Another Crucial Win in Another Swing State

Last night's victory in Nevada represents another crucial win in another crucial state.  Mitt Romney won nearly 50% of the vote.  An impressive win to say the least.

AP Photo/Getty Images

Many critics are trying to discredit the win saying that it was predictable in a state where Mitt Romney won in 2008 and also a state with a Republican Electorate that is 25% Mormon.   What these critics don't acknowledge is that Mitt Romney won the Nevada caucuses convincingly in nearly every demographic.  He won nearly every age, income group and minority group.  Furthermore, he won with Tea Party Supporters and Evangelicals.  Much to Newt Gingrich's dismay, Romney convincingly won the support of moderate and conservative Republicans.

***

The energy during Mitt Romney's acceptance speech was remarkable.

He graciously and confidently thanked the crowd for their support and reminded America what the fight for the White House is truly about.  He reminded America of the failed policies of President Obama.

He said, "Four years ago, candidate Obama came to Nevada promising to help.  Today Nevada unemployment is over 12%, home values have plummeted, and Nevada's foreclosure rate is the highest in the nation.  I've walked in Nevada neighborhoods, blighted by abandoned homes, where people wonder why Barack Obama failed them.  Well Mr. President, Nevada has had enough of your kind of help."

Romney said, "Three years ago, newly elected President Obama told America that if Congress approved his plan to borrow nearly $1 trillion dollars, he would hold unemployment below 8%."

Romney pointed out that the national unemployment hasn't dropped below 8% in three years.    He went on to say,  "This week, he's been trying to take a bow for 8.3% unemployment.  Not so fast, Mr. President.  This is the 36th month with unemployment above the red line that your own administration drew.  

"Mr. President, America has also had enough of your kind of help."

AP Photo/Getty Images

Thank you Mitt Romney for demonstrating that this election is not about replacing a president, it is about restoring America to a greatness.  Restoring America to prosperity.  Restoring America to substantive and lasting growth.

Thank you for reminding us that for three years we have been on a path that is not working.  For three years, we have tried to borrow our way out of challenging economic times and it has not worked.  Americans are still hurting.

Thank you for reminding America that we deserve more--for showing us there is a better way to emerge out of the worst economic times since the Great Depression.

Thank you Nevada for recognizing that Mitt Romney is the right leader to help us.

Throwing Darts

This morning Americans finally woke to some positive economic news--during the month of January, 243,000 jobs were added to the economy dropping the unemployment rate to 8.3% percent.

Reports from the White House were that of reserved optimism as they said that these unemployment numbers "were better than expected."

(Is it concerning that they seemed more surprised than we were?)

New York Times ran an article today stating that despite this positive economic news, the president is reluctant to be "overly optimistic" and Democrats are wary of "declaring a full-blown recovery." (Click to read full NYTimes article).  Obama gave a speech this morning warning caution as he suggested that the "numbers will go up and down in the coming months and there are still far too many Americans who need a job or need a job that pays better than the one they have now."

I guess that one can understand their "reserved celebration."  After all, their bold declaration of "Recovery Summer of 2010," turned out to be a total flop.  Nothing more than a flicker of a flame in a smoking fire pit.

Truth be told, the Administration didn't know "recovery" in 2010 and they certainly don't know it now.  They don't know because it is clear that this Administration has no idea what they are doing and they don't know what they are looking for.

For three solid years, we have watched our government throw billions and billions of dollars in  "Recovery Act" money towards stimulus-funded projects which they confidently boasted would create jobs.

It has been three years, what do they have to show for it?  The answer? Unemployment at a staggering 8.3%, a housing market continuing to collapse, millions of Americans barely getting by, $4 trillion in additional debt to the Chinese and a starkly divided nation.

For the past three years, it has been like watching a group of college buddies in a bar playing darts.  Each one brags of skill and confidence, but more often than not, darts are thrown with eyes closed and fingers crossed--each hoping that luck will be on their side to land their dart in the center of the bullseye.

Today's economic news is of course encouraging.  More and more Americans are gradually going back to work.  This is great news.  But is this surge based on the same method of throwing darts with eyes closed and fingers crossed?  I would argue, yes.

We have a long way to go.

As Mitt Romney pointed out today, "The economy grew only 1.7% in all of 2011, the slowest growth in a non-recession year since the end of World War II.  Nearly 24 million Americans remain unemployed, underemployed or have just stopped looking for work.  Long-term unemployment remains at record levels."

