Peterborough, New Hampshire (CNN) - New Hampshire U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte, in an e-mail announcing her endorsement, emphasized Mitt Romney's strength in a potential general election match-up against Barack Obama.
Ayotte will officially endorse Romney on Sunday afternoon. The former Massachusetts governor was the "strongest candidate" in the GOP field to take on Obama next year, she wrote supporters.
"Mitt Romney has proven not only through his prior experience as a successful businessman and governor, but also through his solid campaign and excellent debate performances, that he is that candidate," she said.
Ayotte is a popular first-term senator and her support has been highly coveted.
A former state attorney general, Ayotte voted against the debt deal hammered out in Congress this summer and is seen as a strong conservative on issues of finance and defense.
Earlier this year, she introduced a bill to mandate accused terror suspects be tried in military courts.
In the e-mail, Ayotte said she believed Romney would keep the country safe "in a dangerous world."
"He will remain vigilant in the fight against al Qaeda and Islamist terrorists, and his national security decisions will be based on advice from our military commanders – not political polls," she said. "With a rising China and persistent nuclear threats from rogue nations, we need Governor Romney's strong, steady leadership to vigorously protect American interests."
Her support for Romney will follow that of other prominent state Republicans, including former Gov. John Sununu and former U.S. Sen. Judd Gregg.
Ayotte will endorse Romney at his 2:30 p.m. ET rally in Nashua, said the New Hampshire Union Leader, which was first to report the story.
From CNN Politics
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Who cares?
Is this any surprise? Ayotte is a puppet of the GOP. She hasn't done one independent thing for the people of New Hampshire. She just tows the line and repeats the overused talking points from her masters in Washington.
And here's another picture, of a person whose never had to worry about anything. The silver spoon in her mouth, has always been there, to make sure she never has, or will be destitute or hungry. Help keep America in the control of your oppressors. Remember: you're the disease. They are the cure. That's what they want you to think.
Mitt Romney doesn't have a back bone. No bones really just plastic.
Do we need a giant plastic MR. GUMBY as President?
Sadly, our electoral college system gives New Hampshire some weight. They have two senators – just like a real state. A Republic is a tough place to find a way to represent the majority of the people. When will we be connected enough to let the "state's rights" argument expire? Is this a relic from Colonial times and political solutions to keep colonies from killing each other?
Doesnt matter. With nearly half of the states GOP voters already backing him, there is no way this is news
Nonsense. This one endorsement is nearly meaningless to anyone except her.
"Big backer", seriously?
Mr. Romney's not perfect, but let's face it, no candidate is. Romney's leadership and business intellect are powerful and critical skills that we desperately need in the Oval Office. His personal character has been proven. He's a faithful husband, father, and member of his faith. A family man, who has been known to go out of his way to serve his neighbor time and time again. Those are qualities you can't fake or suddenly develop during a presidential campaign, and they are qualities people around the country and the world will inevitably see, as we do with every president. I think American would be wise to vote Romney into office.
Now She's patiently waiting for Her under the table mllion dollar envelope.
Sen. Kelly Ayotte sure looks like an angry lady .
Like anyone really cares.
Wow, she's really going way out on a limb, isn't she? Takes real courage to endorse the guy leading in the New Hampshire polls and whose closest competitor, Newt, is self-imploding in a week or so. LOL. Typical.
Political lightweights sticking together.
She sure waited long enough! Not really convinced? That's OK, neither are 75% of the registered Republicans.
Teabaggers falling into line. It won't last long enough to save the radical extremists in 2012.
Come on, CNN .... "gets big backer" !?!? Ayotte's been barely in office, has almost no impact in Washington and almost unknown outside northern New England and she's a "big backer" for Mr. Bain? Come on. She's a tool.
This sounds to me more of the " Government of the corporation by the corporation " .. Who's fooling who here !
I think I would hit that!
Ayotte is my senator. She's done nothing to distinguish herself as a legislator; instead, she's turned out to be a cog in the GOP machine. Her endorsement will draw headlines and boost Romney here but it conveys no imprimatur of quality.
I endorse Obama, any way, who is this Cayottee????
Romney is the reincarnation of Warren Harding...looks verrrry presidential, but like the hollow shell that was Harding, no substance......
NH voters, regardless of whether or not they are registered with a party, are largely independent. Endorsements might mean something to people in other parts of the country, but they are dangerous ground here, and just as likely to turn voters away from a candidate as they are to turn them on to that candidate. It's also very hard for a person from Massachusetts to earn a New Hampshire vote. Romney had his work cut out for him; he now has a harder fight. NH voters do not like being told who to vote for.
Sadly just the opposite...Romney's warmongering nonsense does not make him strong at all, but surprisingly another foolish Neo-Con trying to setup America for an unecessary war with Iran without a plan. Bush 2.0
Oh but another Romney flip-flop surely expected...
