Will Floridians Buy Mitt Romney's Schtick?

By Beth Reinhard and Theresa Poulson

Updated: January 22, 2012 | 10:01 a.m.
January 22, 2012 | 6:00 a.m.

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney arrives onstage at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida, Friday, Sept. 23, 2011. (AP Photo/Joe Burbank, Pool) (AP Photo/Joe Burbank, Pool)

Mitt Romney's claim to be an economic turnaround artist could find a receptive audience in Florida, where one out of ten people are out of work.

Florida voters elected another former corporate executive, Rick Scott, as governor when he made a similar pitch in 2010. And like Scott, Romney is outspending his opponents. He is also leading in the polls. Romney's disappointing, second-place finish in Florida in 2008 essentially sealed the nomination for John McCain.

In 2012, Florida could do for Romney what it did for McCain.

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