I couldn't agree more.

***

Americans are the most determined and resilient people in the world.  We love our country and I have no doubt that as a people, we will be stronger for having endured the worst economic times since the Great Depression, but the truth is, we are losing patience.

We are aching for prosperity and stability.  We are yearning for substance and truth.  Does today's economic news offer greater confidence in our government? I would argue, no.

We have a White House Administration and president that are crossing their fingers and holding their breath as they attempt to artificially jump-start this economy.  They are still "throwing darts at a board."  Leaders that continue to be totally shocked and surprised when economic numbers are "better than expected."

These people are in over their heads.

Even today there is news out of Washington DC that legislators are talking of additional stimulus plans, tax increases and deficit spending.  Yesterday, Senate Democrats introduced a bill called, "Paying a Fair Share Act of 2012," which would require those making $1 million or more a year to pay a minimum 30% percent effective tax rate.  A tax bill that is clearly meant to exploit the controversy over Mitt Romney's tax returns.

President Obama supports this bill which has been nicknamed the "Buffett Rule," which highlights what they claim is unfairness in a tax code where a millionaire pays a lower effective tax rate than most middle income Americans.

The President and Democrats refuse to acknowledge that a lower tax rate on capital gains encourages people like Mitt Romney to place their money in investment firms that are actually creating jobs.  Investment firms that are truly stimulating the economy.  If those investment firms lose 15% of their money, will their ability to create jobs be as significant?

Why do the Democrats think they would be better at allocating a millionaire's taxable income than an investment firm?  One only has to look at Social Security and the Postal Service to realize that the government and prosperity don't exactly go hand-in-hand.

***

Patience is thin.  Americans deserve more.  Today's unemployment numbers offer a flicker of hope, but Mr. President, quite frankly we are tired of watching you throw darts at government programs--hoping with your eyes shut and fingers crossed that it will work.

Just like in life, anyone can learn to play darts, but very few actually perfect the skill of the game. And like in life, very few darts ever hit the target.

Mr. President, I think it might be time to step aside and let a professional officially turn this economy around.  Mitt Romney is an individual who has become an expert at successfully turning things around.  He has done it over and over in his career.

This morning, Romney told reporters, "I am running for president because I have the vision and experience to help rebuild the economy and put us on a path toward greater prosperity for all Americans."

Thank heavens Mr. Romney, we are in desperate need of your expertise.

Image Problem? No a Portrayal Problem

Mitt Romney has been dominating the political news and not because of his landslide victory in Florida or the comfortable lead he is experiencing in Nevada before Saturday's caucus.  (Latest polls have Mitt leading with 45% percent of the vote).  But today, Mitt Romney is dominating the headlines because of one portion of a comment that he made yesterday in an interview with CNN.

AP Photo

In the CNN interview, Romney said, "I'm in this race because I care about Americans.  I'm not concerned about the very poor, we have a safety net there.  If it needs repair, I'll fix it."  He went on to say, "I am not concerned about the very rich, they are doing just fine.  I'm concerned about the very heart of the America, the 90-95% of Americans who right now are struggling and I'll continue to take that message across the nation."

The CNN anchor Soledad O'Brien apparently only chose to hear one part of his sentence.  She immediately pounced.

She asked him what he meant that he is not "concerned about the very poor."  Romney immediately shot back and said, "Well you have to finish the sentence Soledad.  I said I'm not concerned about the very poor that have a safety net, but if it has holes in it, I will repair them."

He went on to say, "My campaign is focused on middle income Americans.  My campaign is focused on middle income Americans, retirees living on social security, people who cannot find work, folks who have kids that are getting ready to go to college.  These are the people who've been most badly hurt during the Obama years."

It goes without saying that rivals from all sides have pounced and focused on the one portion of the sentence.  It is now being twisted and contorted to portray a false image of Mitt Romney.

***

This side of politics makes my stomach turn.  Distorting Mitt Romney's statement into an indicator that he truly "doesn't care about the poor" is ridiculous and a stretch to say the least.  Shame on the media for feeding that frenzy.  Also, shame on the Democratic National Committee for releasing a political web ad today using only this small portion of his statement to prejudice their base.  

This kind of frenzy is ridiculous and offensive.  It is a distortion and a major distraction to the real issues that are facing our country. 

