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Campaign Management 101 argues there's inherent value in getting a candidate out in public as often as possible, shaking hands and meeting people. A voter who meets a candidate in person is far more likely to cast a ballot for him or her.
It's counter-intuitive, but I tend to think Mitt Romney would actually be better off enjoying more quiet time by himself.
"You might be shaking the president's hand," Mr. Romney told a man in Mobile, where a rainstorm forced his supporters to seek shelter on the porch of a cafe.
Really, who talks like this? More importantly, who thinks like this?
In polite society, people tend to say, "It's nice to meet you." Folks don't generally say, "You must think it's nice to meet me."
For all the talk on the right about Barack Obama being arrogant, I can't recall him campaigning in 2008 and saying something like, "It must be great for a guy like you to be shaking hands with a guy like me."
In fairness, I should note that Romney seemed to realize his mistake yesterday, and added, "Then again, you might not."
That's better, but it doesn't quite change the fact that the Republican's first instinct was to say, out loud, as arrogant a line I've heard from a presidential candidate in a long while.
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That's incredible - but not surprising or shocking. In fact, it's kind of what I'd expect to hear coming out of Mitt's mouth. But it's not uncommon among many politicians.
When I lived in New York in the 1980s, my apartment was a few blocks from Richard Nixon's town house. Because I left for the office around six in the morning - I know, that's insane and I'm much better now - at least once a week I'd be standing next to him at an intersection waiting for traffic to clear or the light to change. After a time, we started nodding at each other and finally, one day, I introduced myself by saying, "We see each other a lot. My name is Charley James" and stuck out my hand to shake his.
He shook my hand weakly and replied, "I'm President Nixon." I guess he thought I might confuse him with some Richard Nixon who wasn't ever a president.
On the other hand, I grew up in Minnesota when Hubert Humphrey was Senator and then Vice President. When he spoke to someone - me, for instance, but other people reported the same experience as me - it seemed as if there wasn't anything else in the world he needed or wanted to do at that particular moment. I had the same experience the one time I met Pres. Obama.
I don't think it occured to either Obama or Humphrey to say, "Hi, it's nice for you to meet me!"
I'd bet that Steve Schmidtt and Nicole Wallace can feel the pain of Romney's handlers.
and not far behind is POTUS Santorum:
"The dangers of carbon dioxide? Tell that to a plant, how dangerous carbon dioxide is," Santorum said, according to the Associated Press.
Santorum sharpened his tone on the energy issue as the country's surging gas prices have come into focus.
"I didn't change as the climate changed," Santorum said. "I stood tall. Now the climate has changed and everyone's for drilling now. But understand that when times were tough, they were not and I was."
C'mon Maddie, I have tons of love for you ... how about giving good old Ron Paul a liitle - seriously, is he not way better than Santorum or Romney?!!
The rich son of a rich man, who never forgets he is both "important" and rich. Did I mention that Self Important Mitt is full of himself?
And during Watergate during a press conference, Nixon had the arrogance to claim that no matter what he was going to the President come the following day whatever day that was. My mother looked at the television and muttered, " Only if God is willing. That man is so arrogant."
Oh my god, HE GETS CUTER EVERY DAY. :D
It's fabulous to live in NH and get to meet so many candidates in person. The very best I've ever met was Obama. He greeted a whole line of people, shaking hands and saying hello one at a time, and would take a few minutes with a few of us, look us right in the eye, and ask us a little about us. And it didn't feel phony. He was out meeting people, and making a connection is what he was focused on. It was great.
This isn't the first time. Remember this? "I will probably be back in four years," Romney boasted to Brad Benson, the owner of Benson Lumber and Hardware in Derry. "Only this time it will be a larger group and I will probably have Secret Service." What a jerk.
Mitt is so enamored with the mere thought of being President. It has nothing to do with his love of America, or ways in which he might make it a better place. It's just another form of power (non-monetary power), and if he got it, he would walk into the Oval Office, pause for a long moment, and think "NOW what?"
He would struggle his entire term to get along with anyone in Congress, would never gain the respect of other world leaders, and in the end accomplish nothing.
THIS is who Willard is....to the core.
No one thinks or talks like Mitt Romney does because he has an inherent flaw, a complete lack of connection with the human reality of those surrounding him. Mitt is an isolated man who has made stark choices to keep the masses and riff-raff of the 99 percent out of his life -- well, besides mowing his lawns or taking care of his multiple vacation properties. Now he faces a problem in that he needs those ordinary slackers to vote for him, or else he will not attain his life's ambition to really posses the "president's hand." http://www.sunstateactivist.org
Mitt needs some help with the South. I made this video to "help" him.
Perhaps it could be a 1 minute ad:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4N0M1gQ0N0
Giant helium filled heads
Ha! Very funny. It reminds me of Henry Gibson in Altman's film 'Nashville' greeting people at his barbecue with, "Welcome to our beautiful home!"
Pure Mitt ! Sad, scary, awkward and absurd.