Des Moines Register Endorses Romney

The Des Moines Register, Iowa's largest newspaper, tonight gave its endorsement for the GOP presidential nomination to Mitt Romney, calling him "the most qualified Republican candidate competing in the Iowa caucuses."

The newspaper rejected Newt Gingrich as "an undisciplined partisan who would alienate, not unite, if he reverts to mean-spirited attacks on display as House speaker." Of Ron Paul, who has been near the top of most Iowa polls with Gingrich and Romney, the endorsement said his "libertarian ideology would lead to economic chaos and isolationism, neither of which this nation can afford."

Posted on the Register's website tonight and set for the newspaper's Sunday print editions, the endorsement is likely to find little favor among Iowa's social conservatives. The endorsement indicated the newspaper's editorial board is backing Romney for the same reason many in the GOP here are rejecting him: He's a moderate.

"While other candidates have pandered to extremes with attacks on the courts and sermons on Christian values, Romney has pointedly refrained from reckless rhetoric and moralizing," the endorsement said. "He may be accused of being too cautious, but choosing words carefully is a skill essential for anyone who could be sitting in the White House and reacting to world events.

Romney has been trailing Gingrich in most Iowa polls, though a Rasmussen poll released earlier this week showed Romney ahead of the former U.S. Speaker by three points, 23 percent to 20 percent, with Paul placing third, at 18 percent.  

The state's largest-circulation newpaper has a mixed record when it comes to endorsing the people's choice in winners of the Iowa caucus, and it did not endorse Romney when he ran in 2008. The paper went for John McCain, who lost in Iowa to Mike Huckabee.

This time, though, the paper said: 

"We did not endorse him then, but this is a different field, and he has matured as a candidate. Rebuilding the economy is the nation’s top priority, and Romney makes the best case among the Republicans that he could do that...

"This ability to see the merits of tough issues from something other than a knee-jerk, ideological perspective suggests that Mitt Romney would be willing to bridge the political divide in Washington. Americans are desperate for the Republicans and Democrats to work together. His record of ignoring partisan labels to pass important legislation when he was governor of Massachusetts suggests he is capable to making that happen."

Steffen Schmidt, Iowa State University political science professor, said newspaper endorsements don't often mean much.

"That’s especially true when a newspaper is seen as liberal (the Register) and is endorsing a Republican candidate," Schmidt said in an email before the endorsement. "It can be the kiss of death or it can just be irrelevant. It’s actually not much different from celebrity endorsements, which are also not usually effective. Voters in Iowa and the U.S. have a nasty habit of making up their own minds on who to support!"

Past Register Endorsements

The Register began endorsing candidates during the 1988 election. Here's a look at the paper's endorsement record:

2008: In 2008, the Des Moines Register endorsed Hillary Clinton as the Democratic caucus candidate and John McCain as the Republican caucus candidate.

Clinton lost the caucus to Barack Obama, while McCain lost to Mike Huckabee.

2004: During the 2004 election, the Register endorsed John Edwards for the Democratic caucus. Edwards lost to eventual nominee John Kerry by a mere 6 percent of the vote. President George W. Bush ran unopposed for the Republican nomination.

2000: In 2000, the Register endorsed Bill Bradley as the Democratic caucus nominee. Bradley went on to lose to eventual nominee Al Gore.

On the Republican side of things, the Register endorsed John McCain. McCain lost to eventual nominee George W. Bush, with Bush taking 41 percent of the caucus vote, to McCain's 5 percent.

1996: In 1996, the Register endorsed Bob Dole as the Republican caucus nominee. Dole went on to win the Iowa Caucus and presidential nomination.

President Bill Clinton ran unopposed for the Democratic nomination. Clinton went on to win the general election.

1992: In 1992, Iowa's Sen. Tom Harkin ran for president, leaving many other Democratic nominees to bypass the state. Harkin won the Iowa Caucus with 77 percent. Eventual Democratic presidential nominee Bill Clinton came in fourth at the Iowa Caucus with 2 percent.

President George H.W. Bush ran opposed for the republican nomination.

1988: In 1988, the Register endorsed Paul Simon before the Democratic caucus. Simon lost the caucus to Dick Gephardt. Michael Dukakis, who finished third in the Iowa Caucus, eventually won the party's nomination for president.

On the Republican side of the election, Bob Dole won the Register's endorsement. He went on to win the Iowa Caucus with 37 percent, only to lose the eventual nomination to George H.W. Bush, who came in third in the Iowa Caucus. Bush later won the presidency.