Mitt Romney has quit the race; in doing so, he changes the entire game. Now the Republicans will begin getting in line behind their presumed presidential nominee, Senator John McCain of Arizona, while the Democrats continue to jockey for delegates. Not that McCain won’t do any jockeying himself, but it looks as if the Republicans will try to get their house in order for the big campaign in the fall, while the Democrats are still deciding who the architect of their house will be.
I’ve heard three reasons given for Romney’s withdrawal. First, there was the delegate count. Even if he won every upcoming primary or caucus, it would not be enough to override McCain’s lead. Second, dropping out now means there will be less energy spent on determining who the Republican candidate will be and more energy spent on railing against the Democratic opposition even before their presidential candidate is chosen. It’s a closing the ranks sort of thing. Finally, Romney is young enough to want to try another run. It would help if he is remembered not as the person who didn’t do well this time around but rather as the person who stepped aside after spending millions of his own dollars.
Given his experience in the business world, I think the truth is Romney knows when to cut his losses. It leaves the really conservative talking heads without a candidate too.
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