The Hill:
Romney, in a speech he's to deliver to the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) conference in San Antonio, will stress his private sector experience as the major factor qualifying him for the presidency.
Romney will also decry "career politicians," a subtle shot at Perry, who's held public office continuously since 1985.
"I am a conservative businessman. I have spent most of my life outside of politics, dealing with real problems in the real economy," Romney will say, according to prepared remarks released by his campaign. "Career politicians got us into this mess and they simply don't know how to get us out!"
First, what the hell is a conservative businessman? A businessman who only sells to Republicans? He might as well call himself a profitable politician. It doesn't make sense.
Second, while it's true that Mitt Romney has only served four years in public office, he's been campaigning pretty much non-stop since 1994 when he sought Ted Kennedy's seat in the U.S. Senate. So when he says he's not a politician, that's bull. He's a politician—just not a very good one.
Third, why in the world is Romney going after Perry directly? He's just going to drive his own numbers down. It's not like he's attacking from a position of strength. As Amy Walter and Michael Falcone point out:
Moreover, putting Romney, himself, in the attack-dog position a tough sell. Remember how badly he did when he tried the attack thing during the 2008 campaign? Romney is already viewed so skeptically by the GOP electorate and he may not have the credibility to do the attacking.
Shouldn't Romney be getting someone like Karl Rove to do the dirty work against Rick Perry?
Finally, Romney's attack on being a "career politician" is a dumb one. People say they hate politicians, but since Hoover, the only president to have never held elected office was Dwight Eisenhower. In fact, other than Eisenhower, Mitt Romney has less experience in public office than every president since Hoover. And while Romney may be proud of of his career as a "conservative businessman," he's no Dwight Eisenhower. Not even close.