Rick Santorum is clearly running for president:
When asked a question about the constitutionality of health care reform, Santorum took the opportunity to hit a possible Republican opponent.
"When Mitt Romney gets up and says ‘RomneyCare’ is OK and Constitutional, he's right -- under Massachusetts [law],” Santorum said. “Massachusetts can require you to buy health insurance, auto insurance, to buy whatever they believe is in the best interest for the people to do, and it's bankrupting Massachusetts.”
As it stands, I think Romney is the strongest possible GOP presidential contender. With the exception of Mitch Daniels, he has the strongest record to stand on, as former governor of Massachusetts and namesake of RomneyCare, the state-based health-care reform bill that became the template for the Affordable Care Act. Unfortunately for his presidential ambitions, this also makes him radioactive to much of the Republican base. Every party has its litmus test, and for the upcoming GOP presidential primary, this will almost certainly take the form of a pledge to repeal health-care reform. As the governor responsible for universal health care in one of the union's most liberal states, Romney is completely unable to convincingly oppose the ACA.
Somewhat relatedly, I know Matthew Yglesias is joking when he tweets this, but it actually is pretty striking that since 1972, the GOP hasn't won an election without a Bush on the ticket. It's certainly not a trend -- there aren't enough data points -- but it's enough to make me wonder about the GOP chances for 2012 (well, that, and the fact that Obama is very good at this game).
-- Jamelle Bouie
