--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Romney is a good, intelligent…" description: "\"Romney is a good, intelligent, extraordinarily generous man who put on a great fight. But he didn't understand the country or the people he sought to l..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fcf/john-podhoretz-4983_country_romney-is-a-good-intelligent-extraordina_2110555.jpg" --- # Romney is a good, intelligent, extraordinarily generous… ![“Romney is a good, intelligent, extraordinarily generous man who put on a great fight. But he didn't understand the country or the people he sought to lead, and that is why he lost.” quote by John Podhoretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fcf/john-podhoretz-4983_country_romney-is-a-good-intelligent-extraordina_2110555.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fcf/john-podhoretz-4983_country_romney-is-a-good-intelligent-extraordina_2110555.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fcf/john-podhoretz-4983_country_romney-is-a-good-intelligent-extraordina_2110555.jpg) > “Romney is a good, intelligent, extraordinarily generous man who put on a great fight. But he didn't understand the country or the people he sought to lead, and that is why he lost.” [John Podhoretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A candidate may be competent and generous yet fail because they lack connection with the electorate’s values and needs. **In simple terms:** Good people can lose elections if they don’t understand voters. Key Takeaway Bridge the gap between policy and public sentiment. Themes politics leadership public perception electoral dynamics Mood analytical critical Type political advice When to use this quote - campaign planning - public speaking - policy development - community outreach Key Concepts empathy cultural competence communication strategy Questions to Reflect On - How can leaders better gauge public sentiment? - What mechanisms ensure alignment with voter priorities? A Different Perspective Even strong candidates can misread the public mood. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/country/) [Didn Understand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/didn-understand/) [Fight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fight/) [Fighting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fighting/) [Generous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/generous/) [Generous man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/generous-man/) [Good](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good/) [Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great/) [Great Fight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-fight-421181/) [Intelligent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intelligent/) [Lost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lost/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Romney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/romney/) [Romney Good](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/romney-good-1579442/) [Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trump/) [Understand Country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/understand-country-451500/) ## Related quotes > [My grandfather was an amazing man. You talk about character and integrity, everyone who knew him, whether they agreed with him or not, said,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tagg-romney/my-grandfather-was-an-amazing-man-you-talk-about-character-and/) [Tagg Romney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tagg-romney/) > [Despite my excellent mood, I don't have any sympathy for Romney. If he'd been a good candidate he wouldn't have had a different campaign…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-collins/despite-my-excellent-mood-i-don-t-have-any-sympathy-for-romney-if-he/) [Gail Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-collins/) > [During his runs for the GOP presidential nomination, Mitt Romney has done a good job of mimicking Reagan's anti-government diatribes and 'better days ahead'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackson-katz/during-his-runs-for-the-gop-presidential-nomination-mitt-romney-has/) [Jackson Katz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackson-katz/) > [Governor Romney is a good debater.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-talent/governor-romney-is-a-good-debater/) [Jim Talent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-talent/) > [“To this day I don’t understand this country well. The cheery optimism. The lack of concern about the past. The openness to strangers who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stuart-rojstaczer/to-this-day-i-don-t-understand-this-country-well-the-cheery-optimism/) [Stuart Rojstaczer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stuart-rojstaczer/) > [We all need to make sure that we fully understand our country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-kamau-bell/we-all-need-to-make-sure-that-we-fully-understand-our-country/) [W. Kamau Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-kamau-bell/) > [“To understand your country you must love it. To love it you must, in a sense, accept it. To accept it as it is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roberto-mangabeira-unger/to-understand-your-country-you-must-love-it-to-love-it-you-must-in-a/) [Roberto Mangabeira Unger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roberto-mangabeira-unger/) > [You have to grow up, start paying the rent and have your heart broken before you understand country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmylou-harris/you-have-to-grow-up-start-paying-the-rent-and-have-your-heart-broken/) [Emmylou Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmylou-harris/) > [Internet as a service is like culture that you have to understand, and each country has a local culture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masayoshi-son/internet-as-a-service-is-like-culture-that-you-have-to-understand-and/) [Masayoshi Son](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masayoshi-son/) > [I don't understand why any country is given a chance to make its point of view seen and heard by the world, and