Although Mitt Romney’s double-digit lead in the New Hampshire polls was seemingly untouchable, the other Republican presidential hopefuls hammered away at the front-runner throughout the day.
Newt Gingrich attacked Romney with a full-page advertisement in the New Hampshire Union Leader. “There is only one Republican the Democrats want to be our nominee: Mitt the Massachusetts Liberal,” the ad says. It quotes former Al Gore Campaign Chairman Donna Brazile as saying, “We believe the weakest candidate is…Mitt Romney.”
The ad also quoted former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Sarah Palin as indicating Gingrich is the most electable Republican.
Also this week, Romney’s history with Bain Capital came under fire from a trailer to the film, “King of Bain: When Mitt Romney Came to Town,” sponsored by the pro-Newt Gingrich super PAC, Winning Our Future.
The trailer alleges Romney had a pattern as Bain Capital CEO of “exploiting dozens of American businesses.” The trailer says Mitt Romney led “a group of corporate raiders…more ruthless than Wall Street.”
Gingrich was not the only one on the attack against Romney.
In an op-ed in the National Review Online, Rick Santorum attacked Romney’s Massachusetts health care reform law by pointing out similarities between it and President Barack Obama’s federal health care law.
“Romneycare is the template for Obamacare. President Obama enjoys pointing that out,” Santorum wrote in his op-ed. “The criticisms that conservatives have expressed about Obamacare are applicable to Romneycare.”
Santorum wrote that both laws have individual and employer mandates, include an insurance exchange with taxpayer-funded subsidies and dramatically expand Medicare. He tweeted the link to the op-ed to his supporters Tuesday morning.
Despite the attacks, Romney’s support had not waned in the early counting of the ballots in New Hampshire.
After midnight voting in Dixville Notch and Hart’s Landing, New Hampshire, Romney owned a two-vote lead over Ron Paul. Romney and Jon Huntsman tied with two votes apiece in Dixville Notch. In Hart’s Landing, Romney edged Ron Paul by one. With seven votes of the 19 cast, Romney pulled 36.8 percent of the vote—exactly where his camp wanted him at the end of the day
Gingrich received one vote in both Dixville Notch and Hart’s Landing, and Santorum did not get any votes.
