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WHAT THEY'RE REALLY SAYING ABOUT GOV. ROMNEY

AT THE BOCA RATON, FL GOP DEBATE – VOL. II

MSNBC'S Chuck Todd: "Romney looks good and sounds confident tonight." (Chuck Todd, "Romney Starting Off Well Tonight," MSNBC's First Read, http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/, Posted 1/24/08)

The Atlantic's Marc Ambinder: "Romney made a strong first impression." (Marc Ambinder, "Live Twittering Of The Debate," The Atlantic, http://twitter.com/marcambinder, Posted 1/24/08)

Captain's Quarters' Ed Morrissey: "Florida voters got their fnal head-to-head look at the Republican presidential candidates tonight, and the winner of the debate was Mitt Romney." (Ed Morrissey, "Florida Debate: Romney Scores, Rudy Close Behind," Captain's Quarters' Blog, www.captainsquartersblog.com, Posted 1/24/08)

· Morrissey: "He looked presidential, poised, and factually prepared." (Ed Morrissey, "Florida Debate: Romney Scores, Rudy Close Behind," Captain's Quarters' Blog, www.captainsquartersblog.com, Posted 1/24/08)

· Morrissey: "In a debate that spent the first two-thirds with everyone doing well, Romney not only broke out on his own in the last stanza, he successfully parried some strange attacks from Tim Russert as well." (Ed Morrissey, "Florida Debate: Romney Scores, Rudy Close Behind," Captain's Quarters' Blog, www.captainsquartersblog.com, Posted 1/24/08)

Michelle Malkin: "Romney's being treated like the front-runner and he's acting like it." (Michelle Malkin, "GOP Florida Debate: Show Us The Conservatism," Michelle Malkin's Blog, http://michellemalkin.com/, Accessed 1/24/08)

Townhall's Hugh Hewitt: "Mitt Romney should send a thank you card to Tim Russert and Brian Williams. They threw hard balls at the former Massachusetts governor and he hit them all, many out of the park. Romney's allocation of time had to be disproportionate, but that was the Williams/Russert choice, and Romney made the most of it." (Hugh Hewitt, "'General Hillary Clinton' And 'They're Doing It In Europe Now,'" Townhall Blog, http://hughhewitt.townhall.com/, Posted 1/24/08)

· Hewitt: "Democrats watching tonight have to be very worried that Mitt Romney will be the GOP nominee." (Hugh Hewitt, "'General Hillary Clinton' And 'They're Doing It In Europe Now,'" Townhall Blog, http://hughhewitt.townhall.com/, Posted 1/24/08)

American Spectator's Wlady: "Terrific Romney answer to Russert's nosiness about how much he's spent in Florida. Russert's mistake: his insinuation that he was asking the question on behalf of the people's right to know. Romney instead let it be known he'll report his spending on Jan. 31, as required by law; and there's no reason to give his opponents a competitive advantage." (Wlady, "Rich Man, Poor Man," AmSpec Blog, http://www.amspec.org/, Accessed 1/24/08)

ABC News' Rick Klein: "Romney gets an initial question on the economy -- this is tailor made for him. … He sounds authoritative and in control on this subject." (Rick Klein, "Live Blogging During GOP Debate," ABC News' Political Radar, http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalradar, Posted 1/24/08)

National Journal's Jennifer Skalka: "Winners…Mitt Romney -- Mistake-free night." (Jennifer Skalka, "No Battle In Boca," National Journal's On Call, http://hotlineblog.nationaljournal.com/, Posted 1/24/08)

Heading Right's Ed Morrissey: "Best line of the evening so far: General Hillary Clinton." (Ed Morrissey, "Best Line Of The Evening So Far," Heading Right Blog, http://headingright.com/, Accessed 1/24/08)

· Morrissey: "Romney just delivered a hell of a punch against Hillary Clinton, Bill, and the Democrats." (Ed Morrissey, "Romney Lapping The Pack," Heading Right Blog, http://headingright.com/, Accessed 1/24/08)

· Morrissey: "I am impressed." (Ed Morrissey, "Romney's Running Away With It!" Heading Right Blog, http://headingright.com/, Accessed 1/24/08)

American Spectator's Phillip Klein: "Romney is clearly benefiting from the focus on the economy." (Phillip Klein, "Quick Debate Reaction," AmSpec Blog, http://www.amspec.org/blogger, Accessed 1/24/08)

Heading Right's Fausta Wertz: "[Y]es, this is the Mitt Romney hour." (Fausta, "Back To Mitt," Heading Right Blog, http://headingright.com/, Accessed 1/24/08)

Townhall's Matt Lewis: "If one had to assign a winner tonight, Mitt Romney would probably get the nod." (Matt Lewis, "GOP Debate Analysis: Florida Now A Two-Man Race," Townhall Blog, www.townhall.com, Posted 1/24/08)

· Lewis: "The debate focused more on the economy than it did on any other topic, and I think he is more adept at talking about this topic than is his primary opponent, John McCain." (Matt Lewis, "GOP Debate Analysis: Florida Now A Two-Man Race," Townhall Blog, www.townhall.com, Posted 1/24/08)

· Lewis: "He also did a good job of going after the Clintons -- something that McCain should have actually done more of." (Matt Lewis, "GOP Debate Analysis: Florida Now A Two-Man Race," Townhall Blog, www.townhall.com, Posted 1/24/08)

· Lewis: "Romney was ahead in the last Florida poll I saw, and since nothing that happened tonight is likely to radically upset the apple cart, he wins tonight merely by maintaining the status quo." (Matt Lewis, "GOP Debate Analysis: Florida Now A Two-Man Race," Townhall Blog, www.townhall.com, Posted 1/24/08)