Is Romney Owning Up to Romneycare?

I was on Tamron Hall's show this afternoon, and the subject was Romney moving to the center, which is interesting, because in my reading, only NBC (and MSNBC, of all people!) seems to have noticed this. It's centered around the speech he gave yesterday down in Miami in front of students, where, naturally enough, he decided not to try to sound like Atilla the Hun. He spoke somewhat moderately, for him, on immigration, gay relationships, and other stuff.

Most interestingly, he fessed up to the health-care bill he passed:

"Now and then the president says I’m the grandfather of Obamacare. I don’t think he meant that as a compliment, but I’ll take it."

Actually, Obama does indeed mean that as a compliment, doesn't he? Albeit it a backhanded one. Anyhoo.

This might just be one speech before a bunch of students. But if it's more than that, if it lasts longer than that one day, it's kind of interesting and the first non-stupid thing he's done in a while. A candidate is supposed to start moving to the center shortly after having secured the the nomination, not on September 19.

But be that as it may, it's better than the alternative. He's undoubtedly doing this not only because he was speaking to Latino students but because polls must be showing damage from the 47 percent remark. And now all these Senate candidates are sneaking away from him. And even Charles Krauthammer took a friendly whack at him.

The question now is whether, at this late juncture, the right wing will give him room to make these moves. It's also worth noting that today, Chris Chocola of the right-wing Club for Growth told reporters that Romney was a "mixed bag." Is Chocola throwing him to the dogs? If Romney spends the next six weeks trying to sound moderate, are Chocola and his sort really going to sit still for that?

I can't imagine that they will. They still don't trust him. But it depends on where they are mentally and emotionally. Are they just starting to walk themselves through the mental process of accepting that Obama is going to win? Or are they more terrified that four more years will mean the end of America?

Romney needs it to be the latter, so they'll let him do what he thinks he needs to do to win, but something tells me it may be the fomer--especially after the new Fox poll (Fox!) showing Obama up seven in Ohio, seven in Virginia, and five in Florida. They may just be thinking, "Let's at least hold the damn House and work as hard as we can on the Senate."