Russia…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margarita-simonyan/i-don-t-understand-why-any-country-is-given-a-chance-to-make-its/) [Margarita Simonyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margarita-simonyan/) > [W. H. Auden once suggested that to understand your own country you need to have lived in at least two others. One can say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mortimer/w-h-auden-once-suggested-that-to-understand-your-own-country-you-need/) [Ian Mortimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mortimer/) > [When old settlers say 'One has to understand the country,' what they mean is, 'You have to get used to our ideas about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/when-old-settlers-say-one-has-to-understand-the-country-what-they/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [Music goes beyond nationalities - it's a language which you can understand in any country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andris-nelsons/music-goes-beyond-nationalities-it-s-a-language-which-you-can/) [Andris Nelsons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andris-nelsons/) > [For my father there was no sharper way to understand a country than by listening to its stories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahir-shah/for-my-father-there-was-no-sharper-way-to-understand-a-country-than/) [Tahir Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahir-shah/) > [Aside from being bad sportsmanship - Romney basically said Obama won by cheating - he was displaying the same obtuseness about the wants and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/aside-from-being-bad-sportsmanship-romney-basically-said-obama-won-by/) [John Podhoretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/) ## More by John Podhoretz > [The great mystery is why robots come off so well in science-fiction films when the human characters are often so astoundingly wooden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/the-great-mystery-is-why-robots-come-off-so-well-in-science-fiction/) [John Podhoretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/) > [The exit polls suggest that after a relatively disappointing first term, Obama managed to reassemble almost all of his 2008 electorate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/the-exit-polls-suggest-that-after-a-relatively-disappointing-first/) [John Podhoretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/) > [For Obama to save himself, he should be thinking about the example of an unlikely Republican predecessor: Richard Nixon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/for-obama-to-save-himself-he-should-be-thinking-about-the-example-of/) [John Podhoretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/) > [Your race and gender don't change, but you can choose to change your political affiliation at will.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/your-race-and-gender-don-t-change-but-you-can-choose-to-change-your/) [John Podhoretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/) > [Imagine his delight after it 'leaked' that he will propose raising taxes on the wealthy by $320 billion over the next 10 years, including…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/imagine-his-delight-after-it-leaked-that-he-will-propose-raising/) [John Podhoretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/) > [Robots have a rich and storied history in movies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/robots-have-a-rich-and-storied-history-in-movies/) [John Podhoretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/) > [Aside from being bad sportsmanship - Romney basically said Obama won by cheating - he was displaying the same obtuseness about the wants and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/aside-from-being-bad-sportsmanship-romney-basically-said-obama-won-by/) [John Podhoretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/) > [There is a new conservative establishment in America, made up of those who claim to be the anti-establishment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/there-is-a-new-conservative-establishment-in-america-made-up-of-those/) [John Podhoretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/) > [As the Republican nominee, it was Romney's job to find a way to speak to some of those groups of voters and offer practical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/as-the-republican-nominee-it-was-romney-s-job-to-find-a-way-to-speak/) [John Podhoretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/) > [Memories of the last nine years have turned Ground Zero from a site of horror, to a reminder of grief, to an occasion for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/memories-of-the-last-nine-years-have-turned-ground-zero-from-a-site/) [John Podhoretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/) > [Some candidates need to say provocative things that make noise to break through the media muffle and get themselves noticed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/some-candidates-need-to-say-provocative-things-that-make-noise-to/) [John Podhoretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/) > [Let us now praise Barack Obama.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/let-us-now-praise-barack-obama/) [John Podhoretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/) > [All non-incumbent campaigns promise hope and change, but Obama took the promise to a new level of absurdity. He suggested that a vote for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/all-non-incumbent-campaigns-promise-hope-and-change-but-obama-took/) [John Podhoretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/) > [By the time Obama came into office, Washington had already agreed over a period of a few weeks to a $700 billion government infusion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/by-the-time-obama-came-into-office-washington-had-already-agreed-over/) [John Podhoretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/) > [The defense of ObamaCare's constitutionality relies mainly on the truism that everyone is sure to get sick at some point in their