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Thingish Things

Mitt Swallows a Mouse

Written By: William F. B. O'Reilly - Dec• 11•11

Can you believe he said that?

I can’t.

“A $10,000 bet?”

My God.

Mitt Romney’s unforced faux pas at last night’s debate in Iowa  hurt. It really hurt. Playing into the rich-kid image isn’t the deadly part, it’s the amount of time it will take Mr. Romney to recover from the off-handed remark. A bad story in politics takes time to digest.  It’s like a snake swallowing a lab mouse.  The mouse moves slowly and visibly through its system until it is finally passed. Until this one passes, Governor Romney will be off message, and he can’t afford to be for a single day. The gravitational pull of Christmas and New Year’s will begin in a week, and with it, the GOP primary will be frozen in place. The Iowa Caucuses are on January 3rd.

The second thing the $10,000 blunder does is cast the harsh spotlight on Mr. Romney at the exact point in the primaries that it needs to stay on Newt Gingrich — if the momentum of the former Georgia congressman is to be checked. A lot of powerful conservatives voices spent last week softening up Mr. Gingrich for the kill at Saturday’s debate — they hit him with everything the had — but he didn’t die. And yes, in politics, like in real life, what doesn’t kill you can make you stronger. Mr. Gingrich is becoming immune to his checkered past, just like Bill Clinton did.

A $10,000 bet? Three weeks away from the Iowa Caucuses?  With the holidays in between? For the first time in this race, Mitt Romney is in trouble.  All Republicans are. Who is going to stop Newt Gingrich from throwing away the gains Republicans have made in the past two years?

Romney could now run third — or even fourth in Iowa.

Oy vey! 

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