NYT on Paul/Romney relationship: Amid Rivalry, Friendship Blossoms on the Campaign Trail

[Boss]

LOL

Mitt just allegedly stole the state we had the best chance of winning in, and the evidence+history seems to strongly suggest there is perhaps some truth to this allegation, and yet a few days later we're praising him for being a good guy?

 

[JJ2]

Romney is indeed a genuinely nice guy. I don't know what there isn't to believe about it. Doesn't mean his politics are good.

Yes, because stealing someone's first ever state win (Maine) is being a "genuinely nice guy."

 

[misterx]

Wow. Romney's actually....a genuinely nice person?

Romney's a shrewd person. He knows he may need Paul's help at a brokered convention, and will need his supporters in the general election.

 

[JohnM]

Interesting article.

I think that it shows that Ron Paul and Mitt Romney have a couple of things in common:

1) They both believe in civility as an important virtue, for its own sake.

2) They both recognize that civility can be politically useful.



In this, they differ from some other candidates . . .




and also from a few people who post on Ron Paul Forums.

 

[SCOTUSman]

Yes, because stealing someone's first ever state win (Maine) is being a "genuinely nice guy."

Yes, Romney personally stole the state of Maine. Yep you got that right. Anyways politics is a game. People here honestly have never worked in political campaigns. They are games and nasty ones and everyone has to partake. Even Ron himself said we all take it and we all give it.

Lot of people just don't understand.

Have you met the guy before? Ever talk to him. Know how he is? Probably not.

 

[kathy88]

Romney's a shrewd person. He knows he may need Paul's help at a brokered convention, and will need his supporters in the general election.

Paul's going to need Romney's help in a brokered convention. Mitt's on the way DOWN.

 

[Jtorsella]

For all those Romney bashers with selective memories:
Romney was the single candidate to defend Ron Paul on the newsletter allegations.
Before he got his new advisors, he said that we could not continue nation building. This was in one of the earlier debates. He said it in a very Paulesque way.
In one of the earlier forums, Romney said literally the same thing that Paul had said ten minutes earlier about abortion - That it was a states' rights issue and that he was personally opposed to it.
From what I've seen and heard, including a lot of stuff I forget now, I think it's a possibility that Mitt is a closet liberty lover, or at least moderate on social and foreign policy.
Not to mention that he's actually a civil and decent person.
Just to be clear, though, I would never vote for him.

 

[wayzupusc]

Wow. Romney's actually....a genuinely nice person?

Sure seems like it but it's not his quality of character I have a problem with in regards to Mitt. He seems like a nice enough person, I just think he doesn't have a clue in regards to a number of issues that I consider pressing problems for our country.

 

[asurfaholic]

It sounds JUST like my relationships with my friends. What, your jet broke down? No problem! You can crash in my summer home and I'll have my pilot fly you home in the morning! Oh no, it's no bother at all! The family and I can slum in our little 9 bedroom townhouse in the suburbs. It's very rustic, you'd like it! If that doesn't work, you can take my yacht. Would you like another slice of baby panda?

So familiar.

I laughed

 

[Sola_Fide]

Guys...

Please, please, please don't fall for this floater. It is a worthless attempt by Romney surrogates to court the Ron Paul vote.

Realistically, this courtship would never work unless Mitt Romney COMPLETELY capitulates on some of his tyrannical positions. It's not gonna happen.

 

[69360]

Romney is probably a decent civil person. I don't doubt that. Ron and Romney get along personally, some of you will just have to deal with that.

Romney/Paul would crush Obama in the general. There is no doubt of that.

If Romney made policy compromises between his positions and Ron's, not outright changes, he could be acceptable. Like pull out of Afghanistan on day 1, but not close the bases worldwide. Full transparent audit of the fed, but not call for ending. Repeal NDAA/patriot act. Pledge to go to congress for declaration of war. Those are compromises that might work and really wouldn't cost Romney or Paul their base.

Sorry people, but this isn't a cult and Ron isn't a cult leader, compromises are going to need to be made. Romney is better than a CFR globalist or a social zealot.

 

[aloneinthewilderness]

Even The Devil himself can appear very kind and giving. Beware his motives.

 

[uninSTAAL]

I'm surprised more people haven't noticed Romney's sociopathic tendencies. Every move he makes has to do with boosting his own ego and being "well-liked" among the populus. Deep down, he believes in making maneuvers that benefit himself and his sociopathic buddies.Romney probably spends an hour or so getting his hair done and when he looks directly in the camera during debates speaking a bunch of rhetoric, it is so obvious to me that every sentence he speaks is a calculated attempt at feeding his egocentric personality. The little smirk he makes when people chant his name is sickening.

