Yesterday turned out to be a busy day in Republican presidential primary politics. For Governor Mitt Romney it was probably a day he would like to soon forget. An embarrassing report while he was governor came out, he was heckled at an event in Iowa, and a potentially serious rival announced his plans for the future.
Mitt Romney boasted that he was able to get a stellar rating from the credit rating agency Standard and Poor’s, the same agency that just downgraded the U.S. credit rating from AAA to AA+, when he was governor of Massachusetts. Details emerged yesterday that a big part of his pitch was to highlight tax increases in his state. Not exactly a darling issue among the Tea Party.
At an event at the Iowa State Fair, Romney was asked a question about taxes. He responded by saying, “Corporations are people, my friend. Of course they are.” Laughter can easily be heard amongst the crowd. He stumbled to get back on track and then just changed the subject. The video quickly went viral on websites and the 24-hour cable news networks.
The third bit of news for the Romney camp was a statement from Rick Perry’s spokesman that the Texas governor was indeed throwing his hat in the ring. Perry plans to formally announce his candidacy for president this weekend in South Carolina. No one will mistake Rick Perry for Mitt Romney, but his entry into the race signals that Romney has not been able to capture the imagination of the Republican base. The person who will probably be most affected by Perry will be fellow staunch conservative Michelle Bachmann. Many polls now put Perry in second place behind Romney.
After a long day on the campaign trail, Romney appeared at the FOX News Iowa Debate with his fellow candidates. He was able to hold his own and there appear to be no gaffes, so he will likely maintain his front-runner status in the field.
Ups and downs are common in the long process of winning the nomination. Mitt Romney didn’t have a great day yesterday but there is about five months to go until the first primary ballot is cast. Pundits and political analysts will be watching to see who is the last man – or woman – standing.