The Daily Kos:

The good news for Mitt Romney from Michigan is that he won. The bad news is that even though it costhim and his Super PAC $4.3 million in television and radio advertising, he'll end up splitting the state's delegates with Rick Santorum.

So to kind of answer your question...at 4.3million dollars and 15 delegates, i'd say about $287,000 per delegate. Thats a spendy campaign if you ask me, not to mention he has to keep this up for who knows how long.

rotthemechanics

Thank you!

Would explain why he was begging for $$$ last night - rumor has it the big donors are tapped out!

By the way....the Seamus/Lassie addition was quite funny. I have to admit I hadn't heard that one before.

Had Mitt been forced to spend his own money in Michigan, it would have cost him 4 1/2 days income per delegate.

Feisty---love the Seamus/Lassie ticket.

There is something very wrong with a primary system that allows big bucks to cancel merit, not that any of the Republican candidates in the 2012 campaign rank too high in merit. The SOCUS decision exacerbates the imbalance. Do we really want a 'system' where the winner of the White House occupancy contest has to pony up a sum approaching ONE BILLION DOLLARS? That sort of price tag ensures that the two candidates have been sold and sold again long before either has been seated. This is a worry.

Feisty---love the Seamus/Lassie ticket.

Rot & SF,

Thanks!

It's a Feisty original! ;o)

Ole Willard is going to need a lot of cash in the general.

All that money + all of Santorum's inane/insane comments = a tie. Yeah, that's really something to celebrate Mitt.

Oh if he gets the nomination it's gonna cost him a lot more before November!!!!

Seems like Mittsy is quite adept and spending mass quantities of other people's money without getting much in return...and he thinks he should be trusted to help the economy?

Hmm...wants to start a new war in the Middle East, very experienced at shipping American jobs over-seas, gets caught in a lie almost daily and spends money like a drunken sailor with nothing to show for it. Is Mittsy the new Bush-Lite??

A quote from Santorum: "'We actually won half the congressional districts so we are going to walk out of Michigan with 15 delegates and he's going to walk out of Michigan with 15 delegates'"

Can we get a ruling from a supporter of the GOP's #1 nincompoop, Mitt Romney? Was Michigan a win, loss, or a tie?

Or does it really matter since President Obama is going to win in November, anyway?

So Mitt DIDN'T win! OMG. After spending THAT much more money, in his HOME state, with Santorum sticking his foot in it every night, he just tied. Not good.

Romney has brought in bush's old economic team. Isn't that what we need to carry our country forward?

Norquist in his 12 year old brain thought up the never raise taxes again. He thought it would bring power to the party that preached no tax increases. But like a 12 year old he forgot to figure in the consequences on the people living in that country he so wants to drown in a bathtub (sounds like death to America to me). Yes a very childish plan supported by an equally childish republican party.

Grow up republicans if the rest of us can do without and sacrifice, some of us everything we worked for all our lives, then the rich can at the very least pay the same percentage in taxes as the rest of us do. If the ultra rich have to pay a small percentage temporarily to get the people working again so be it.

Why shouldn't the rich invest in their own country, they are Americans aren't they? Even republicans use to be patriotic before they became the party of the 1% and Grover Norquist.

No winners in Michigan...Just paperwork. Somebody had to be named "The winner" just because a few people voted. Mitt Romney won by 3 points from Santorum. Many people just did not vote, and he thinks that he is the "favorite there" He is in denial of how much people really DISLIKE him.

Michigan cost Mitt Romney A LOT OF MONEY.

Move over...Obama is the real winner...He saved the auto industry from people like him.

If you're running on the "oh, Romney's buying votes again" argument, just what exactly do you suppose Obama plans to do? Spend, then spend some more. Hypocrites.

If I were you, I would be much more than moderately disturbed about Romney vowing to overturn Roe v Wade and he also promised to support the person-hood amendment that makes many forms of contraception illegal along with making a miscarriage a murder investigation.

Is that really moderate?

"oh, Romney's buying votes again" argument

So what do you think he is doing? Winning them by telling people about how he is not worried about the poor, having a "couple of cadillacs", etc.?

If you are not aware, he wanted to bankrupt the auto industry in Michigan...Why don't you guys just give it up and accept that you do not have a decent Republican representative to run around this time.

Until the Republicans get rid of ignorant, stupid and arrogant people from the Tea Party, nothing is going to change. There is more than money here...Proof is that Romney has spent a lot, and it's not helping much.

Norquist in his 12 year old brain thought up the never raise taxes again. He thought it would bring power to the party that preached no tax increases. But like a 12 year old he forgot to figure in the consequences on the people living in that country he so wants to drown in a bathtub (sounds like death to America to me). Yes a very childish plan supported by an equally childish republican party.

