In his first public speech since the Presidential election, Republican nominee and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney sought to console and inspire CPAC attendees after his bitter 2012 loss. “Setbacks (in 2012) prepared us for larger victories . . . I utterly reject pessimism,” responded Romney to conservatives understandably feeling uncertain about the GOP’s future electoral prospects.
Using a bit of self-depreciating humor (drawing laughter and applause), Romney noted that as the loser of the previous election he “was probably not in the best position to chart the course for the next one,” but he nonetheless offered advice to Republican candidates going forward.
Romney pleaded with conservatives Friday at the 2013 Conservative Political Action Conference to look to the GOP’s 30 successful state governors for lessons on “winning elections and solving problems,” drawing direct attention to charter-school legislation in Georgia and right-to-work legislation in Michigan.
In what could potentially be interpreted as a jab at CPAC’s organizers, the Governor also insisted that “we’ve got to listen to the governors of purple states too,” specifically naming Virginia’s Bob McDonnell and New Jersey’s Chris Christie, both of whom were controversially not invited to CPAC this year.
With demographic outreach currently a hot topic for Republicans and political commentators, Romney made sure to express pride and gratitude for America’s “immigrant heritage,” telling the story of Sichan Siv, a Cambodian immigrant whose career progressed in just a few decades from fruit picker to the UN ambassador for the United States.
No word on who Romney might prefer to fill his old shoes as the GOP’s presidential nominee in 2016, but during the “path forward” portion of his speech he did ask the audience to “applaud the clear and convincing voice of [his] friend (and former running mate) Paul Ryan.” The audience went wild.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ddj8Fz4u2KI&w=560&h=315]
