Flashback: World Columnist on Romney's Real Problem

Now that Mitt Romney will be the Republican candidate for president, it's instructive to look back at Romney, his ideas and his background.

In today's installment, we recall this telling passage from columnist Ruben Navarrette, published January 15 in the Tulsa World:

Here's the problem with Mitt Romney, and why…his electability is in doubt. It's not his religion, his so-called moderate views on many issues, or even his reputation for fibbing and flip-flopping. 

Romney's real shortcoming is that he can't relate to everyday Americans. He doesn't understand their concerns or vulnerabilities or worries because the lives they're living bear no resemblance to his own. It's one thing to be born with a silver spoon in your mouth, and it's another to have been saddled with a 20-piece set of sterling flatware.