With a simple tweet by @MittRomney that read, "I am announcing my Exploratory Committee for President of the United States. Join us at http://www.mittromney.com #Mitt2012," former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney all but formally jumped into the 2012 GOP presidential contest.
His nondescript announcment and video, which can be seen on his website, befit a candidate who is seeking to model his 2012 campaign like JetBlue instead of more bureaucratic and less flexible operation.
Here are 5 observations of Romney's rollout:
1) In annoucning his candidacy on the eve of RomneyCare's anniversay, Romney is indicating that he is willing to take on his greatest liability head on. As Bobby Kennedy once said, Romney is hanging a lantern on his problem.
2) In making the announcement on the day when his rival Tim Pawlenty was getting momentum and plaudits for hiring Nick Ayers as his campaign manager, Romney big-footed Pawlenty's big announcement with his, and it shows that his team of advisers are not afraid to be combative in real time in a news cycle that is more fragmented and rapid than in any election cycle before.
3) Romney seems to be taking the "Bob's for Jobs" playbook that then-Virginia gubernatorial candidate Bob McDonnell used to successfully win his election in 2009. Romney took Obama to task for not understanding how the private sector works and highlighted his private sector and managerial experience. About Obama, Romney said, "[Obama] and virtually all the people around him have never worked in the real economy. They just don’t know how jobs are created in the private sector." Romney's best argument going forward will be that he has the best managerial experience to work with the private sector to create more jobs for Americans.
4) Both Romney's video and announcement were in direct contrast to Pawlenty's rollout. Pawlenty advertised his Facebook announcement earlier on the day he announced and his video had the feel of a movie trailer.
5) New Hampshire and Nevada: Romney's video was filmed in New Hampshire, and he talked about his trip to Nevada and the foreclosure crisis that has ravaged that state - those are the two states that give Romney the best chance of building momentum.
