As
goes Ohio, so goes the nations. This is the sentence that Mitt Romney should be
repeating over and over until November 6. He should breathe this particular
construction of words both day and night, awake and asleep, in moments of
triumph and defeat, and through mouths of food. He should do this because no
Republican has ever made it to the White House without winning Ohio since
Abraham Lincoln. In order to defeat President Obama, Romney absolutely has to
win in Ohio. And Romney’s chances of winning Ohio depend completely on who he
picks to be his VP.
As
of now, there has been no final decision on who the VP will be. Some say Rubio.
Others say Condi. And others still insist on former candidates like Pawlenty. But
if Romney realizes that has to win Ohio at all costs, his pick should be Ohio Senator
Rob Portman. Portman is a well known politician in Ohio, while being lesser
known around the rest of the country. He stays out of the limelight, but has
been campaigning with Romney for quite a while now. Romney needs a name that
the people of Ohio trust, and a name that the rest of the country can accept.
Portman
could well be the most important person in the 2012 election.
With
the Republican National Convention fast approaching, Romney has a decision to
make. He could pick a Sarah Palin type candidate, one who demands more
attention than himself. He could pick a candidate like Condi to go after
minority votes. He could go for Bachmann to gain Tea Party support. He could
literally pick anyone. But if he were smart, he would pick Portman. Portman
doesn’t necessarily promise Romney a victory Ohio. But any other candidate will
nearly guarantee that Romney will lose the swing state, and thereby lose the
election.
Romney
will undoubtedly pour mountains of money into campaigning in Ohio, but that
still might not be enough. I’m not sure if Romney has realized yet that there
isn’t enough money in the world to buy trust. He will have to barter for it,
and he could sacrifice a lot more than a spot on his ticket to a guy from Ohio.
Just
remember, Mitt. As goes Ohio, so goes your legacy.