lives, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/the-defense-of-obamacare-s-constitutionality-relies-mainly-on-the/) [John Podhoretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/) [Explore all 104 John Podhoretz quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/) ## More Country quotes > [I love playing for my country, getting the support. Especially for the kids and everybody, showing my example of what I can achieve so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-sharapova/i-love-playing-for-my-country-getting-the-support-especially-for-the/) [Maria Sharapova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-sharapova/) > [ That country \[Carthage\] was rapidly sinking into the state of barbarism from whence it had been raised by the Phoenician colonies and Roman laws;… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-gibbon/that-country-carthage-was-rapidly-sinking-into-the-state-of-barbarism/) [Edward Gibbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-gibbon/) > [If my campaign is not in the debate, we will not be talking about how we really fix this problem of endless and expanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-stein/if-my-campaign-is-not-in-the-debate-we-will-not-be-talking-about-how/) [Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-stein/) > [For the Scottish government, the practice of having meetings in different parts of the country is well established, but for the U.K. government, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicola-sturgeon/for-the-scottish-government-the-practice-of-having-meetings-in/) [Nicola Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicola-sturgeon/) > [There's no reason someone who has fought for their country should be homeless of jobless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-kyle/there-s-no-reason-someone-who-has-fought-for-their-country-should-be/) [Chris Kyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-kyle/) > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [It's very nice to be a rebel saying, 'I stand on my principles,' but if in fact that's not going to have any impact…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominic-grieve/it-s-very-nice-to-be-a-rebel-saying-i-stand-on-my-principles-but-if/) [Dominic Grieve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dominic-grieve/) > [Most paper money initially existed as a substitute for gold. That's what gave it value. But right now what gives a currency value is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-schiff/most-paper-money-initially-existed-as-a-substitute-for-gold-that-s/) [Peter Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-schiff/) > [That's what this country is. It's made up of immigrants.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bria-vinaite/that-s-what-this-country-is-it-s-made-up-of-immigrants/) [Bria Vinaite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bria-vinaite/) > [You, of Canada, are building a magnificent record of achievement. My country rejoices in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/you-of-canada-are-building-a-magnificent-record-of-achievement-my/) [Dwight D. Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-d-eisenhower/) > [The United States cannot and should not discriminate on the basis of religion. The free exercise of religion is at the very heart of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-pence/the-united-states-cannot-and-should-not-discriminate-on-the-basis-of/) [Mike Pence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-pence/) > [The reason I was drawn to the Band Perry was because they have a knack for doing rollicking country music that can sound a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phoebe-robinson/the-reason-i-was-drawn-to-the-band-perry-was-because-they-have-a/) [Phoebe Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phoebe-robinson/) > [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > ['Lovecraft Country' is reclaiming all these pulp genres for people of color.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/misha-green/lovecraft-country-is-reclaiming-all-these-pulp-genres-for-people-of/) [Misha Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/misha-green/) > [No judge can stop us from praying for our country and I pray that on May 6, millions of Americans will join me in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franklin-graham/no-judge-can-stop-us-from-praying-for-our-country-and-i-pray-that-on/) [Franklin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franklin-graham/) [Browse all 29,881 Country quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/country/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Romney is a good, intelligent, extraordinarily generous man who put on a great fight. But he didn't understand the country or the people he sought to lead, and that is why he lost.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Podhoretz" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/romney-is-a-good-intelligent-extraordinarily-generous-man-who-put-on/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Country" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/romney-is-a-good-intelligent-extraordinarily-generous-man-who-put-on/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fcf/john-podhoretz-4983_country_romney-is-a-good-intelligent-extraordina_2110555.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fcf/john-podhoretz-4983_country_romney-is-a-good-intelligent-extraordina_2110555.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fcf/john-podhoretz-4983_country_romney-is-a-good-intelligent-extraordina_2110555.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Romney is a good, intelligent, extraordinarily generous man who put on a great fight. But he didn't…” — John Podhoretz", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "John Podhoretz", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Romney is a good, intelligent, extraordinarily...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/romney-is-a-good-intelligent-extraordinarily-generous-man-who-put-on/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/romney-is-a-good-intelligent-extraordinarily-generous-man-who-put-on/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```