Romney Campaign Press Release - Huckabee Campaign: Reagan Coalition Is "Gone"

Campaign Chairman Says Reagan Legacy "Doesn't Mean A Whole Lot"

"All along, Mitt Romney has wisely run as the only candidate who represents all three legs of the 'three legged stool' that is the Republican coalition. For those of us who believe it is imperative to preserve the Reagan coalition, Rollins' pronouncement is almost an argument to vote for Mitt Romney." – Townhall's Matt Lewis (Matt Lewis, "Rollins: Reagan Coalition Is Done," Townhall, http://www.townhall.com/, Posted 12/29/07)

Gov. Huckabee's Campaign Chairman Declared The Reagan Coalition Dead:

Gov. Huckabee's Campaign Chair Ed Rollins: The Reagan Coalition Of Social, Fiscal, And Defense Conservatives "Doesn't Mean A Whole Lot To People Anymore." Huckabee Campaign Chairman Ed Rollins: "The breakup of what was the Reagan coalition - social conservatives, defense conservatives, anti-tax conservatives - it doesn't mean a whole lot to people anymore." (David Kirkpatrick, "Shake, Rattle And Roil The Grand Ol' Coalition," The New York Times, 12/30/07)

Rollins On The Reagan Coalition: "It's Gone." "[Huckabee's] success is setting off a debate in his party over whether his success marks the fading of the old Reaganite conservative coalition - social conservatives, anti-tax activists and advocates of a muscular defense - or, rather, offers a chance for its rejuvenation. 'It's gone,' said Ed Rollins, who once worked as President Reagan's political director and recently became Mr. Huckabee's national campaign chairman." (David Kirkpatrick, "Shake, Rattle And Roil The Grand Ol' Coalition," The New York Times, 12/30/07)

Rollins: Some Parts Of Reagan Coalition May "Go By The Wayside." "'It is a time for a whole new coalition - that is the key,' he said, adding that some part of the original triad might 'go by the wayside.'" (David Kirkpatrick, "Shake, Rattle And Roil The Grand Ol' Coalition," The New York Times, 12/30/07)

Gov. Romney Aims To Keep The Reagan Coalition United:

Townhall's Matt Lewis: "Rollins' Pronouncement Is Almost An Argument To Vote For Mitt Romney." "All along, Mitt Romney has wisely run as the only candidate who represents all three legs of the 'three legged stool' that is the Republican coalition. For those of us who believe it is imperative to preserve the Reagan coalition, Rollins' pronouncement is almost an argument to vote for Mitt Romney." (Matt Lewis, "Rollins: Reagan Coalition Is Done," Townhall, http://www.townhall.com/, Posted 12/29/07)

National Review: "Romney Is A Full-Spectrum Conservative." "Our guiding principle has always been to select the most conservative viable candidate. In our judgment, that candidate is Mitt Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts. Unlike some other candidates in the race, Romney is a full-spectrum conservative: a supporter of free-market economics and limited government, moral causes such as the right to life and the preservation of marriage, and a foreign policy based on the national interest." (Editorial, "Romney For President," National Review, 12/11/07)

Gov. Mitt Romney: We Need To Unite "Social Conservatives, Economic Conservatives And Defense Conservatives." GOV. ROMNEY: "I believe that to win the White House that our candidate has to be somebody who can represent and speak for all three legs of the conservative stool or conservative coalition that Ronald Reagan put together – social conservatives, economic conservatives and defense conservatives." (Gov. Mitt Romney, Press Availability, Grand Rapids, MI, 10/13/07)

Gov. Huckabee Alienates Fiscal And Foreign Policy Conservatives:

National Review: Gov. Huckabee Would Pull Apart The Conservative Coalition By Alienating Economic And Foreign Policy Conservatives. "Uniting the conservative coalition is not enough to win a presidential election, but it is a prerequisite for building on that coalition. Rudolph Giuliani did extraordinary work as mayor of New York and was inspirational on 9/11. But he and Mike Huckabee would pull apart the coalition from opposite ends: Giuliani alienating the social conservatives, and Huckabee the economic (and foreign-policy) conservatives. A Republican party that abandoned either limited government or moral standards would be much diminished in the service it could give the country." (Editorial, "Romney For President," National Review, 12/11/07)

Club For Growth's Pat Toomey: Gov. Huckabee Is "A Big-Government Liberal." "In order to earn back the public's trust on economic issues, not to mention offer a compelling contrast with a Hillary Clinton-led Democratic ticket, Republicans must present a consistent message. A big-government liberal like Mike Huckabee, who takes pleasure in attacking the Republican party as the 'party of Wall Street,' will only reinforce the image of Republicans as 'the big spenders that they used to oppose.' A Huckabee nomination, even as vice president, will make it impossible for the Republican party to reclaim its brand of fiscal conservatism and limited government, without which it cannot be a majority party again." (Pat Toomey, "Dump The Huck," National Review, 10/26/07)

Columnist Robert Novak: Gov. Huckabee "Is A High-Tax, Protectionist Advocate Of Big Government." "Huckabee is campaigning as a conservative, but serious Republicans know that he is a high-tax, protectionist advocate of big government and a strong hand in the Oval Office directing the lives of Americans." (Robert Novak, "The False Conservative," The Washington Post, 11/26/07)

CNBC's Larry Kudlow: Gov. Huckabee Naive "On Dealing In International Affairs With Iran And Others." CNBC's LARRY KUDLOW: " Condi Rice came out of the State Department ... and attacked him because of his naivete on dealing in international affairs with Iran and others. He doesn't seem to understand power politics, and that we are in a jihadist global war." (Hugh Hewitt Radio show, www.youtube.com/watch?v=mvfhmE6PKxI, 12/21/07)

Columnist Charles Krauthammer Said Gov. Huckabee's "Naive And Unconvincing" Views On Foreign Policy Are Disqualifications To Be President. "Huckabee is funny, well spoken and gave a preacher's stemwinder that wowed the religious right gathering in Washington last Saturday. But whatever foreign policy he has is naive and unconvincing. In wartime, that is a disqualification for commander in chief." (Charles Krauthammer, Op-Ed, "A Fine Field Of 4 1/2," The Washington Post, 10/26/07)