George Will on Mitt Romney, 2011:
Who expects difficult reforms from Romney, whose twists on ethanol make a policy pretzel?
A straddle is not a political philosophy; it is what you do when you do not have one.
[. . .]
Romney, supposedly the Republican most electable next November, is a recidivist reviser of his principles who is not only becoming less electable; he might damage GOP chances of capturing the Senate. Republican successes down the ticket will depend on the energies of the Tea Party and other conservatives, who will be deflated by a nominee whose blurry profile in caution communicates only calculated trimming.
George Will on Mitt Romney, 2007:
The axiom is as old as human striving: The perfect is the enemy of the good. In politics this means that insisting on perfection in a candidate interferes with selecting a satisfactory one.
[. . .]
Romney, however, is criticized by many conservatives for what they consider multiple conversions of convenience — on abortion, stem cell research, gay rights, gun control. But if Romney is now locked into positions that these conservatives like, why do they care so much about whether political calculation or moral epiphany moved him there?
Via The National Review's Ramesh Ponnuru, who notes there could be many reasons for Will's flip-flop on Romney's flip-flops, and "it would be interesting to know what it was." I'd like to hear that one, too. I've changed my mind on some things over the years, with the could-be (if I let it ) embarrassing result of having contradictory views in print under my byline. But it shouldn't be a big deal. Sometimes you change your mind because the facts or circumstances change. Sometimes your thinking evolves. And sometimes you realize you were just plain wrong.
My own hunch here is that it's the tea party effect. That group, I've noticed, has inspired a move to the right by many formerly more moderate politicians (Richard Lugar comes to mind, for one). I don't think columnists are immune to the effect. It's possible to have been for Romney the last time, against him this, because the fields are different, the opposition is different, the times are different.
The GOP was in a "pick the moderate with the best chance of winning" mood four years ago. This time around, the attitude is much closer to, "Progressives are so discredited, we can stick with our most conservative candidate." That's why the Republican primary is boiling down to the Romney vote and the "conservative alternative to Romney" vote. I wouldn't say Will seems to have come down on the conservative side of that divide (can't imagine him cozying up to Perry or Caine), but he is joining in the kic-a-moderate-when-he's down gang.
