A Leading Voice for the GOP

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Some of Romney's recent interview with Chris Cillizza of The Fix:
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...the former Massachusetts governor clearly has ideas about what happened in 2008 and how the GOP can hope to reclaim the White House in 2012.

Romney rejected the idea that Republicans' defeats at the ballot box last November were the result of either an abandonment of core principles or a lack of willingness to moderate some of the party's sharper edges.

"When the stock market dropped, [McCain's] numbers dropped so to suggest it was moderates or conservatives or this or that ... the economy collapsed and people were unhappy with our leadership and attributed the collapse to a failure of leadership," explained Romney.

That doesn't mean, however, that Romney proposes simply re-running the 2008 presidential race in 2012. Instead he argued that the party must find ways to apply its "core principles" to changing circumstances -- particularly in regards the economy -- in ways that are reasonable to voters and relevant in their daily lives.

That discussion begins and ends for Romney with health care -- a place where Romney forged compromise with, of all people, Sen. Ted Kennedy (D) in Massachusetts and an issue of which he is clearly pinning his national agenda in the years to come.

"I have a plan for health care that dramatically increases the number of people that are insured," he said, adding that his proposal would not expand the number of people on Medicaid or Medicare nor would it "allow for a massive increase in federal spending."

Romney contrasted his approach on health care to that of Obama whose plan, he argued, is based on the belief that "government getting into health care will solve our health care problems in a more effective way."

That strategy is a recipe for disaster to Romney's mind. "That is not how the economy grows," he said. "That course will not strengthen America long term."

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...Romney remains one of the leading voices within the GOP on economic matters -- thanks to his successes in the private sector -- and the primacy of the economy to the national debate ensures that the former governor will continue to be a prominent figure within the party for the next several years. (He currently holds down the number one slot of the Fix's Line of "Ten Republicans To Watch".)

Asked about what the future holds for him, Romney demurred. "I don't know whether I'll be involved in elective office again," he said. "I won't shut the door nor will I walk through it at this stage."

For a party that tends to reward those who have run once and lost, Romney may well be the perfect fit for Republicans in 2012 -- a telegenic messenger with economic bona fides whose happy warrior persona could allow him to disagree with President Obama without being perceived as disagreeable.

And, despite his equivocations on his political future, Romney sounds every bit a candidate readying another national run. Asked about the future of the Republican party, Romney responded: "The right thing to do is to concentrate on what America needs right now both at home and abroad. If we do that we'll be successful in the long run."