Mitt Romney election bid met with disdain

Mitt Romney’s declaration that he is considering a third shot at the White House after being a two-time Republican presidential loser was widely greeted with disdain at a national gathering of Republican activists.

Romney, the Republican US presidential nominee in 2012, told a meeting of donors in New York last week that he is considering another White House run in 2016. Romney lost to incumbent Democratic president Barack Obama in 2012, and lost the Republican presidential nominating race in 2008 to Senator John McCain.

If Romney, a former Massachusetts governor, does enter the 2016 presidential race, opposition to a possible third White House attempt is already widespread and deeply felt, according to interviews with a gathering of grassroots Republican party members where Romney was scheduled to speak late last night.

At the Republican National Committee winter meeting in San Diego, many of the roughly 300 activists in attendance said Romney had his chance. A third bid would also buck historical trends. Only one presidential candidate, Richard Nixon, lost a presidential race, as he did in 1960 to John F Kennedy, to go on to win the White House in a later race. Nixon won the 1968 presidential election.

“Mitt Romney. He didn’t run his campaign right against Obama. He flubbed it. Another Romney candidacy would be a complete disaster, and I don’t think he’ll even get there,” said Bill Eastland, a Republican party member from Texas.

Should he choose to run in 2016, Romney will still be a formidable candidate, having maintained a network of wealthy donors and having learned lessons from two national presidential campaigns.

Moreover, Republican party activists, generally conservative, have not been the sole determining factor in recent Republican nominating fights, where moderates and independents have a big say.

One Republican strategist, who is hedging bets against candidates this early in the race and so wanted to speak on the condition of anonymity, said: “We hear he is getting his old team back. We are all really concerned because his old team didn’t do such a great job last time. Everyone I talk to says he had his chance, and his chance has gone. They are desperate for someone new. And what would he do different this time?”

Vocal Romney supporters were scarce, but some members at least welcomed a healthy contest.

Glenn McCall, a Republican party member from South Carolina, said he looked forward to another Romney candidacy, because it would bring competition to the whole field.

“He definitely has the experience, and the infrastructure, and that is what it takes.”