CAMPAIGN 2012

Opposition Dossier on Romney Hits Internet

Updated: January 18, 2012 | 12:26 p.m.
January 17, 2012 | 10:41 p.m.

Republican presidential candidates former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, left, and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney walk out for the start of the South Carolina Republican presidential candidate debate Monday, Jan. 16, 2012, in Myrtle Beach, S.C. (AP Photo/David Goldman)   (AP Photo/David Goldman)

Think Mitt Romney has been hit hard this Republican primary campaign? Try reading through what John McCain had in store for the former Massachusetts governor in 2008.

Two hundred pages of what appears to be the McCain campaign’s old opposition research book against Romney were published on Tuesday by BuzzFeed, offering in great detail a litany of potential vulnerabilities in his record.

Many of the issues -– like Romney’s past support of gay rights and abortion rights –- are familiar to GOP voters, but at minimum, the book serves as a vivid reminder of why some conservatives are wary of selecting the onetime governor as their party’s standard-bearer.

Its publication comes just as Romney marches toward his third victory in the GOP primaries, this time in South Carolina. The Republican front-runner has vaulted to a commanding lead in national polls after winning Iowa and New Hampshire, the first non-incumbent Republican to both contests in a generation.

McCain endorsed Romney earlier this month, though the move to back his onetime rival was seen as lacking in both passion and specifics.

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