Every time his record on healthcare as Governor of Massachusetts comes up, Mitt Romney really keeps having to deal with a bigger anchor. While meeting with governors at the White House, President Obama threw out this hunk of bleeding red meat to Romney's Republican primary opponents:
"I know that many of you have asked for flexibility for your states under this law," Obama said during a speech to a governors meeting at the White House. "In fact, I agree with Mitt Romney, who recently said he's proud of what he accomplished on health care by giving states the power to determine their own health care solutions. He's right."Remember, David Axelrod recently made a similar thrust. Clearly tying Mitt Romney to the individual mandate in the Affordable Care Act is part of the White House and DNC strategy to weaken Romney. My only question about this strategy is that it is predicated on two things: the narrative of Mitt Romney as a flip-flopper and the unpopularity of the individual mandate. While the former is likely going to be a vulnerability for Romney before and after the GOP primary (assuming he wins), the later will be a vulnerability for the President against any Republican other than Romney. Wouldn't President Obama stand a better chance for reelection if his Republican opponent was incapable of delivering a major rhetorical hit on healthcare? Isn't this strategy actually undermining the best out the administration has in terms of taking the individual mandate off the table in the general election?