Mitt Romney Conference Call
Romney via The Campaign Spot on National Review Online -- money quote:
Reagan was the Washington outsider with a message of positive change. We picked the insider, the more moderate, the more established. We lost, and the cost of that was Jimmy Carter… I don’t want to say I’m Ronald Reagan. I’m not, there’s only one. And I respect Jerry Ford. But in some respects, there are some similarities.As Hugh Hewitt notes, this is "interesting on many levels." If you listened to the Santorum interview with Laura Ingraham and read Romney in this conference call, he is pumped, and going to fight to the end. That is good for our country, conservatives and the GOP. UPDATE: Ed Morrissey's take on the conference call:
Anaysis: Romney handled himself well in this briefing. When Philip Klein noted the contradiction on Medicare Part D, Romney didn't try evading it or spinning it. He said that he apparently was incorrect, that he would have voted with McCain on Part D, and that he would ensure that it didn't happen again. That alone was pretty refreshing. Romney sounded upbeat but realistic. He understands that he has an uphill battle on Tuesday thanks to the Florida loss, but doesn't think the sky has fallen. He has made a careful use of his organizational and funding strength to try to aim surgically at getting the most of both on February 5th and the contests beyond. I'd call the tone guardedly optimistic, but he sounded ready to fight for this nomination.UPDATE I: Byran at Hot Air comments as well and notes (as does Dan Riehl) that Romney has cornered the market with an excellent Illegal Immigration expert. Dan Riehl also wants in on the consultant action!