Analysis: Iowa GOP Caucus a Mixed Bag for Romney

[phkrause]

http://www.newsmax.com/InsideCover/GOPCa...omo_code=DD80-1

[Dr. Shane]

Romney was not expecting to win in Iowa. So his win, even by 8 votes, is surprising. The reason he has trouble getting over that 25%-30% in polls is due to his opponents defining him as a moderate and to his religious faith being a Mormon. Many Republicans hate Obama-care and thus hate the healthcare plan Romney signed in Massachusetts.

However the Massachusetts plan was modeled after the conservative Heritage Foundation plan. So Romney was actually following the conservative thought of that time. Obama's plan was a compromise. Obama wanted as single-payer system (as did I). Obama had to compromise and go with a plan that resembled a lot of what the Heritage Foundation plan had proposed.

In 2008 McCain was the "moderate". Romney and Huckabee split the conservative vote. It was because the conservative vote was split between Romney and Huckabee that McCain ended up getting the nomination. The problem now is that Romney isn't an off-the-chart, radical right-winger. Obama is so vulnerable that the radical, rabid, right-wing thinks they can put the greatest polarizing figure in there and they will still be able to beat Obama.