Now that everyone in the 2012 Republican presidential field has had a shot at front-runner Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts governor has taken to Iowa, where he once thought he wouldn’t be competitive.
Romney, however, now looks as though he may have a decent finish in the Iowa caucuses, and he seems to be taking on a whole new personality according to New York Times columnist David Brooks, who appeared via satellite from Iowa on Friday’s “NewsHour” on PBS.
“He’s exuding confidence,” Brooks said. “I think his people are exuding confidence. I went to a rally this morning in the rain, and he was with Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey. And it was just a smooth, effective, not-too-long, but sort of a corporate race. It was like George Bush in year 2000. And what’s interesting is the tactic he’s taking. It’s very short on policy. It’s very long on patriotism. He talks about driving across the country looking at the national parks. He talks — he sings, or at least recites, some verses from ‘The Star-Spangled Banner.’ It’s as if he’s running to be Tom Sawyer.”
Brooks added this was part of Romney’s strategy to distinguish himself from President Barack Obama and ultimately defeat him.
“And I think it’s a way to establish a connection with voters, even despite questions they may have about Mormonism or anything else,” he continued. “I think it’s a way to distinguish, in his eyes, between him and Barack Obama. He’s more mainstream. And then, again, this theme of returning — as posing as Tom Sawyer — he’s returning to some earlier values. And, you know, that may play this year. Mark [Shields] is absolutely right. Rick Santorum and a lot of the candidates are very negative, the guy who won it four years ago, Mike Huckabee, very positive. But the mood here has darkened appreciably. And maybe they’re in tune with what the voters are hearing right now.”
Watch:
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