- Feb 10, 2000
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David Brooks, the NY Times' longstanding conservative commentator, posted this satirical piece yesterday at http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/28/opinion/brooks-the-real-romney.html?hp :
It pretty much goes on like that from there.
I post this not because it's a stellar piece of satire. (I think Brooks is a very bright and talented writer, but his forays into comedy leave me wanting.) I mostly just find it demonstrative of the fact that Romney is such an uninspiring figure that the reactions of Republicans to his candidacy seem to range from, on the low end, outright skepticism (as Brooks is exhibiting) to, on the high end, "I think he's fine and will certainly be better than Obama." I can guarantee you Brooks would rather be writing about what a great candidate his party had fielded than lampooning the nominee, but he is obviously not thrilled with Romney.
I know many Republicans, including several who are highly politically active (two of my partners are very active fundraisers for AIPAC and Republican candidates all over the country, and one of my associates is arguably the most conservative member of the state legislature), but I don't know one person who is enthusiastic about Romney. I admittedly live in a fairly liberal state, but we did unleash Michele Bachmann on the world, so it's not as though there is not a significant number of conservatives here. I have not seen a single Romney bumper sticker, and don't even know what they look like. We are now only about 2 months from the election, and there is a complete lack of excitement on the GOP side. It's remarkable to me, particularly given what widespread dislike there is of President Obama among Republicans.
Apparently John Kerry is acting in the role of Romney in President Obama's debate preparation - http://www.washingtonpost.com/polit...e-rehearsals/2012/06/18/gJQABEctlV_story.html . I find it fascinating how much Romney and Kerry have in common (i.e., as unappealing candidates from Massachusetts chosen to run against a fairly unpopular sitting President). I predict this election will end much as 2004 did, albeit probably not as close.
The Real Romney
By DAVID BROOKS
The purpose of the Republican convention is to introduce America to the real Mitt Romney. Fortunately, I have spent hours researching this subject. I can provide you with the definitive biography and a unique look into the Byronic soul of the Republican nominee:
Mitt Romney was born on March 12, 1947, in Ohio, Florida, Michigan, Virginia and several other swing states. He emerged, hair first, believing in America, and especially its national parks. He was given the name Mitt, after the Roman god of mutual funds, and launched into the world with the lofty expectation that he would someday become the Arrow shirt man.
Romney was a precocious and gifted child. He uttered his first words (“I like to fire people”at age 14 months, made his first gaffe at 15 months and purchased his first nursery school at 24 months. The school, highly leveraged, went under, but Romney made 24 million Jujubes on the deal.
Mitt grew up in a modest family. His father had an auto body shop called the American Motors Corporation, and his mother owned a small piece of land, Brazil. He had several boyhood friends, many of whom owned Nascar franchises, and excelled at school, where his fourth-grade project, “Inspiring Actuaries I Have Known,” was widely admired.
* * *
It pretty much goes on like that from there.
I post this not because it's a stellar piece of satire. (I think Brooks is a very bright and talented writer, but his forays into comedy leave me wanting.) I mostly just find it demonstrative of the fact that Romney is such an uninspiring figure that the reactions of Republicans to his candidacy seem to range from, on the low end, outright skepticism (as Brooks is exhibiting) to, on the high end, "I think he's fine and will certainly be better than Obama." I can guarantee you Brooks would rather be writing about what a great candidate his party had fielded than lampooning the nominee, but he is obviously not thrilled with Romney.
I know many Republicans, including several who are highly politically active (two of my partners are very active fundraisers for AIPAC and Republican candidates all over the country, and one of my associates is arguably the most conservative member of the state legislature), but I don't know one person who is enthusiastic about Romney. I admittedly live in a fairly liberal state, but we did unleash Michele Bachmann on the world, so it's not as though there is not a significant number of conservatives here. I have not seen a single Romney bumper sticker, and don't even know what they look like. We are now only about 2 months from the election, and there is a complete lack of excitement on the GOP side. It's remarkable to me, particularly given what widespread dislike there is of President Obama among Republicans.
Apparently John Kerry is acting in the role of Romney in President Obama's debate preparation - http://www.washingtonpost.com/polit...e-rehearsals/2012/06/18/gJQABEctlV_story.html . I find it fascinating how much Romney and Kerry have in common (i.e., as unappealing candidates from Massachusetts chosen to run against a fairly unpopular sitting President). I predict this election will end much as 2004 did, albeit probably not as close.
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