It is no wonder why individuals with solid values, stellar leadership and good ideas on how to fix broken systems in our country are fearful of running for office.  It is this kind of garbage that turns people away.

Washington Post Photo

The media loves to run stories about how Mitt Romney has an "image problem."  I think it goes without saying that perhaps the media elite need to realize that the only image problem Mitt is having, is the way the media chooses to portray him.

Mitt Romney is an exemplary person.  His experience is invaluable.  He is a man of good, moral character and our country will be better under his leadership and management.

Time and again, Mitt Romney has rescusitated weakened companies to become profitable.  He has fixed the broken.  He has repaired the damaged.  He has demonstrated that he knows how to make institutions thrive.  As Governor, he used the line-item veto power more than 800 times.  He balanced budgets.  He had a bi-partisan record.  He turned a deficit into a surplus without raising taxes--without borrowing money.

Mitt Romney is a disciplined leader who will lead this country to prosperity.

Our current President has not even come close.

AP Photo

I can't wait to see what Mitt Romney will do for our country.  Four more years of stagnant employment numbers, partisan bickering, a sputtering economy and immoral deficits?  This is not good enough.  America deserves more.  America needs Mitt Romney.

Not Everyone Can Be The Quarterback

In the last ten days, Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich have battled it out for Florida's top prize.  At times, it has been nasty.  According to many, the political ads in Florida have been the most negative on record with over 90% of the political ads carrying a negative tone.

As much as candidates complain about the toxicity of negative ads, the reality is, they work.  They worked for Gingrich in South Carolina with his "Armageddon," and they worked for Romney in Florida, in what Gingrich refers to as, "A carpet bomb" of negative ads.

But last night Romney won the coveted prize in what is undoubtedly a must-win state.  The election outcome was remarkable.  Romney's resounding double-digit win over a surging Gingrich has caught the attention of all scrutinizing analysts.  He won 46% of the vote--an impressive win, to say the least.

AP Photo

In today's revised exit polls, Mitt Romney dominated nearly every age, religious, ideological and ethnic group.

Florida Exit Poll Results: (click for MSNBC's full exit poll results).

• Women : Romney 52-28%
• Latinos : Romney 54-29%
• Moderates: Romney 62%
• 65+: Romney 51-34%
• Evangelicals: Romney 38-37%
• “Somewhat conservative”: Romney 52-32%
• $100K a year+: Romney 52%-30% 
• $200K a year+ (9% of electorate): Romney 60%-23%

The only group where Gingrich did better than Romney was with people who identified themselves as "Very Conservative."  Gingrich won 40% of their vote.

The number one influence for the Florida voter was the candidate who had "the greatest ability to defeat President Obama" in the fall.  Floridians resoundingly believe that Mitt Romney is that candidate.

***

Today many are asking, where does this put Newt Gingrich?

From his speech last night, it is clear that Gingrich isn't going anywhere.  He brazenly insisted that he is staying in the race.  Standing in front of supporters holding signs reading "46 States to Go," Gingrich announced that he will contest every state.  He went even further and boldly predicted that he would win and "will be there in Tampa as the Republican nominee in August."

AP Photo

Yesterday, even before the final Florida ballots were cast in Romney's favor, Gingrich didn't seem phased by a landslide win for Romney.  He told reporters that the campaign was "probably six months" from being over.  "I would say June or July.  Unless Romney drops out earlier."

Wow.  I guess we need to hand it to Gingrich for his self-confidence.  After such a loss, most candidates would be trying to strategize a dignified exit.  But this is Newt Gingrich we are talking about.

***

Today, many have described Gingrich as emboldened and angry.  In no subtle terms, he has basically declared war on a Mitt Romney nomination.  As history has proven, Gingrich does exactly what he says.  He undoubtedly wants to destroy Mitt Romney's chance to lead the Republican party and he seems even more hell-bent on becoming the President of the United States.

My question is, at what cost?

At what point does the "will of the people" overshadow political pursuits?  My fear is Gingrich's desire to become the next President of the United States, will force him to ignore the real motive of this election cycle, which is to replace President Barrack Obama.

I can't help but wonder, has Gingrich truly considered that Americans might not want him to be that replacement?

In his quest to become the nominee, it appears that Gingrich will stop at nothing to portray Romney as a foolish choice.  The problem is that with toxic negative ads, the damage he could do just might really make Romney--the ultimate nominee--too damaged to win over the electorate.

