Bidding adieu to ol' Willard, Jon speculates:
In the 1950s and 1960s, George Romney made some his greatest contributions as a private citizen, whether it was rescuing the Detroit schools or rewriting the state constitution. Mitt has already proven a success in similar endeavors, most famously when he took over the failing 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. Now that his presidential campaign is over, perhaps he can return to projects of that sort, where his many talents can be best put to use.
The difference, of course--as Jon knows better than I--is that George Romney never cast away his old, moderate persona the way Mitt Romney has. And, much as I'd like to hold out hope for a reversion to Romney Mark I, I fear his bitter, partisan speech at CPAC today--with its talk of America turning into France and a Democratic victory amounting to a "surrender to terror"--is pretty clear evidence that he still thinks he has a future in the national GOP, and that his problem to date is that he has not committed himself fully enough to his evolution as a shrill, divisive, pandering hack.
--Christopher Orr