Those three lost weeks

Ramesh Ponnuru at the Corner finally notices the thing I’ve been astonished and exacerbated about since last week, or rather he picks it up from blogger Ross Douthat: why did the people who now say that they utterly oppose McCain, not come out in support of Romney until AFTER McCain’s victory in then Florida primary, when it may have become too late to stop him? What about the three weeks between New Hampshire and Florida?

Timing Is Everything [Ramesh Ponnuru]
Ross Douthat comments on how the clock is ticking against Romney. If McCain wins the nomination, one reason will be that so many of his most bitter opponents stayed neutral in the race even after it was clear that only Romney could stop him. Three crucial weeks went by after January 8, and it took McCain’s win in Florida—which probably clinched the nomination for him—to get a lot of those critics off the sidelines. They may have done the party a favor, if McCain has a better shot at winning in November than Romney does. Still, given their own premises, their delay is a little mysterious.

Also, let’s remember that the problem is not just people who remained neutral for far too long. The problem is people who endorsed Romney, and then almost immediately abandoned him. I’m speaking of National Review’s own editor, the ineffable Rich Lowry, who has been flirting with McCain and speaking dismissively of Romney ever since the Iowa caucuses.

Posted by Lawrence Auster at February 04, 2008 04:32 PM | Send