Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Romney Stayin' Alive in Michigan
Good for Mitt Romney in winning Michigan. He should have done so, as if he didn't win there, he wasn't going to win anywhere. Well, except for Utah.
I guess the margin was a bit surprising. Nine points shows that McCain is not the frontrunner that the mainstream media declared him to be after the 11 Republicans in New Hampshire had their say. Reports that I heard all day were from Michigan voters who didn't really care for Romney but voted for him to deny McCain the victory.
I will say this - I love Romney's strategy of concentrating on the Nevada caucuses instead of heading to South Carolina. All eyes in South Carolina will be on Fred Thompson, Mike Huckabee, and John McCain. I'm not convinced that all three will see Florida if they fail to win in South Carolina. So instead of fighting for the 24 delegates in the Palmetto State, Romney is concentrating on Nevada's 31 delegates.
Shrewd move, Romney campaign, and I suspect that it will pay off in the end. You wouldn't have been the center of attention in South Carolina, anyway, so go steal Nevada, which you almost certainly will win with a little time in the state (although much more than any other GOP candidate) and a significant Mormon population to boot.
Will McCain's disappointing performance in Michigan cut into his lead in South Carolina? I can't see how it won't, but the big question is whether Thompson can make up enough ground (as he's got positive momentum and statistically polling in second place) to pass McCain by Saturday.
MORE: David Oatney weighs in and thumbs his nose at the media.
EVEN MORE: Bob Krumm comments on how Mike Huckabee getting creamed in Michigan could be the opening that Fred Thompson needs in South Carolina.
I guess the margin was a bit surprising. Nine points shows that McCain is not the frontrunner that the mainstream media declared him to be after the 11 Republicans in New Hampshire had their say. Reports that I heard all day were from Michigan voters who didn't really care for Romney but voted for him to deny McCain the victory.
I will say this - I love Romney's strategy of concentrating on the Nevada caucuses instead of heading to South Carolina. All eyes in South Carolina will be on Fred Thompson, Mike Huckabee, and John McCain. I'm not convinced that all three will see Florida if they fail to win in South Carolina. So instead of fighting for the 24 delegates in the Palmetto State, Romney is concentrating on Nevada's 31 delegates.
Shrewd move, Romney campaign, and I suspect that it will pay off in the end. You wouldn't have been the center of attention in South Carolina, anyway, so go steal Nevada, which you almost certainly will win with a little time in the state (although much more than any other GOP candidate) and a significant Mormon population to boot.
Will McCain's disappointing performance in Michigan cut into his lead in South Carolina? I can't see how it won't, but the big question is whether Thompson can make up enough ground (as he's got positive momentum and statistically polling in second place) to pass McCain by Saturday.
MORE: David Oatney weighs in and thumbs his nose at the media.
EVEN MORE: Bob Krumm comments on how Mike Huckabee getting creamed in Michigan could be the opening that Fred Thompson needs in South Carolina.
Labels: 2008 GOP Presidential Primary
Permalink posted by Rob Huddleston @ 6:39 AM 