I still can't believe that Norquist actually admitted to coming up with his "contract" when he was 12. Even worse, I still can't believe that every Republican signed a 12-year old lobbyist contract.

How anyone can vote for a party that outwardly admits to being owned by a lobbyist... a 12-year old lobbyist... is beyond comprehension. They have literally handed their entire party over to special interest.

But you are right, it's time we put our big-boy pants on and addressed this like adults. Reagan understood the need to raise taxes (11 times), it's time the rest of the GOP grows up.

Romney vowing to overturn Roe v Wade

This is the stupidest argument that the Republicans always love to bring during election time.

The stupidity of all, lies in the fact that it will be almost impossible to overturn that law. The same moronic Republicans that want to "shrink the government"are going to drop that BS if they get elected with the inane argument of "leaving it to the particular states to decide"

Saying that is droping the ball and get out of an empty presidential promise. Nevada will never prohibit abortion. Also, if the dumb supreme court would ever make abortion illegal, that does not mean that it is going to disappear.

Stupid and near sighted "pro-life"people don't understand that by making something "illegal" they just give it on a platter to criminals. Abortions will continue in back alleys, and then it is really going to be gruesome.

Talk about live fetuses, murder, etc. Oh! but they are so concerned about passing a law that reverses Row vs. Wade...Look at the drug problem. Drugs are against the law, and the jails are at full capacity because of our asinine laws...

Get your tax dollars ready to build more jails for thousands of women having an abortion...Stupid country

Although clearly partisan, I do think Fiesty has a valid point- When is a win a win? If Mitt outspent Santorum 6 to 1, wins a "home" state by 3%, and splits the deligates 15-15 is it a win or a tie? It's just like when Mitt declared victory in Arizona then it came out a week later that the Santorum won (yet got zero momentum from winning).

Only thing business-like about the Romneys' is that they do know how to kill an auto manufacturer. SEE AMERICAN MOTORS....LMAO

LMAO... Wow. Whats next the Cleveland Indians tie the Yankees in the world series? Hang your head in shame Mitt. Someone needs magic underpants changed. Yep pooped em.

Now now, remember who we're dealing with.

Mitt has long been known as a flip flopper. The only beliefs he holds dear is involving money. Social issues are really not his concern. The only thing to worry about him is breaking up the country and selling it for profit to the highest bidder, China.

Of course, the dillusion that moral issues are of some importance to him is merely a stage act. His intent is the same as Cheney's. Make profit from his reign. Except Mitt believes his expertise will surpass him. Given the threat of Iran and the unstable invironment we live in, I'm sure Mitt has plans to place his money where it will reap the most reward.

In the mean time, all conservatives will hang on his every word expecting greatness and following along like sheep...

as history repeats itself.

BTW

Mitt still fails to get above 50% of the vote. The anti-Romney vote still holds a higher percentage. The anyone but Romney mantra will follow him throughout his campaign.

One can only surmise this plague of his will hold against the president, should he win the nominee.

lots of interest in how much ronmeny is spending. we know from the last cycle that it takes about $750,000,000 to win. Expectations are that the President is going to spend nearly $1,000,000,000 this cycle.

are you guys worried about the money that will be spent in the general election and the influence it will buy? regardless of the winner?

The next eleven currently stacks up like this.

Romney will take Virginia, Massachusetts, and should take Vermont (assumed to be his - there is no current poll)

Santorum should take Washington, Tennessee, Ohio, and Oklahoma all but Ohio is a double digit lead.

Gingrich will take Georgia

Ron Paul might take Idaho - a straw poll put him first in January, but no other information is available

There is no polling data available for either Alaska or North Dakota, given their history and geography, they should favor either Gingrich or Santorum, but don't count Ron Paul out, he has a way of muscling in on states with caucuses.

Feisty, I usually hate comments where the refute of an argument is "you must paid by ___".

However, I find it hard to believe that you can be the first one to post on every single First Read article. What's even more unbelievable is that you actually post with something relevant to the article (and not just "First!"). Statistically, there is no way someone has time to read the article and make a relevant post as the first comment every single time.

So in that sense, I think it is impossible that you are not, at least, getting an "advanced copy" of the article before it is posted. It doesn't necessarily follow that you are being paid, but it does follow that First Read wants your type of slant to be the first opinion people see as they scroll the comments.

If that's not true, then it follows that you literally have no life other than to sit at your computer and press the refresh button.

Earth to GOP

There is White Knight coming to save you from Mittens-Flip Flop- Romney.

