2008: Mitt Romney the Republican nominee

[Blow by blow, the passion dies]

Would he do better or worse than McCain?

[dw93]

Worse. Romney's record at Bain was damaging to him in 2012, it would've been even more damaging for him in the midst of the financial crisis in the fall of 2008. My question is, who would be the nominee in 2012 in the aftermath of a Romney defeat in 2008, and given Romney's more conservative reputation in 2008, what direction would the party have gone in in the immediate aftermath of the loss. They drifted further right in the aftermath of a McCain loss in 2008 in the form of the TEA party, would the GOP have done the same or would they have taken a different path after losing with a more conservative candidate than McCain?

[Sir Mohamed]

Worse. Romney's record at Bain was damaging to him in 2012, it would've been even more damaging for him in the midst of the financial crisis in the fall of 2008. My question is, who would be the nominee in 2012 in the aftermath of a Romney defeat in 2008, and given Romney's more conservative reputation in 2008, what direction would the party have gone in in the immediate aftermath of the loss. They drifted further right in the aftermath of a McCain loss in 2008 in the form of the TEA party, would the GOP have done the same or would they have taken a different path after losing with a more conservative candidate than McCain?

Yup, pretty much this.

I really wonder whether Obama could have won AZ in 2008 if not for being McCain's homestate? That's at least debatable, imho.