Mitt Romney To Announce VP Decision Via Smartphone App

redletterdave writes "In 2008, then-Illinois Sen. Barack Obama decided to announce his running mate, then-Delaware Sen. Joe Biden, over a text message, which was sent out to Obama's legions of followers. Four years later, Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, the likely presidential nominee from the Republican Party, has decided to make his VP announcement over a smartphone app. On Tuesday, Mitt Romney's campaign team launched a smartphone app called 'Mitt's VP,' which promises app users will be the first to know the official news of Romney's running mate for the November election. Once Romney makes his decision, he will announce the news over the app, which will alert smartphone owners with a text notification."

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Re:I think everyone has already made up their mind

[crovira]

This is exactly the WRONG way to use social media.

Its NOT to broadcast to a select few what decision [insert name here] reached.

Social media is to solicit from the "Wisdom of the Commons" who a running mate should be.

This is so stupid that its doesn't deserve further comment.

Tech savvy: A smartphone app for a text message?

[MobyDisk]

Someone who makes an entire app just to receive a text message, does sound like someone who will run an efficient government.

Re:Tech savvy: A smartphone app for a text message

[Bish0p]

And do you trust that the only thing the app is doing is providing you a text message when the announcement is sent out?

Put on the evil genius hat for a bit and ponder what neat things you could use the app for before and after it' purpose to do additional stuff to the stooges that fell for the trick of 'install this app to receive a text message'.

Re:I think everyone has already made up their mind

[CanHasDIY]

My prediction for the VP candidate is going to be a Cheney 2.0

Some rather sketchy politician with really questionable ties to industries whom everyone is pretty sure is just doing it as a means of making a shit load of money, consequences and country be damned.

So.. Karl Rove?

Nah, Methuselah always prefers to run things from the shadows...

Re:I think everyone has already made up their mind

[Anonymous Coward]

It wasn't stupid to pick Palin. McCain's campaign was going nowhere fast, as the Republicans yet again picked the guy who was next on the list, instead of someone who might actually interest voters. When Palin was announced as the VP pick, McCain's numbers shot up. Most of the people I know who voted Republican that year were voting for Palin, not for McCain.

The Republican establishment inside the District of Corruption doesn't want to hear that they simply bore people. Palin, for all her faults (and yeah, she has 'em), shot some life into the Republican party for a bit.

Romney's probably going to do whatever his advisers tell him to do, which will be moderate, and safe, and utterly boring. Boring does not win elections.

An outside perspective

[Dzimas]

In the last decade or so, the US political process seems to have refocused on the endless selection of candidates that takes years, rather than focusing on the actual business of government. Other countries typically mount much faster elections, and political parties tend to be ephemeral -- two or three groups may amalgamate to mount a challenge to the ruling party, whereas the Democrats and Republicans seemed locked in a colossal coin toss. Barring a significant political event leading up to the election, we know that one party will edge the other by a handful of votes. Of course, it's easy to provide foreign commentary but much harder to see what could be done to improve the situation. Perhaps we will see the emergence of new regional parties that focus on issues of extreme importance for specific areas? Perhaps we'll see increasing demands placed on the federal gov't by individual states? Or perhaps we'll see the status quo indefinitely. I'd be interested to hear an American perspective on this -- does the system work? How would you improve it?

Re:I think everyone has already made up their mind

[fuzzyfuzzyfungus]

You, um, might have missed a memo or two about the, er, 'demographic re-targeting' of the GOP brand...

Re:I think everyone has already made up their mind

[TheCarp]

> Anyone thinking that she was a positive for the GOP is also a
> fucking twit. She did more damage to the GOP brand every time
> she opened her dumb mouth-hole.

Um really? Do you see one of their men in the hot seat for what was the coming economic crisis? Is their man defending his record during a major recession?

Palin was a smart choice for throwing the election, when they already had a good enough candidate for their aims being run by the Dems.

The GOP has spent the past 20 years going off the deep end and pulling the dems over to their side. We have a Dem president who came out of the gate proposing the old GOP healthcare reform, even fighting them for it.

They already won. The last thing they would want is to have to take credit, it ruins their whole strategy, as they demonstrated with Bush II.

People don't seem to realize, you don't win under this system by supporting your people and compromising with likeminded people. You win by going so far to the extreme of your view, that others have to compromise with you.

Re:I think everyone has already made up their mind

[Lord Kano]

Palin made the difference between McCain losing and a landslide.

McCain spent his whole political career trying to be liked by democrats and alienating his fellow republicans.

His prized demographic was gaga over the idea of electing president Chocolate Jesus and republicans didn't particularly like him. Palin saved him from 45 state sweep.

Romney is in a worse position than McCain was. Expect a Rubio type VP.

LK