Looks like Flip Flop really didn't win in Michigan a pathetic showing in his supposed home state.

Flip Flop will bring the whole GOP down

a bit more information about the cost of winning. we have seen the calculations above about votes and delegates. if we look at the money spent by obama in 2008 here are what the approximate values are:

obama spent about $750,000,000 to win (buy?) the election

he received not quite 67,000,000 votes -- just over $11 / vote; but as we know this number doesnt really matter, it is the electoral votes that count

he received 365 electoral votes -- just over $2,140,000 / vote

Beyond his almost superhuman ability to flip-flop on issues, holding diametrically opposed views within the span of months, days or even hours, there is a profound sense of disconnectedness about Mitt which voters at all points of the political spectrum find disquieting.

One remembers him, remembering his father marching with Martin Luther King.

...or him casually offering to make a $10,000 dollar bet with an opponent during a GOP debate.

...or most oddly, him rhapsodizing about the trees in his "home state" of Michigan being "the right height"

Sometimes, one almost feels one is listening to either Kang or his sister Kodos explaining to prospective voters...

My fellow Americans. As a young boy, I dreamed of being a baseball; but tonight I say, we must move forward, not backward; upward, not forward; and always twirling, twirling, twirling towards freedom!

from The Simpsons, Tree House of Horrors: Citizen Kang

Do I think Mitt Romney is an alien, or even a bad man?

No.

He might even be a passable president; certainly in Washington nobody demands, expects or provides candor, and there are more than a few other slightly odd personalities on display inside the Belt Way. But this awkwardness, sort of the "Class Nerd Syndrome", feeds other uncertainties and fears voters have about him as a candidate, and is one the prime reasons he probably will not win this November, not unless Obama can be shown to have been Osama bin Laden's secret, gay lover back in college [I think I may have just started a new nutcase rumor].

ShockedandDismayed,

Romney "... spends money like a drunken sailor..." is an insult to us sailors. He spends other people's money like he is a tight-fisted repub. That is he is tight-fisted with his own money but a spendthrift with your money.

LL

To all who harps on how much money is spent in this election, to buy a seat/position, do you allow negative ads to make up your minds for you? Or do you do your own research and pick through the lies and half truths?

Matt, Forget it.... its not worth the trouble.

james-1937467 and DB Akron

I understand that by talking cost, people here opened it up to your Obama bash, but what you posted really isn't the point. Obama never lost Illinois - not even close. Mitt lost his home state. And there's no going back from this. No Going Back. The GOP either need to get a new candidate, or just put their money through a shredder because Mitt isn't going to get the nomination.

...just what exactly do you suppose Obama plans to do? Spend, then spend some more. Hypocrites.

Unfortunately, that is exactly what Republicans did with their last terms in power. Who's the hypocrites now? What do we see any different in the current crop of Republican hopefuls? At the root of every Republican economic plan is the voodoo economic ideal of lowering taxes. The flawed premise is that by lowering taxes you stimulate growth and the increased revenue from new growth makes up for the lowering of taxes. It just ain't so.

George W. Bush presided over the largest tax cuts this country has experienced in a long, long time. Far from stimulating any real growth, in the 6 years that Bush and a Republican Congress ran the country, the economy showed stagnation in real economic growth and a crushing deficit. True, it wasn't helped any by two useless wars, but the war spending doesn't even approach the total spending during that period.

The Republican economic plans have been evaluated:

Now comes a report from the nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget saying his main Republican challengers would do even worse.

Apart from longshot candidate Ron Paul, the major contenders for the Republican nomination score poorly in a carefully researched evaluation of their economic plans. GOP hopefuls Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum are touting policies that would push the debt well beyond current projections, largely because their proposed tax cuts would outweigh spending cuts, the budget watchdog group reports. Under Obama's proposed budget for the fiscal year that starts Oct. 1, the nation's public debt would rise to 80 percent of gross domestic product over the next decade, from about 70 percent today. Gingrich's plan would push that debt load to 114 percent of GDP, Santorum's to 104 percent and Romney's to between 85 percent and 96 percent. Paul's plan would put the debt at 76 percent of GDP.

Now, once again, who are the hypocrites?

"I want it on record that Santorum is a loser" ........ A lose is a lose, A win is a win, that's how it works. No getting around it. The big lose was Ricko's Zoo fans, the Tea Retards.

Sorry, MasterQ! You are very right - and another point - at least drunken sailors have a clue as to what they are spending their money on!!

You may ALL be wrong... hear me out.

Maybe, just maybe, the very BEST a centrist candidate can do or SHOULD do in the Republican primary is 28% or, in other words, BARELY win it.

