Why Has Romney Gotten A Pass?

Steve Benen is stumped:

We’re talking about a French-speaking Mormon vulture capitalist named Willard, who used to support abortion rights, gay rights, gun control, “amnesty” for undocumented immigrants, and combating climate change. He distanced himself from Reagan, attended Planned Parenthood fundraisers, and helped create the blueprint for the Affordable Care Act. He supported taxpayer-funded abortions and taxpayer-financed medical care for undocumented immigrants.

Given all of this, I thought there was no way Romney would coast through 2011 without facing brutal attack ads from his GOP rivals. But I was completely wrong — the attacks never came; Republican voters never heard about this record; and Romney appears well positioned to win the nomination.

Keith Humphreys agrees:

The one guy to rip into Romney — Jon Huntsman — has done a brilliant job of it. But he doesn’t have the money or the cred to take on Mitt with Iowa caucus goers.