Romney to Auto Industry: Glad You're Not Dead. Really.

By Jill Lawrence // February 16, 2012 | 7:09 p.m.

Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney speaks at the Livonia Chamber of Commerce luncheon in Farmington Hills, Mich., Thursday, Feb. 16, 2012. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert) (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

Mitt Romney would like you to know that he really, really, really likes cars. Loves them, in fact. Loves cars, loves American cars, loves the auto industry. "I want to see it thrive and grow," he says. "I'm delighted it is profitable."

The guy could hardly be expected to campaign across Michigan using the slogan "Let Detroit Go Bankrupt," the headline on a November 2008 opinion piece he wrote in The New York Times. But his reconciliation tour through his home state in advance of its Feb. 28 primary, and his Detroit News piece calling President Obama's aid to General Motors and Chrysler "crony capitalism on a grand scale," are not sending the ideal campaign message.