“It Ain’t Me Babe,” Romney Passes On 2016 January 30, 2015

National Journal:
Everyone’s running until they’re not. That’s the biggest takeaway from Mitt Romney’s announcement to supporters Friday, and it’s the single thing that makes presidential news so difficult to parse this time of year.

— Romney’s announcement today that he would stand aside to let a new GOP leader emerge in 2016 caps a three-week news whirlwind surrounding the 2012 nominee, which included numerous details about donor signups, staff being retained, and local leaders being called — in short, exactly the sort of things one does before running for president. They are exactly the sort of things many of the other presumed candidates are doing right now, too.

— Yet Romney won’t pull the trigger. But he clearly wanted to be in the position of being able to go for his party’s nomination instead of having a lack of preparation, rather than a lack of desire, be what kept him out. And it seems unlikely that Romney will be the only person to go through those motions but still pull back in 2015. As we’ve noted before, the same thing happened with Haley Barbour in 2011.

— As far as what Romney’s exit from the 2016 scene means: It certainly precludes a titanic primary clash of dynastic GOP “establishment” figures with Jeb Bush. But even if that won’t divide their wing of the party, there’s still an issue to consider, which is that the GOP has become more of a blue-collar party in every recent year. There may not be as much space as there once was in Republicans’ traditional power center.

Romney passing on 2016 is a fitting end to a January full of news about him and Bush, which no one would have expected months ago. But he’s unlikely to be the last presidential candidate to take a pass this year.

Reports Say Romney is Ready to Update 2016 Plans January 30, 2015

Politico:

Mitt Romney plans to provide an “update” on his intentions about a third bid for the White House, according to multiple reports Friday morning.
Supporters of the 2012 Republican presidential nominee received an email late Thursday to join a call Friday morning, led by Romney, for “an update,” Bloomberg News reported.
Romney is ready to make a decision on a bid, Bloomberg’s Mark Halperin reported.
“According to people familiar with the thinking of the two-time presidential candidate, Romney has now gathered all the information he needs to reach a conclusion about whether to run a third time,” Halperin reported.
Driving Romney’s decision would be whether he felt the GOP field is strong enough to defeat the Democrats in 2016, according to Bloomberg.
CNN Politics initially tweeted early Friday morning, “Romney to tell supporters Friday his decision about whether he’ll pursue a 2016 presidential campaign, @DanaBashCNN reports.”

Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2015/01/mitt-romney-2016-elections-decision-114756.html#ixzz3QJWBICCa

Romney Warns Kansas Against a 3rd Vote for Obama October 28, 2014

Former GOP Presidential candidate Mitt Romney warned Kansas voters against giving a third vote to President Obama in the 2014 mid-tier elections.
Romney campaigned in Kansas for Republican incumbent Pat Roberts who is an unexpectedly close race with independent candidate Greg Orman.
“A vote for Greg Or,an is a toe for Barack Obama,” Romney told a crowd of about 250 people at the Pinstripes, event center in southern Overland Park,
He continued, ” America, let’s nit make the same mistake three times. Vote for Pat Roberts”.
Romney and Roberts were jones at the event by GOP Kansas Governor Sam Brownback, who is also in a tough re-election battle.
The group was also joined by former Kansas Senator Bob Dole.
Dole told the crowd that Romney ought to run for president agains I. 2016. Most if the crowd cheered loudly when they heard that.
Both Roberts and Brownback sought to cash in on the World Series excitement gripping the Kansas City area.
Brownback was wearing a Royals jersey on the campaign trail and opened each appearance with a shout of “Go Royals!”
Roberts had a Royals baseball cap that appeared to be a couple of sizes too small.
When he put it on at the Overland Park event, he told the crowd, ” Now is not the time to lose faith”.
Later in the day, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal joined the long list of Republicans visiting. Kansas to help the local ticket.
Jindal campaigned with Brownback at a stop at a steel manufacturing plant in Gardner.
Jindal told about 100 people at that stop Brownback’s conservatism should be rewarded with a second term.

Brownback, Romney:s Mistake: Too Much on the Economy June 29, 2013

(AP) – Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback says Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney focused too narrowly on the economy during his campaign last year and would have fared better if he talked about social issues.

Brownback told The Associated Press ahead of a fundraiser Friday in Arkansas that the Republican Party needs to broaden its agenda as it prepares for next year’s midterm elections. He says social issues such as gay marriage and abortion are still important.

Brownback is an outspoken abortion opponent who ran unsuccessfully for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008.

Brownback was in Little Rock to speak at the Arkansas Republican Party’s annual Reagan-Rockefeller fundraising dinner.

Republicans won control of the Arkansas Legislature for the first time since Reconstruction last year and successfully pushed for new abortion restrictions this year.

Campaign Epilogue: Missouri’s Electoral College Members to Meet Today December 17, 2012

(AP) — The drama is long over, but Missouri’s official vote for president is ready to be cast.

Ten people chosen by their fellow Republicans are gathering Monday at the Missouri Capitol to cast the state’s Electoral College vote for president.

Because Republican Mitt Romney won the state’s popular vote, the electoral voters are expected to follow suit. But there is nothing legally preventing them from voting for Democratic President Barack Obama.

Though Obama won re-election, Romney carried nearly 54 percent of Missouri’s vote in the Nov. 6 election.

Missouri’s 10 Electoral College voters include one person from each of the state’s eight congressional districts and two people chosen at large.