Romney Bows Out

[honeychile]

From Yahoo!:

McCain seals GOP nod as Romney suspends
By LIZ SIDOTI, Associated Press Writer
9 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - John McCain effectively sealed the Republican presidential nomination on Thursday as chief rival Mitt Romney suspended his faltering presidential campaign. "I must now stand aside, for our party and our country," Romney told conservatives.

"If I fight on in my campaign, all the way to the convention, I would forestall the launch of a national campaign and make it more likely that Senator Clinton or Obama would win. And in this time of war, I simply cannot let my campaign, be a part of aiding a surrender to terror," Romney told the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington.

Romney's decision leaves McCain as the top man standing in the GOP race, with Mike Huckabee and Ron Paul far behind in the delegate hunt. It was a remarkable turnaround for McCain, who some seven months ago was barely viable, out of cash and losing staff. The four-term Arizona senator, denied his party's nomination in 2000, was poised to succeed George W. Bush as the GOP standard-bearer.

Romney launched his campaign almost a year ago in his native Michigan. The former Massachusetts governor and venture capitalist invested more than $40 million of his own money into the race, counted on early wins in Iowa and New Hampshire that never materialized and won just seven states on Super Tuesday, mostly small caucus states.

McCain took the big prizes of New York and California.

"This is not an easy decision for me. I hate to lose. My family, my friends and our supporters... many of you right here in this room... have given a great deal to get me where I have a shot at becoming President. If this were only about me, I would go on. But I entered this race because I love America."

McCain prevailed in most of the Super Tuesday states, moving closer to the numbers needed to officially win the nomination. Overall, McCain led with 707 delegates, to 294 for Romney and 195 for Huckabee. It takes 1,191 to win the nomination at this summer's convention in St. Paul, Minn.

"I disagree with Senator McCain on a number of issues, as you know. But I agree with him on doing whatever it takes to be successful in Iraq, on finding and executing Osama bin Laden, and on eliminating al-Qaida and terror," Romney said.

Romney acknowledged the obstacles to beating McCain.

"As of today, more than 4 million people have given me their vote for president, that's of course, less than Senator McCain's 4.7 million, but quite a statement nonetheless. Eleven states have given me their nod, compared to his 13. Of course, because size does matter, he's doing quite a bit better with the number of delegates he's got," Romney said...."

[SWTXBelle]

[sunnyhibiscus]

I'm in shock. I thought that he's wasn't going to give up until late. I'm not a huge fan of the Republicans, but this is shocking.

[KDAngel]

Yay!! I heard this through through intel around 1030 today, before the press got a hold of it an hour or two later. I didn't even believe it until it kept popping up all over the place.

I'm at CPAC, and SO glad he finally bowed out. Now McCain can get on with getting the nomination AND the White House!!!

[Munchkin03]

Now, if only Huckabee would quit the race...

Has anyone seen his family? They are an ad for gastric bypass for realz...

[ThetaDancer]

Originally Posted by Munchkin03

Now, if only Huckabee would quit the race...

Has anyone seen his family? They are an ad for gastric bypass for realz...

Hilarious. And so so true.

[nittanyalum]

Originally Posted by SECdomination

3. Huckabee- DOESN'T HAVE A CHANCE

There you go, I fixed that for ya.

Sorry, SEC.

[Munchkin03]

Originally Posted by SECdomination

That was crude.

How so? I don't want my tax dollars going towards this family's general fatassiness.

[MysticCat]

Originally Posted by SECdomination

John McCain should NEVER have had a chance for the GOP nomination.

Why not, given that he's been the only GOP candidate who has a chance of winning the general election?

[nittanyalum]

Buh-bye Mitt-en man.

[Benzgirl]

Best news that I've had all day

[EE-BO]

Good riddance to Romney.

Did anyone catch his bowing-out speech? It was the first time he really laid his cards on the table and proved he had the scary agenda so many of us suspected.

He did not speak about fixing roads or improving public education. He instead talked about making sure women can't have a basic medical procedure and making amendments to the Constitution to protect "moral values".

