Romney camp courts the wingnuts

Forget about any moves to the center. Apparently having realized there's no going back once you've pledged to the cracked, Romney reached out to the far right media and a bevy of select wingnut bloggers in a secret, off the record meeting a few days ago. All the big names of Nutopia were there and the lesser players were allowed in by phone. The Mittster left no rock unturned in this sad search for support, from the Zombie Breitbart clones to the Powerslimers, all the way down to the every voice howling in the would be pirate's Ace of Spades head.

Not that Williard Mitty has a choice. These guys need to feel very important. Over-inflated egos must be fed.

"It was mostly enemy territory for [Romney], until recently," a participant said. "He may not win us over, we may even fight some things if he's elected. But reaching out is the best thing he could have done under the circumstances."

Of course, all these playahs are small curds compared to to the big cheese. Major homage must be paid to the King of the Cons:

Mitt Romney and many other top Republican officals have quietly met with Fox News chief Roger Ailes, Politico reports today. Both House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) have privately met with Ailes — McConnell speaks with Ailes “regularly” and the two are “confidant[s] of more than two decades” — while Romney and Ailes have “mutual respect for one another,” a spokesperson said.

Debasing for the base is a Republican tradition that's worked for them for a long time. But with the demands of the base becoming ever more extreme with every win, time will tell if that one trick pony can still carry them to victory.

[More posts daily at the Detroit News.]