A Gift on Valentine's Day: Mitt Romney Backs John McCain

A month ago, Mitt Romney and John McCain were bitter rivals, sparring at debates and literally representing two different sides of a divided Republican party. Fast forward to today, February 14th, when Mitt Romney extends to John McCain a Valentine's Day gift sweeter than chocolcate or roses: an endorsement.

Romney today announced that he will formally endorse McCain and encourage the 286 elegates he had won to back McCain. According to CNN, what this means for McCain's delegate count is coming within 78 delegates of clinching the Republican nomination. According to the same CNN news release, a Romney aide reports the former Massachusetts governor intends to endorse McCain "in the interest of healing."

What does this all mean for the Republican party? A sound move that will bridge the gap between the McCainian Republicans and the "conservative" Republicans. Though McCain and his backers have touted McCain's "conservative" platform, Romney and Mike Huckabee have enjoyed support from those in the Republican party who dispute McCain's political stance. Many in the Republican party have expressed doubts about McCain's conservatism (and Rush Limbaugh and Ann Coulter have both publicly chided McCain), and there has been much public debate about how far Romney would have gone if Huckabee was not running for president this year; Huckabee won several states and generally split the conservative Republican vote with Romney.