CBS Photo

My hope is that Gingrich will remember that even on a football team, not every player can be the quarterback, however, every player in every position is crucial for the team to win.

So, Mr. Gingrich, in the next few weeks, please realize that as Conservatives, our goal is a Republican win in November.  If you aren't the "quarterback," your contribution and years of experience will still be invaluable in getting America back on the path to prosperity.

Please remember that a real leader knows when to let someone else take the reins.

An Accurate Prediction of Desperation

Last week, when the Florida polls were deadlocked and it appeared that Newt Gingrich's South Carolina surge was going to help him in Florida, he told his supporters to watch for a new desperation from the Romney camp.  He said, "When you get desperate, you say almost anything...and stretch the barrier on almost anything."

Interesting how a political landscape can change in just 10 days.

Gingrich was certainly right about witnessing a new "desperation," however, what he may not want to admit is that the desperation has come from Newt Gingrich himself. 

AP Photo
  

In a Monday interview with Fox News, Gingrich criticized Mitt Romney of being "extraordinarily insensitive to religious freedom in America."  He went on to say that Mitt Romney is no different than President Obama and that like Obama, "Romney is a threat to religious freedom."  (Click to read Fox News Article).

He argued that while Mitt Romney was Governor of Massachusetts, cuts to Medicaid funding for health care services that benefited Jewish and Catholic facilities clearly demonstrate "Mitt's lack of respect for religion in America" and expose a "trend for a secular state assault on people of faith."

An assault on people of faith?  Religious intolerance?  Really? This is a ridiculous claim and is obviously a desperate attempt to inaccurately label an opponent.

Gingrich is talking about Mitt Romney, an individual who has been active in his faith his entire life.  Mitt Romney attends church every Sunday.  He gives millions in charitable donations to his church.  This is also an individual who has constantly had to defend his faith because of fears that Mormons are not mainstream.  I can assure you Mr. Gingrich, Mitt Romney deeply respects religious freedom in America.   

Romney is in no sense of the word, "a threat to religious freedom in this country."  But, I guess as Gingrich has watched a Florida win slip through his fingers, he was right about his prediction, "Desperation does force one to say almost anything...and stretch the barrier on almost anything."

***

Almost all polls indicate a double-digit win today for Mitt Romney.

Florida has been a hard fought battle.  The candidates presented their case and voters listened.  Florida heard Mitt's message for a better, stronger and more prosperous America.  They examined his career and his success with making weak things stronger.  They looked at his familiarity with making failing systems prosperous.  They looked at his expertise in repairing broken structures.  The voters looked at Mitt Romney and realized that his experience is exactly what this country needs.

The voters in Florida saw that Mitt Romney has years of invaluable training.  Training that will grant Mitt Romney the skill set and know-how to get America back on the path to a more prosperous future.  One thing is certain, a Mitt Romney Presidency will not be "on-the-job training" full of guesstimates and finger crossing on what it will take to get Americans back to work.

Mitt Romney is prepared to revive our fragile economy.  He is prepared and ready to demonstrate to President Obama and the American people that Obama's efforts have failed us.

He made the case for why America needs Mitt.  It resonated.  We do.

Time to Exhale?

The latest poll numbers today suggest that Mitt Romney will emerge the victor in tomorrow's Florida primary. The NBC/Marist poll shows Romney leading by 15 points (42%-27%).

A primary win is important in any state, but Florida is critical because the voter base is so diverse and it tends to be a pretty good indicator for the mindset of the broadest group of Americans.  A win tomorrow shows that Romney will have passed a very crucial test.

In just seven days, Mitt Romney emerged from the rubble of a crushing loss in South Carolina.  He refined his message, he sharpened his attacks and he went on the offensive.  His message resonated.

Photo from sunshinestatenews.com

Romney leaves the sunshine state with some much-needed momentum, but it goes without saying that the fight is far from over.

Romney ran a great campaign in Florida.  It was remarkably well-organized and credit to his staff and vast volunteer base for re-energizing the support needed to put Romney ahead of a surging Newt Gingrich.  Many credit Romney's debate performances, his advertisements and his offensive strategy.

Gingrich has complained of being outspent in Florida.  He was outspent, but I don't believe that it why he lost support.  Romney and Pro-Romney PACs spent a total of $16 million compared to Gingrich and Pro-Gingrich PAC's $4 million.  Money is important, but a clear and effective message is what made the difference.  Romney's message, his experience and his electability resonated with voters.

