Romney Seems Relaxed, Brimming With Confidence
JOHNSTON, IOWA -- Even though a new Des Moines Register poll shows him trailing Mike Huckabee by six points with just two days left, Mitt Romney is in a sunny mood today. He has been joking around with supporters and the press corps more than he usual does, and if he's at all nervous, he's not showing it.
At a press conference this morning in the basement of a private home, I asked Romney if he knows something that the media doesn't.
"I'm sure I know a lot of things you don't know," Romney joked before breaking into laughter. "No, I'm kidding. Oh, you mean about the election?"
Romney said that he did not have access to "some secret poll" but that he feels good about his campaign whether he wins or loses.
"Look, two weeks ago, I was 20 points down in this election and now three polls came out this morning — all have it within a few points," Romney said. "One has me ahead, one has the other fellow ahead and the other has us tied. And that's a very different position than I felt I was in two weeks ago. It suggests I've got a great shot at getting the gold. It suggests if I don't get the gold, I'll probably get the silver."
Romney was asked whether he thought Mike Huckabee was being dishonest yesterday when the former Arkansas governor showed a new negative advertisement to reporters but said that he was not going to air it on television because he wanted to maintain a positive message.
"It does remind you a bit of a person who stands up and says, 'I'm not gonna call my opponent any names, but here's the names I'd call him if I were gonna call him names," Romney said. "And what he did yesterday didn't fool the media, and I don't think it'll fool the people of Iowa either."
Romney was also asked whether he'd contributed more of his own personal wealth to his campaign in the fourth quarter of 2007.
"I'm sure I made additional contributions in the fourth quarter, but I don't have any numbers for you," Romney said.