My favorite part was when he said Europe was in a crisis of existence because they had abandoned good moral values. A completely inaccurate and stupid statement. Racial strife in Europe has everything to do with classicism and an inherent hatred for the Islamic peoples who are moving there in droves to find a better life. And if Europeans have abandoned Christianity- we have a few hundred years of Vatican oppression to thank for leaving a bad taste in people's mouths.

Romney also implies in his remarks about strife in Europe that there must be a good and bad side. I guess the Muslims are the "bad side". Maybe that is why he was so ready and willing to throw millions of people whose skin is not white enough out of the US even though for decades we have ignored our own laws and let people come here and contribute to our economy.

This is why you don't need religious fanatics in charge of government. The government should be fixing roads, managing the money supply and defending the realm- not promulgating moral standards by which people are forced to live, and wasting taxpayer money to promote agendas that attempt to shape the minds of a free people.

Yesterday was a great day. Republicans and Democrats alike can breathe a sigh of relief.

[nittanyalum]

Originally Posted by EE-BO

This is why you don't need religious fanatics in charge of government.

Go EE-BO! I don't think we're completely on the same page politically, but the above statement definitely needed highlighting.

[EE-BO]

Originally Posted by SECdomination

You are absolutely ridiculous. I don't even know where to begin. If Mitt Romney is making stupid statements, then there hasn't even been a word invented yet to describe your posts.
Please don't think that the majority of Americans agree with you.

I don't live by polls- I could care less if a majority of Americans agree with me or not.

If I am so dumb in making my comment about Romney, then explain to me the accuracy and intelligence of someone who wanted to be the President of the United States stating that the entirety of Europe is in a bad way because they have abandoned "moral" practices (keeping in mind that his reference is to those of the Christian faith and therefore the huge percentage of Muslims living legally in Europe, by his own argument, aren't "real Europeans".)

History is rarely so consistent as in the ultimate fate of nations led by those who concern themselves more with promoting their own religious agenda than with the enormous and critical task of maintaining a country and its physical infrastructure.

How many bridges have collapsed in your city? How many levees have broken? Would you feel safe getting out of your car and walking into the hallways of an inner city school? How much in tolls are you paying on the freeways because state and federal funding can no longer pay for new roads?

Do you think Congress spending time and money fighting over legislation to ban same-sex couples from becoming legally united is more important than addressing issues like that?

What will make this nation a better place 50 years from now- fixing the Social Security crisis or making sure the Constitution is the new authority on access to a medical procedure?

This is why Romney lost and why Huckabee will not ultimately endure. It is why McCain has emerged the frontrunner even though the Republican Establishment cannot stand him.

McCain is the worst nightmare of both parties- Hillary or Obama could have easily beaten any of the other Republican candidates, and many "conservatives" have bought into this myth that bigger government in the form of morality-based legislation will actually save us from some horrible fate that awaits in the shadows ahead.

I happen to be strongly conservative. I believe in a very small central government with control given back to the states. I also have personal Pro-Life inclinations and believe that same-sex unions should be allowed. Marriage in the religious sense is a church matter and let the churches marry who they want- but all tax-paying Americans should have the right to legally partner with the person of their choice and enjoy the same legal protections as others.

But Bush Republicanism has not been about small central government- and neither has Romney. And just because I am pro-life does not mean I feel comfortable with the government making an arbitrary decision about one of the most personal decisions imaginable between a woman and her health care provider. This is where I have issues with Huckabee.

The base is upset because they got no true conservative. But McCain offers something even better- a pragmatic approach that could actually result in both sides getting together and doing something.

If Republicans really think that their big "family values" issues are what is most important above all else- then we better brace ourselves to become a party that never wins the Presidency again.

[shinerbock]

EE-BO:

Romney dropping out was a huge blow to conservatives (how is this person a moderator, BTW). His "scary" agenda? Seriously? Are you one of those who accuse candidates of using "politics of fear" because they acknowledge the threats posed to our country by Islamic extremism? This coming from the party that refuses to even acknowledge where the threat comes from?

I'm pretty sure Romney was referring to the "scary" explosion of radicalism in Europe, highlighted by the recent proclamation that Sharia in England is inevitable. Sure, great idea, can't wait till it gets to America!

I'm thankful that Mitt Romney won't allow something as idiotic as political correctness to get in the way of protecting our nation.