***

The month of February appears to be in Romney's favor.  Only one scheduled Republican debate and primaries in Nevada, Arizona, Michigan will most likely prevent his rivals from having a chance to shine.  But all four candidates have declared a fight to the bitter end. The negative attacks are sure to get even nastier.

This is no time to exhale.

The attacks against Romney have done some damage.  Gingrich has attacked Romney's greatest strength--his long and successful career at Bain Capital.  Furthermore, he tried to portray Romney as a pretentious millionaire whose career experience might not be as noteworthy as the Romney camp has boasted.  Gingrich was heavily criticized for these attacks because they essentially discredit the role of capitalism and free-enterprise, but Gingrich persisted.  His message worked.  Romney's image has been tarnished.

Where does Mitt go from here?  Can he reshape his image?  Will his vision of a more prosperous America resonate?  I believe it will, but he definitely has some work to do.

In the past 30 days, Romney has learned a lot of valuable lessons. His campaign has made convincing adjustments, but it is too early to tell how it will fare in the general election.  It is too early to tell how Romney's message will stack up against a sputtering, but improving economy.  President Obama is a masterful speaker and he has a billion dollar campaign fund to discredit the conservative cause.  A billion dollars to show that Mitt Romney is a heartless business tycoon whose wealth makes him out-of-touch.

AP Photo

Fortunately for Mitt Romney, history shows that Americans generally do not punish candidates for their wealth.  The financial status of Presidents John Kennedy, George Bush and George W. Bush did not hinder their ability to get elected.  But the lesson here is that history also demonstrates that it can--just ask Senator John Kerry.

The trick for any candidate is to have a convincing and believable message.  Americans are hungry for stability and aching for prosperity.  Mitt Romney has a long career of repairing broken systems, improving weakened structures, making fiscally responsible decisions, and most importantly, he has a history of being accountable with other people's money.

Mitt Romney has a history of making weak things stronger.  Obama's history doesn't.  Even a billion dollar campaign machine cannot compete with that.

A Tipping Point?

By all accounts, last night was Mitt Romney's strongest debate.  It is too early to tell if it will be his most influential.  The race in Florida has been in a dead heat all week.  Many have been anxious to see how the rise of Newt Gingrich in South Carolina would play out in Florida.

Reuters Photo

Last night things took a major swing in Romney's favor. Today the Romney camp is celebrating the favorable press coverage and the revelation that he is experiencing a much-needed bump in the polls.

According to a Quinnipiac University poll released today, Romney has opened a nine-point lead over Newt Gingrich--38% to 29%.  This is important because as of yesterday, Romney and Gingrich were in a virtual tie at 36% to 34%.

What was it about the debates this week that made a difference?  Deeper question, was it enough?

***

Powerful Moments From Last Night

From the beginning of the debate, Romney responded strongly to charges made this week by Newt Gingrich that Romney is the most "anti-immigrant candidate."

Romney said,  "That's simply inexcusable. And, actually, Senator Marco Rubio came to my defense and said that ad was inexcusable and inflammatory and inappropriate.  Mr. Speaker, I'm not anti-immigrant. My father was born in Mexico. My wife's father was born in Wales. They came to this country. The idea that I'm anti-immigrant is repulsive.

"Don't use a term like that. You can say we disagree on certain policies, but to say that enforcing the U.S. law to protect our borders, to welcome people here legally, to expand legal immigration, as I have proved, that that's somehow anti anti-immigrant is simply the kind of over-the-top rhetoric that has characterized American politics too long.

"And I'm glad that Marco Rubio called you out on it. I'm glad you withdrew it. I think you should apologize for it, and I think you should recognize that having differences of opinions on issues does not justify labeling people with highly charged epithets."

Huge applause...for Romney.  Gingrich was like a deer in headlights.

He tried to silence the cheering crowd by switching the focus to Romney's belief that illegal immigrants will "self-deport" if employers will no longer hire them.

Gingrich said,  "Tell me what language you would use to describe somebody who thinks that deporting a grandmother or a grandfather from their family?   The idea that you are going to push them out in some form by simply saying they can't go get a job -- I think the grandmother is still going to be here. All I want to do is to allow the grandmother to be here legally with some rights to have residency but not citizenship, so that he or she can finish their life with dignity within the law."