Because, you see, when it comes to the general election, the other 72% of the right that did not vote for you in the primary will CERTAINLY vote for you in the general election.

And the closer to center you are, the more likely you'll gain Independent and moderate Democrat support... and have the best possible shot at getting elected.

So, using the above as the foundation for the best possible strategy for Romney, he may have actually screwed up when he backed off from NOT supporting the contraceptive bill. Had he stuck to it, he would have still had his steady 28%, but he would seem more committed and would attract centrists.

He screws up every time he flips and every time he pulls back from the moderates... and he seems to know that he just needs "to win by enough".

He's right where he needs to be and hasn't a clue.

A religous break down of this election. Romney, Santorum, Gingrich, Paul and Obama. Off brand of Jesus. Never stops calling Jesus. Embarrasses Jesus. Older than Jesus. May know Jesus or Allah, or both ! ( We haven't seen the faith certificate )!

A great salesman once taught me that when the customer says yes, shut up.

It was Ricky Sanctominium's to lose a week ago. If he had shut up, he probably would have won the popular vote. His rantings about academic snobs, Kennedy's views on church and state and continued anti-women rhetoric squeezed out enough moderates and independents that he lost an opportunity for a psychological victory.

Suppose you could observe that landslide Willard didn't win it as much as Ricky blew it.

I gave my vote to Santorum just for that reason loyaltexan.

Obama/Biden 2012!

....in his home state. And realizing he's been running for six years now.

Hey GOP there is no White Knight coming to save you from Mittens-Flip Flop- Romney.

Looks like Flip Flop really didn't win in Michigan a pathetic showing in his supposed home state.

Flip Flop will bring the whole GOP down LMAO!

As the GOP Clown Show continues

Well, since the Repub Party asked for some 'Political Wonks' to run their campaigns, and ended up with 'Political Wonkas' instead....does this make Boehner the biggest orange, crying Oompah Loompah around? Have the squirrels been overworked trying to get rid of all the 'bad nuts'? And it is obvious that instead of a Chocolate Factory they have been working the Money Factory pretty hard, after all, everything political is made out of money.......as far as they are concerned! And Lord Knows we have been subjected to "Smell-O-Vision" with the debates.....

Our best hope is that haters are so uninspired in November that they stay home on election day.

Mitt Romney: He even makes his DOG throw up.

Hey, B. Honest! Where you been? How have you been? Sending you good thoughts and warm wishes!

Shockedanddisgusted - Your operative word was ordered to buy a toaster

One doesn't marry the likes of Ricky-poo...one enters into an agreement of total servitude.

At least Mrs. Romney seems like a decent person - although I'm sure she's starting to feel like the clown at the end of the parade that scoops up the horses**t...

Well, Mitt's old lady got two Cadillacs out of it. Sleeping with the devil pays off, sometimes.

Many would rather drive an '89 Carolla than to sleep with THAT one!!

Bald

Get off the Ron Paul bashing. Grow up, your comment was totally uncalled for.

Wow ted, a little sensitive are we?

Ron Paul is just there to syphon off Santorum votes as is Newt. Both are consumate political INSIDERS. Mitt is going to need them and he will pay thier price in power and appointments and access to his office should he be elected. That same support of course can also be purchased by Santorum or used at a brokered convention. Let's not get to puffed up about the integrity and honesty of Ron Paul.

No, ted patrick, baldeagle's comments are quite accurate, if somewhat sharply expressed.

Ron Paul has a small, very committed base of support, and faces a widespread opinion amongst the general electorate that he should be committed.

He influence the tone of the debate during the primaries, because the voters he represent are numerous to swing a primary election victory from one of the leading candidates to another. But, he himself, will not win.

Always a bridesmaid, never a bride.

Nope, Mittney won the Demo counties...

If you are wondering about Santorums plea to Democrats to vote for him in the open primary it was negligable. This is more the forte of the right.Mittens pontificated about the dispicable move by Santorum and the new low to which he had stooped . Perhaps he had forgotten the two different times he was interviewed on tape saying that he often voted in the open democratic primaries for the weakest candidate. How dispicable of you Mittens. How much lower can you stoop?

Cassandra - are you sure the Democrats just didn't get out there to screw Romney? Have you read the posts it was a joke - same as mittens voting for the lessor candidate in 1992 - Karma girl!

sam23 - I'm pretty sure they can both go a LOT lower. Most mortals have never gone to the depths these two will go to in order to win the nomination. Pretty sad the GOP has such gophers as candidates!

WHY turn this into something about Isreal?

Thus, I give you the Vatican City EXTREME VERSION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This guy, Msgr. Wannabe Cardinal / President Pope Santorum is truly a WACKOOOOOOO ---NO SEPERATION OF CHURCH AND STATE { No, No, Not the Spanish Inquisition ???? }………………!!!!!

