Mitt for Veep?

Serious rumors are swirling about the McCain Veepstakes. The GOP number two slot is a little more important than usual, since the frontman is 73 (and will be 77 in 2012 let us not forget). And if McCain loses, the vice presidential candidate will have name recognition and an edge on the nomination next time around.

The Bushies are talking up Mitt Romney.

According to two separate reports, Romney is being talked up as a running mate by members of the Bush inner circle. But McCain and his closest advisers have little regard for their former rival thanks to the bitter, year-long race waged between the two Republicans.

Romney says, however, that he thinks the wounds have healed.

"There are really no hard feelings, I don't think, on either side of this," he said in the interview. "There were no pacts and so forth that make people feel like that we will never come together. Instead these campaigns are all coming together. We are supporting our nominee enthusiastically, aggressively."

Of course Mitt Romney would accept, but my first and second gut reactions are bleah and, not good.

Romney is so popular with the base of the party that with a telegenic presence, a great resume and all the resources money could buy he went absolutely nowhere. So why does he get the top ticket? To heal the party? The Bush wing should quit their meddling, so that John McCain might have a chance of winning despite their help.

Mitt Romney did manage to gather the support of some of the conservative establishment. Hugh Hewitt, National Review, some of the bigger columnists etc. But the base of the party, evangelical and otherwise, said no to Romney again and again and again.

And now with a Romney/McCain ticket we would have a maverick and a former liberal Republican.

Immigration: McCain is against the base, and Romney was very spotty up until recently.

Abortion: Romney was pro-abort and McCain is pro-life. Romney claims to have switched, but in this case, Romney on the ticket actually dilutes McCain's conservative message.

Taxes: McCain was against the Bush tax cuts and Romney is iffy. Not horrible, but not great either.

The war: Both strong on defense and fighting terrorism.

So the conclusion is that with McCain/Romney, you had better hope that the Evangelical vote will think only about the war/security issues, and not about anything else. Romney's not a horrible choice, he does unite a couple wings of the party and might further cement establishment support, but there would still remain, I fear, a disconnect with the base, and if that remains until November, Romney and McCain can heal all they want and it won't matter.