Gov. Mitt Romney’s, D-Mass., doomed campaign was a Shakespearean tragedy. Romney, our tragic hero, made an unwise decision early in his campaign that led to its collapse and the subsequent ascension of his greatest rival, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. Romney was a far different type of Republican in the primary than he was while he served as Massachusetts’ governor.  Gov. Romney’s most renowned achievement was healthcare reform. His bill mandated that nearly everyone obtain health insurance under threat of financial penalty for failure to comply. The plan also provided subsidies to families who could not afford it – and, in extreme circumstances, children of those families were eligible for free coverage.  Democrats endorsed the plan while Massachusetts Republicans expressed concern for the expansive reform. But Romney persisted on pushing the bill through the state legislature. This plan has been successful. The reform is credited with insuring an additional 300,000 Massachusetts residents, according to The Associated Press. Many political pundits have even noticed “RomneyCare’s” similarity to Sen. Hillary Clinton’s proposed national healthcare reform.    Romney also signed a permanent ban on assault weapons and supported waiting periods for handgun purchases, according to CNN. Part of his platform in the 2002 gubernatorial race was to uphold precedent concerning pro-choice legislation. Despite recanting his pro-choice support later, as governor, he maintained pro-choice legislation in Massachusetts.  He raised taxes to balance the budget, supported modest environmental legislation and raised the minimum wage. I am not saying Romney was a bastion of liberalism, but the qualities he exhibited as governor were more reminiscent of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger than Barry Goldwater. Romney had to negotiate with state Democrats while still pleasing his Republican base, proving he could organize complicated proposals and broker deals across party lines.  Romney was a reasonable politician with noble intentions, but Romney is the tragic hero of this story – and like most tragic heroes, he missed the mark. Instead of using his centrism as an asset in the Republican primary, Romney transformed his image into that of the establishment, liberal-hating conservative. He even turned on Massachusetts – at times appearing to lament his tenure in the blue state.  He decided he would rather be criticized for flip-flopping on critical issues to pander to the conservative base than be criticized for being a moderate, compassionate conservative – flattering the likes of Rush Limbaugh and Ann Coulter while shunning the moderate, undecided and independent voters. Unfortunately for Romney, he made a miscalculation.  Exit polls from the New Hampshire primary – Romney’s first loss to John McCain – illustrate why Romney was wrong. Romney won among a majority of voters who expressed a positive opinion of President Bush, and McCain won among those who had a negative opinion, according to CNN. Romney also won voters who believe the next president should be more conservative than Bush, while McCain won – by larger margins – both those who want the next president to continue Bush’s policies and voters who want the next president to be less conservative.  In a country where only 19 percent believe the country is better off now than four years ago, according to a recent Rasmussen poll, fortune favors the moderate.  Romney did not go down quietly though, and – like Brutus – he waged war. But even with the full, coalesced support of talk-radio and its legions of “dittoheads,” his campaign came to an end. This is not the way things had to be. Romney, far more so than McCain, could have easily made a case for himself as a moderate Republican with an excellent shot in the general election.  Romney supporters should cheer up – at least he did not suffer the same end as Brutus. But that does not mean Romney did not have his share of bloody knives.
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