Reuters Photo

This argument by Gingrich has been quite effective and has resonated with a lot of voters.  Romney however, quickly turned the tables on Gingrich with his powerful response.

Romney said,  "You know, our problem is not 11 million grandmothers. Our problem is 11 million people getting jobs that many Americans, legal immigrants, would like to have. It's school kids in schools that districts are having a hard time paying for. It's people getting free health care because we are required under the law to provide that health care.  

"And the real concern is the people who want to come here legally. Let's let legal immigrants come here. Let's stop illegal immigration."

Reuters Photo

From that point on, it was pretty much downhill for Gingrich.  The crowd was cheering for his rival and he could never find his voice again.  Even his best trick of attacking the liberal moderator's question completely backfired and turned out to be a shining moment for Romney when Romney said, "Wouldn't it be nice if people didn't make accusations somewhere else that they weren't willing to defend here?"

Ouch.

The last powerful moment of the night for Romney came during an exchange regarding Newt's involvement with the mortgage giant Freddie Mac.  Romney questioned why Gingrich did not do more to stop the devastation of the housing crisis.  He said that Gingrich's role was that of "Horn Tooter" rather than a "Whistle Blower."

But it was clear that Gingrich was waiting to pounce.

He said,  "The governor has cheerfully attacked me inaccurately and he knows it. The contracts we released from Freddie Mac said I would do no lobbying, none. But this is a more interesting story. We began digging in after Monday night because frankly I'd had about enough of this. We discovered to our shock, Governor Romney owns shares of both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Governor Romney made a million dollars off of selling some of that. Governor Romney owns share -- has an investment in Goldman Sachs, which is today foreclosing on Floridians.

"So maybe Governor Romney in the spirit of openness should tell us how much money he's made off of how many households that have been foreclosed by his investments? And let's be clear about that."

This was an interesting moment, because it appeared that Romney might lose the edge on the issue.  But Romney's quick and thoughtful response was the final blow to his closest rival.

Romney brilliantly responded, "First of all, my investments are not made by me. My investments for the last 10 years have been in a blind trust, managed by a trustee. Secondly, the investments that they've made, we've learned about this as we made our financial disclosure, have been in mutual funds and bonds. I don't own stock in either Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. There are bonds that the investor has held through mutual funds. And Mr. Speaker, I know that sounds like an enormous revelation, but have you checked your own investments? You also have investments through mutual funds that also invest in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

"But what the speaker did, was to work as a spokesman to promote Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. To protect them from those people that wanted to take them down.  

"He got paid $1.6 million to do that. He said his first contract indicated there would be no lobbying. But his second contract didn't have that prescription taken out of it. And so you have to ask yourself why is that? What he was doing was clearly promoting Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, in this case Freddie Mac to the tune of $1.6 million. That is one of the reasons we're in the trouble we're in."

Kaboom!

Gingrich could never recover.  Romney owned it and was able to walk away with the coveted praise for a stellar debate performance.

***

A tipping point?  Maybe.

The most important revelation from this week's debates are two crucial factors which may very well prove to be the tipping point for Romney securing the Republican nomination.

First of all, Romney was able show--for the second time in one week--that Newt Gingrich is beatable in a debate.

Secondly, and perhaps most imperatively, Romney is articulately trying to silence attacks from his critics on his financial success and exemplary career.  Romney said, "I'm proud of the the taxes I pay.  My taxes, plus my charitable contributions, this year, 2011, will be about 40 percent.  So, let's put behind this idea of attacking me because of my investments or my money and let's get Republicans to say, you know what?  What you've accomplished in your life shouldn't be seen as a detriment, it should be seen as an asset to help America."

This was a pivotal moment.  Pivotal because it demonstrates that Romney is not about to be "Swift Boated."  He is not going to sit by and let people attack his greatest strengths--his greatest asset.  He is proudly owning his successes and he is demonstrating to his rivals, the democrats and voters across this country that his long and successful career is exactly what this country needs to guide us out of the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.

AP Photo

Tuesday's Florida Primary will help define a crucial moment in this election.  I believe that Romney's performance last night was the tipping point he needed.

Romney has found his feet. He has found his voice.  He is demonstrating the type of authority and influence that must have been felt all those years in the Board Room at Bain Capital.  He is showing his ability to lead.

It is too early to tell how it will play out, but today's polls show that voters are beginning to like what they see.