COMMENTARY | As news today revealed that Mitt Romney has money seated offshore, as if yesterday’s 15 percent tax confession wasn’t enough, one thing is abundantly clear: Mitt Romney is too Republican for a general election. I mean seriously, the guy’s too Republican to win over the Republican electorate.
Now this doesn’t mean he’s too conservative. Ironically, many believe the opposite: that he’s a moderate, for better or worse, on social and fiscal issues. Even Romney’s flip-flopping has proven unable to dissuade his hyper-conservative critics from their skepticism. But that’s not exactly the real problem. The problem is that Romney embodies an establishment caricature that is unattractive to just about everyone — tea party conservatives, Democrats, and independents included.
The Cayman Islands announcement today does nothing to affect Romney’s campaign. It is following the same trajectory it has been since 2011. It does, however, confirm the idea that Mitt Romney is way too culturally Republican for this election.
When President Obama staged his unlikely rise to power, it was because he represented a change from the Republican culture that was fundamentally tied to Wall Street. Four years later, Wall Street and the Republican establishment are still perceptibly related and nobody has forgotten about the financial collapse that took place only five years ago.
Romney, who made a fortune on Wall Street, has adopted a classical Republican fiscal view that condemns “job-killing” regulations. He is a millionaire son of a millionaire who saw no possible political liability in claiming, regardless of context, “he likes to fire people.” He sticks to traditional conservative talking points that are so unconvincing, many in his own party wonder if even he believes them. Culturally speaking, Mitt Romney is an unrelenting Republican.
This explains his escalation in the primary, even to the chagrin of its more fringe elements, and perhaps his perceived “electability.” But I maintain that his nearly cliché Republican figure will be the reason for his ultimate demise.
Disillusionment in President Obama stems mostly from his ineffectiveness, not his general attitude or intent. Independent voters and moderates have not forgotten the Bush administration or the financial collapse of 2007. They are not ready to go back to the Republican field unless it is willing to adjust and accommodate their concerns.
If Mitt Romney wins the Republican nominee, independents will take notice. The GOP has done nothing to change their ways since the Bush doctrine and Alan Greenspan. In 2012, a candidate like Mitt Romney is simply too Republican to win over independently minded voters but, then again, none of his conservative competitors would do any better.