Romney starts the battle “For a better America” and rephrases Bill Clinton’s famous slogan

Former governor of Massachusetts Mitt Romney announces himself as a nominee of the Republican Party in the 2012 presidential elections and called on his fellow party members to focus on the struggle against the incumbent President Barack Obama.

On Wednesday night it became known that Romney won in the primaries in Connecticut, Delaware, New York, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island, thus strengthening his leadership in the Republican race and becoming practically the only serious candidate for president from the Republican Party.

It should be admitted that it has taken Romney the longest of all presidential candidates since 1976 to secure the Republican nomination. Only the rivalry between Henry Ford and Ronald Reagan lasted till the end of the primaries.

“After 43 primaries and caucuses, many long days and more than a few long nights, I can say with confidence – and gratitude – that you have given me a great honor and solemn responsibility. And, together, we are going to win on November 6,” he told his supporters in Manchester. Namely here, in New Hampshire, where he achieved his first victory at the very beginning of the campaign in January this year, Romney delivered the speech “A Better America Starts Tonight.”

“Hold on a little longer,” the Republican candidate emphasized, “A better America begins tonight. Tonight is the start of a new campaign to unite every American who knows in their heart that we can do better! The past few years have been the best that Barack Obama can do, but it’s not the best America can do! Tonight is the beginning of the end of the disappointments of the Obama years and the start of a new and better chapter that we will write together.”

The Republican voters have started to unite around Romney. According to the survey held by Gallup, 88 percent of Republicans support Romney, whereas Obama is backed by 91 percent of the Democrats. At the same time the poll data prove that Obama has an advantage over Romney: 49 to 42 percent.

Romney did not use the word “conservator” in his speech. But he five times emphasized the importance of “economy” and severely criticized Obama for false promises and weak leadership, which have left many Americans unemployed and hopeless.

The Republican candidate warned his supporters that the president will lead “a campaign of diversions, distractions, and distortions,” and rephrased the famous slogan of Bill Clinton’s campaign in 1992 “It’s the economy, stupid,” into “It’s still about the economy and we’re not stupid.”

The Day asked Ukraine’s ex-ambassador to the US Oleh SHAMSHUR to comment on Romney’s presumable nomination.

“Basically, it is hardly possible that anyone will catch up with Romney. The chances that a so-called open convention will take place and a new candidate appears are close to zero. Apparently, the Republicans will consolidate around Romney.

“However I can say that his chances to beat Obama are insufficient, if the dynamics favorable for the incumbent head of the White House persists till the end of the year.

“Of course, at the same time Romney’s choice of the vice president will be also important. As for me, he is still facing the problem of modernization the conservative-minded part of the Republican Party that treats him with caution. In order to have a chance of victory, apart from winning over the so-called independent voters, he clearly needs a 100-percent support of the traditional electorate, the core of the Republican Party.

“Clearly, Romney will try to play his strongest and most advantageous card, i.e., his experience of a businessman, a successful governor, a person who is really knowledgeable about economic questions. I think he will be pedaling this topic. Another question is to what extent the objective reality of American economy will enable him to do so. According to the publications, the employment is on the rise, and the economic indices look quite good as well.

“In my opinion, the average Americans are rather interested in more pragmatic economic matters, such as employment, the ability to pay off mortgages etc.

“I don’t think that Romney’s harsh stand concerning Russia will help him to beat Obama or not. This stand meets the ideological line of the Republican Party and the views of the most of its electorate. So to win the conservative-minded part of the Republicans is possible, but it is hardly so if we take the elections of the national scale. It is too early to speak of this now not because the external policy from the viewpoint of bilateral relations with Russia will be an important fact. A much more important is the question of Iran and the situation in the Middle East. This is much closer to the worries and interests of Americans compared to the bilateral relations with Russia.”