the stimulus package, and he is campaigning for Republicans around the country, including James Tedisco, who is running for the former congressional seat of Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), and Virginia Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling, who is running for reelection. Although the 2012 presidential campaign will not begin in earnest for another two years, Romney has several other factors working in his favor. He currently holds no elected office, so in a time when Republicans are rediscovering their voice, Romney does not have to worry about the compromises and horse trading that accompany public office. Instead, he can speak with the voice of a true conservative and hold accountable members of the Republican Party who defect.

He is especially well-poised to speak with authority given that the economy is, and will continue to be for some time, the foremost issue for Americans. Unlike McCain, who never sounded comfortable discussing the intricacies of the economic collapse, Romney is regarded as an expert on financial matters, given his private-sector experience.

If the economy is still lagging in a few years, Obama — and Obama alone — will own the recession, and Romney will be well-positioned to convince Americans that he is the man for the job. As the economic crisis deepens, Mitt Romney is the first name on everyone’s list when someone asks for expertise on the economy, on the markets, on the auto bailout or on innovative health care solutions. In a nation longing for a turnaround, the man known for turnarounds finds his stock growing.” Other potential 2012 candidates will have trouble making as compelling a case for the nomination. Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal is still very young and may not even run. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee will never gain support from fiscal conservatives. Palin has too many detractors within the party. Romney, however, has already answered the tough questions from the GOP skeptics. He is less likely to face questions about his abortion stance, as he did in 2008, or to feel compelled to address his Mormon faith. In fact, Obama’s election should help Romney in that regard by negating identity questions that might have been factors before Americans elected a black man to the highest office.

For Romney, the Republican wilderness should prove especially kind. He can lay the groundwork without the stifling spotlight of the full public attention on him. As such, he can just be Mitt Romney while he lines up the organizational support he will need to challenge Obama in four years. When he speaks this year at CPAC, he might consider telling the crowd, “It’s good to be back. This time, I’m here to stay.”