To go after the US POLICY to EDUCATE THE FUTURE GENERATIONS ( college, apprenticeship, trade, etc…..), as the clearly USA world ranking in math @ 28th, reading @ 18 th, and science @ 22^nd out of 41 World Ranked Countries, as ‘snobbery’, clearly shows that Rick wants his electorate as god fearing undereducated dolts that are ALL supposed to put Part A into Part B for minimum wage 40 hr. weeks, in the new Santorum sweat shops !!

Santorum has to be the scariest person to serve in the U.S. Senate since Joe McCarthey !!!!!!

How can ANYONE support this most troubled person, who has spent a life time, worrying about the The thought of Rick Santorum sitting in the White House is about as REPULSIVE as him, his family, his supporters, and his ‘Taliban-like Fundamentalist Crackpot’ followers, all camping out, for four years, in my wife’s vagina!

reproduction system of every woman, or of the female of the Homo sapiens species, in the USA, to be considered sane enough to occupy the Oval Office?

How can one be assured that the narrowly focused dogma of Rick Santorum – the ‘private parts’ of woman in Christian fundamentalist hyper drive destined for government ‘intervention’ – The sexual proclivity of consenting adults – The usurping of the entire educational system of the USA to promote an agenda that is ‘Biblical in origin’, and underwritten with a zeal that is far more dangerous to civil liberty that the absurd ‘Patriot Act’ – How can one be assured that these, and then some, won’t be the sole mission of his perceived occupancy of the White House?

I’d take that baboon Leroy Newton Gingrich before I’d vote for this BAFOON !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You’d have to drag me screaming if this was the only choice!

I think what Rickey really wants is the ‘Spanish Inquisition/ The Sequel’ !

Someone please find me the ‘Flying Circus’……………………………………………

You guys are all nuts. Jews, Moslems, Christians ALL want an inquistion. The 3 biggest poxes on the face of the Earth. GO PAGAN!

You know Cassandra, most people can easily find cases where Islam does this, even some cases of Christians, but the Jews? Don't you realize you put yourself in league with Hitler with this statement?

Spare me Godwin's Law. There are radicals in EVERY religion. And the Hitler connection is tenuous at best. Nice try though....

Didn't pagans throw christians to the lions? Let's protect lions as a threatened species. LOL

Sorry Gustifer,

But with every illegal recount request, Gore made, he lost by bigger numbers. That was verified by the big 4 newspapers in Florida. BTW: historically, the undervote 99 times out of 100 reinforces the original result.

You do realize DB, that couching your comments in negative rhetoric puts you in league with Hitler, Boorman, Heydrich and Goebbels....you so funny! You are not smart enough to be like Mengele....

Ahh the old hanging chad. Fond memories of the media in bed with the right making a joke of what may well have been one of the biggest criminal moves of the century. Snapping pictures of the crosseyed chad inspector and none of them asking where the stamping machine die was for the punchcards and if it had been tested for signs of tampering. The Republicans exclaiming it was only the Gore chads because democrats where to stupid to push the pin down far enough and their concubines in the media ditifully reporting it to America lest they be called liberals.

I voted for Santorum up here in Delta County because I see him as the most INSANE one.

Romney is too much like Obama and Obama too much like Romney.

But, Romney has his own money and isn't captive by the banks. What is holding him captive is his desire to be president. Like anything else that you set too high a priority on, it does things to you. Watch Romney, he is doing things you wouldn't think a Republican would do.

So many of you say Obama is hated by business/banks/wall street, but you all say he is working for them. What is it? Can't be both ways.

We here in Ohio have had of the DeWine and Voinovich types. Give them the seat and watch them turn to Jello in DC. Romney is a good business man turned politician. Turning Politician is the problem.

I sure wish you would hit that spacebar a little oftener

DB,

The rest of us here in Ohio don't think of Mittens as being a "good business man." He just made money off the backs of wroking class folks. That's not good that's just typical repub behavior.

LL

Or learn to hit the space bar at the right time. lol

PS read your comment though and it did make sense.

Arlin, democrats voted big time in the repub primary. I know, i did and know many more who did. Turn out wasn't good. I am wondering what that means in the grneral election when all those dem republican votes convert back to dem. Good luck.

There was a funny FB joke about something similar to that, showing a pic of Putin on a Ritz cracker....Putin on the Ritz!

But Mitt is NOT "Super Duper"!

Puttin' on the Mittz love it!

Actually I am hoping after Nov. we can sing "Poor little kittens have lost with mittens, and they began to cry........"