 

[Captain Shays]

Of the three other candidates, I think Romney is the most human. Gingrich is just a lying piece of dung and Santorum is a religious zealot hell bent on starting a nuclear WWIII. I think RP is growing on mittens in some ways, since RP is honest and genuine, and humans normally like, listen to, and learn from honest, genuine people.

I totally agree and so does my wife. I would only ad that not only is Ron growing on the Mitt but so are we. He admires our enthusiastic support for the principles that Ron Paul expresses. What he doesn't get so it seems is that in his mind it's about him...the candidate....the man. With us and our support for Ron Paul it's always about the principles, the Constitution and the issues.

 

[mosquitobite]

I liked the parts about how the Romneys had offered to let Dr Paul use their house & jet one time and Dr Paul declined. I thought to myself "very smart Dr Paul!!!"

I also found the part about Gingrich odd (about not having to vote for the budget deal). This would have been back in the 90's. According to Dr Paul, Gingrich mentioned he didn't want Dr Paul's people calling him. Who would have been those people in the 90s???

 

[Matthanuf06]

Romney would be the best realistic choice, outside of Paul, that we've had for years. His major downfall is he plays the game far too much, which results in having to "pay people back" and "flip flopping". But at his core I think Romney is closer to us than any other serious POTUS candidate in a long while. He is still far away, but he wouldn't be a disaster like every other major candidate of the past two decades. Combine that with him being a nice guy, and I think that is why Paul likes him. And I also think Paul and Romney would both have a spot in each others administration, because deep down inside there is common ground IMO. Romney is just washed into the machine.

 

[Captain Shays]

Romney would be the best realistic choice, outside of Paul, that we've had for years. His major downfall is he plays the game far too much, which results in having to "pay people back" and "flip flopping". But at his core I think Romney is closer to us than any other serious POTUS candidate in a long while. He is still far away, but he wouldn't be a disaster like every other major candidate of the past two decades. Combine that with him being a nice guy, and I think that is why Paul likes him. And I also think Paul and Romney would both have a spot in each others administration, because deep down inside there is common ground IMO. Romney is just washed into the machine.

You're joking right? If we elect Romney NDAA will still be in place, along with no audit of the Fed, we'll still be policing the world, handing out HUGE chunks of corporate welfare, maybe bailing out more banks and corporations, and we'll grow deeper in debt. I guess other than that......

 

[rpwi]

Romney is not a nice guy... If he feels there is no strategic advantage to attacking you, he won't, but if he does, he will. When he thought he had the nomination wrapped, he talked about how important it was for republicans not to attack each other...when the nomination became more competitive...he unloaded on Newt.

On at least two occasions he has said he was laughing at Ron (once during a radio interview and once during a debate).

It's too easy to tie a politicians personality together with their issues. So it is important Ron not befriend Mitt as he will be befriending the tyrannical government vision Mitt supports. Ron will be most free to speak about liberty if he doesn't feel guilty about 'attacking' mitt.

 

[KingNothing]

Even The Devil himself can appear very kind and giving. Beware his motives.

Mitt Romney is not the devil.

Just because a man is not Ron Paul does not mean he's evil. Hell, just because Mitt does what is politically expedient does not mean he's evil. Mitt is, most likely, a decent, successful, man with political ambitions. To my knowledge, Ron Paul is the only man in modern American politics who fits that description and is also guided entirely by principle. And it's why no politician other than Ron Paul has ever been worthy of the highest office in my lifetime.

But we shouldn't just bombastically claim that there is a sinister motive behind every action made by someone who is not Ron Paul. Really, that mentality paralyzes us.

 

[KingNothing]

You're joking right? If we elect Romney NDAA will still be in place, along with no audit of the Fed, we'll still be policing the world, handing out HUGE chunks of corporate welfare, maybe bailing out more banks and corporations, and we'll grow deeper in debt. I guess other than that......

I'd rather have Romney be president than Bush, Obama, Santorum or Gingrich but I would NEVER vote for him unless Paul was his VP. Romney reminds me of a more moral Bill Clinton. There's not a chance that he (or Clinton) would be a good president, but compared to the abject failures of recent administrations -and ONLY by the distressingly low bar that they set- he wouldn't be an abomination.