Iowa Results

So after all the stops and starts, it appears that Romney probably is the man to beat in the Republican nomination process: LA Times. His slim victory in Iowa yesterday over Rick Santorum (by a mere 8 votes) was not convincing, but it did further solidify the idea that he will be the candidate -- though without the kind of widespread support one has come to expect from the party faithful. In fact, one could argue that the primary pre-season so far has been a costume show of anyone that could possible challenge him for the nomination from Michelle Bachmann to Rick Perry to Herman Cain, Ron Paul and now Santorum (made infamous among Savage Love readers for his hateful comments on gays). But the GOP has been largely practical in electoral politics, while being increasingly radical in everything else, and will probably soon put their support behind Romney if he continues to win. 

The question that emerges now, though maybe a little premature, is what kind of campaign will he run if nominated? Well, when you are short on ideas and have a checkered past that puts you close to two individuals/groups that people are not enamored with at present (Obama and Wall Street), the answer is of course ... fear! As Talking Points Memo reported, Romney claimed that 2012 is about nothing less than the soul of America (TPM). And more specifically? The problem, of course, is Obama's socialist tendencies and his desire to "turn the merit-based America into an America of entitlements, where the government doles out the rewards regardless of effort." This absurd claim in the midst of growing poverty and inequality (where the greatest "merit" you can have is rich parents) reaffirms the GOP magic trick of the past 30 years -- push blame away from the source of the collapsing quality of life of white, working class (and increasingly middle class) Americans toward affirmative action, government policy (including the New Deal and Great Society) and now anything that doesn't support the neoliberal push for free market liberation, government deregulation and welfare state dismantling. 

Romney thus turns to European Social Democracies (which are themselves being dismantled in many cases) and argues: "“This is an election about a choice of direction or America,” Romney continued. “Not just policies, but a choice of whether we’re going to remain true to the principles that made us who we are or instead we’re going to take a sharp turn left and become something that we would hardly recognize.” It sounds troubling, except that it could be a speech by Hoover in 1932. We have long turned to government to solve economic and social problems and the fundamental change of the New Deal was, in fact, supported not only by large percentages of the population but some members of the business community. The great lie continues to persist even as it's effectiveness continues to fail. How long will people continue to believe that "free" markets and small government can solve their problems? The answer might be more sanguine than we imagine, as exemplified by the Wisconsin and Ohio protests, the Occupy movement and the current abysmal ratings of the new Congress: Washington Monthly. One thing we can be sure of if the election to come will be ugly and filled with lies and fear mongering. One just hopes the people are tired of both ...