Mitt Romney said it best. “We didn’t win by a lot. But we won by enough, and that’s all that counts.” The truth is the former Massachusetts governor had to win, no matter what the margins, in last week’s Michigan and Arizona primaries and do well enough to maintain his front runner status in this week’s Super Tuesday contests throughout the South. Conservatives appear to have held their noses and allowed the moderate Romney to beat back a serious challenge by Rick Santorum, the clear favorite of GOP activists. With a razor thin win in Ohio, a pivotal general election state, and decisive wins in seven out of the 11 other contests, the nomination should be Romney’s within the next few months. Santorum and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, who only won his home state of Georgia, are looking for any sign in the tealeaves as an excuse to continue in this race. No matter how you parse the Super Tuesday results, party elders have to ask Santorum and Gingrich— what’s the point?
An invigorated fight for the Republican presidential nomination has been good for the party. It has honed Romney by putting his vulnerabilities out for public discourse before he has to face President Barack Obama and giving him the opportunity to prepare for the Democratic Party attack machine. But if Romney has to continue much longer to dodge the slings and arrows of his nomination challengers, he may be too weak to be a serious threat to Obama’s re-election.
The Republican Party faithful despise the incumbent president so much that they are likely to be satisfied with anyone as an alternative. However, continued gaffes and missteps by Romney and continued strategic and effective body blows to his conservative credibility may prove disastrous.
The televised debates seem to have helped Romney neutralize his opponents but it may take a few more losses for Santorum and Gingrich to finally get out. Moving forward, Romney must stay on message and tighten his campaign operations if he is going to seal the deal with his party and have the luxury of focusing on Obama.
Daydream Believer
A New York Times editorial recently stated that during the recent Grammy Awards telecast someone tweeted, “Who is Paul McCartney?” Interestingly enough there were more than a few replies “I have no idea.”
The news of the recent death of Davy Jones may be greeted with an equal amount of blank stares. But, hey, hey, he was a Monkee!
The passing of the Monkees’ lead singer at age 66 was sad, and a painful reminder to an entire generation that none of us are getting any younger.
Even though we knew the Monkees weren’t even a real rock band— at least not when they became television stars and teenage heart throbs— we loved them.
Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith, Peter Tork and of course, Davy Jones were the precursors to our modern day boy bands. They were put together to capitalize on the American obsession with the British Beatles. How big were they? Well, from 1966 to 1968, the years that the Monkees television program aired, the group’s albums constantly outsold not only the Beatles but every other band and played to record breaking crowds around the world.
Sad to say, like most rock banks, the Monkees didn't last. The show ran three seasons and the group slowly drifted from our memories. But not Davy Jones. His guest appearances on television were always a big deal and he performed to adoring fans until his death. In fact, according to news reports he was booked to perform Monkees songs for the next several years. No, he wasn't Jimi Hendrix or Jim Morrison, whose stars still shine brightly years after their too-young deaths. Nor was he Paul McCartney or Mick Jagger, still famous and rocking, into their late 60s. But for many, Jones’ liltingly sweet voice was remarkable and recognizable. Maybe, just maybe, a new generation of fans will come to know and appreciate Davy Jones and the Monkees.