Mitt Romney released a video announcing an exploratory committee yesterday, taking the plunge he has been preparing for since his loss to John McCain. Romney has had some real attention paid to him by prominent Democrats, including the White House, with Democrats “thanking” Governor Romney for his role in creating “RomneyCare”. I know it is fairly easy to have some fun with Mitt, especially on health care, but I see him as formidable in a general election fight. In this field of Republicans he has to be considered as one of the favorites, although his shortcomings always seem to pop up in any discussion. From Politico:

No conversation about the former Massachusetts governor begins with a listing of his strengths as a candidate. Instead, Romney is the rare national politician defined largely by his shortcomings. The most prominent among them— his role in enacting a sweeping Massachusetts health care law exactly five years ago—was already being dissected by his Republican and Democratic opponents on Monday just moments after he announced he’s forming a presidential exploratory committee.

For today I make Romney the slight favorite for the Republican nomination. But as Politico points out the challenges are vast.