Governor Mitt Romney departs today for California where he is expected to be elected the chair of the Republican Governors Association, whose raison d'être is, as you might expect, to elect Republican Governors. As chair, Romney will have to guide the RGA through an election cycle where Republicans are playing more defense than offense. Of the 36 Governorships up for grabs, 22 of them are currently held by Republicans, and some of them, like New York, Maryland and of course Massachusetts, in hostile territory. Not only that, but the five least popular governors, according to Survey USA are Republicans -- Bob Taft of Ohio bottoms out the list with a mere 19% approval rating. Romney and the RGA will have their jobs cut out for them, and there's a serious chance that Mitt may end up reliving his failure in 2004 to elect a single candidate. Wouldn't that be a shame for his Presidental prospects?
On the other hand, Globe columnist Scot Lehigh details the local pitfalls that may await our Governor should he spend too much time attending to RGA matters:
Romney enjoys little by way of genuine good will on Beacon Hill, so even if he isn't on the ballot here next year, Democrats may take a certain pleasure in portraying him as an absentee governor. Nor are they the only ones with a motive for mischief. Last year the governor delighted in rolling rhetorical barrels at US Senator John Kerry during his presidential campaign. Kerry's allies haven't forgotten, and with the senator himself hoping to run again in 2008, his camp may well see turnabout as fair play.Not to worry, though, because the Romney camp assures us that we're their highest priority. From the Globe:
Romney spokeswoman Julie Teer said in an e-mail that the governor is honored to take over the RGA, but that "Governor Romney's first focus will always be his job as governor and the people of Massachusetts."Romney's first focus his job as governor? Starting when, exactly?
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