GOP Neanderthals Scramble for Way to Block Romney

I'm not a fan of Mitt Romney for many reasons, not the least of which is his flip-flopping on issues, including LGBT rights, is enough to give one whiplash. Plus, he has shamelessly pandered to some of the nastiest elements of the Christianist/Tea Party base of today's foul Republican Party. Yet, to many he seems to be the most electable of the mediocre field of candidates fighting to be the GOP presidential nominee. Now, with Romney's better than expected win in New Hampshire, some of the knuckle dragging Kool-Aid drinkers of the GOP base are hysterical that Romney will get the nomination and then fail to back their Christianist version of Sharia law. The Washington Post looks at the scramble by the ultra-far right fear/hate mongering elements of the GOP (which the Post too politely calls "conservatives") to devise a strategy to derail Romney. Here are some highlights:

A near-panic has taken hold among some core conservative activists, who are now scrambling to devise a strategy to deny Mitt Romney the Republican presidential nomination.

Many of these activists see South Carolina’s primary on Jan. 21 as their last best hope of stopping Romney by consolidating in a united front against him. But many acknowledge that they have yet to figure out which of the remaining conservative rivals to rally behind and which should get out.

The tension is exacerbated by the deep divisions between two key GOP wings: tea party groups yearning for a pure small-government conservative, and evangelical Christians who want a loyal social conservative.

In one sign of their desperation, some activists are holding out for what they acknowledge is a spectacular long shot: a late-entering savior who could still qualify for enough state ballots and win enough delegates to force a brokered GOP convention this summer.

The Romney conundrum will be on the agenda Friday when about 150 evangelical leaders huddle at a Texas ranch to debate their next move. Likewise, the subject of consolidating conservative opposition to the former Massachusetts governor is expected to be a major point of discussion among about 500 attendees at a tea party convention set for this weekend in Myrtle Beach, S.C., where the list of speakers includes two Romney rivals seeking the conservative mantle, Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum.

One participant in Friday’s evangelical meeting, the Rev. Jim Garlow — pastor of a San Diego megachurch and a leading champion of California’s anti-gay-marriage initiative — said Romney is “untrustworthy” and not “ visceral on the issues that are cardinal to me.”

The fretting from conservatives reflects a persistent question about Romney’s candidacy: whether a wealthy private-equity executive with a history of centrist views in a liberal state can gain the trust of the most energized and active elements of the GOP’s conservative base.

Romney campaign aides and supporters concede that the candidate has not yet made the sale, but they say he will win over conservative voters. They point to the support of a tea party favorite, South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (R), who is campaigning nationally for Romney.

[N]ational and South Carolina-based activists said Romney has a difficult task in unifying the party base. Many social conservative leaders are still seething over the party’s experience in 2008, when evangelical Mike Huckabee won the Iowa caucuses but the base didn’t unite, and John McCain locked up the nomination early. “We made a terrible mistake in 2008,” said Richard Land, president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission.

Among the candidates who remain, Romney’s critics can’t agree on who should get the nod. Gingrich backers are pushing for Santorum and Perry to drop out, while Santorum supporters see an obvious solution if Gingrich and Perry clear the way.

With luck, the bloodbath within the GOP will continue and the far right elements will lose the battle. The sooner they are permanently driven from the political realm, the better it will be for America as a nation. Hate, division, the embrace of ignorance and religious extremism will not make America competitive in the world of the 21st century.