A first term senator from NH is a big endoresement? Never heard of her. She looks like a Teabagging beotch to be honest.
But, Ron Paul has morality, integrity, honesty, consistency and truth on his side. The rest of the candidates don't seem to have Paul's enduring qualities. Vote Ron Paul.
Ron Paul has the enduring qualities of morality, integrity, honesty, consistency and truth on his side. Vote Ron Paul.
I don't give one Iota what Ayotte says! she is a republican and they are all suffering from FOX poisoning right now!
Unbelievable...perhaps Romney could beat Obama but it will be 4 more years of the same. He has NO CLUE how to take the big steps needed to fix the economy. His greatest monetary supporters are all big Wall Street Banks!! C'Mon people...don't let Ayotte's slip in judgment (wonder how much she was paid) to endorse Romney sway you. Two other NH Representatives have endorsed Ron Paul (But that does not make big news). Ron Paul is the answer. One trillion dollars cut the first year. It's like ripping a band aid off..do it quickly, it hurts...but the pain goes away faster. If Romney is elected you have just secured Obama's second term. Ron Paul 2012...honesty, credibility. and NO TIES TO THE BANKERS!!!!!
who? so?
I would have thought, as a Conservative Republican, Ms. Ayotte would serve our best interests in Congress. I have been wrong about her consistently. She must be a RINO as we all know Romney is. What a waste of NH Taxpayer dollars to be paying her salary.
There is only one True Statesman running for President of The United States, Ron Paul. But since he wants to cut Congress's Salary, I can understand why Ms. Ayotte won't support him. Isn't that the real reason she wanted to be in Congress? She certainly hasn't shown her desire to be working for the People. Shameful that an ex-DA for our State doesn't even believe in the Rule of Law called our Constitution.
Hopefully she will come to her senses, but I doubt it.
Kelly Ayotte is an embarassment to the citizens of NH. She is incapable of representing her constituency.
What is Romney trying to hide with his removal of MA computers? This is not transparency, this is Karl Rove trying to ram his preferred puppet down our throats.
No one would ever accuse Kelly of thinking for herself. She is a bootlicking tool of the Sununnu family and the Union Leader who would have faded into oblivion had our governor replaced her with a Democrat. Remember how she backed into the AG job. Everyone who thinks she set up Head raise your hands>
It really ticks me off when these hypocrites start talking about cutting Social Security. Social Security was sustainable until the government began using SS funds to pay for other government programs. Pay back the IOU's, you freakin' jerks, and leave SS alone!!!!!!!
Nobody knows who she is. However, she looks much to bright to be a republican.
Romney is a great man, but there are still many who are undecided about the whole Mormonism thing. 45% of Voters on http://www.isitacult.com think Mormonism a cult, second only to Scientology. Do others think your religion is a cult? Vote now at Isitacult.com!!
Who cares? This woman has done nothing for us here in NH; her endorsement means zip to most of us. Voting for Obama and hoping the GOP gets pushed out of the way so he can get something done for this economy. Voting GOP is voting for more of the same failed policies that created this mess in the first place. We can't be that stupid, can we?
An ex-house-wife's endorsement would mean more than that woman's. She is nothing.
"I think American would be wise to vote Romney into office."
Nah. Mr. "Grovels For Votes" Willard "Outsource Them Jobs" Romney is the last person Americans should vote for. It's getting to the point where I only pay attention to him for fear of missing the spectacle of him literally get down on his knees and start begging for votes. Reminds me of old man McCain pleading for votes during HIS presidential run.
Who?? and Who cares!!!
She's the perfect pathetic face of the Tea Party/Nazi Party/Terrorist orgainzation.
Romney will lead us out of this mess, economically. Obama needs to go. Mark my words, Mitt Romney will be considered one of the greatest presidents we've ever had. He has all the tools to pull us out of this, just like he did with all of his other endeavors, i.e., the 2002 Winter Olympics, Massachusett's deficit, which is now being spent by Patrick Duvall's minions.
Mitt in 2012. Get used to it, CNN readers.
To CommonRaven -
Romney ranked next to the bottom in the nation in job creation during his time as governor, and he has shipped more jobs overseas than any one politician I can think of. So if his only merit is a "family man", then I'll gladly stick with the family man in the Whitehouse now.
To the Ron Paul cultists -
Do you brainwashed, single-issue voters understand how catastrophically dangerous a Paul presidency would be? Obviously not, and that's why intelligent and sane voters will never waste their vote on him, and why the media ignores him.
Right-wing voters worship ignorance, they hate facts, and love being out of touch and totally ill-informed.
One more step in Karl Rove's attempts to push his Mittens puppet on the ususpecting public.
When your headline said Romney got an endorsement from some one big, I thought maybe Romney had got a call from GOD, like some of the other candidates.
For those of you who talk up Ron Paul's morality how do you explain his call to legalize illegal drugs?
The "rent is too high" guy would do a better job that the absentee poser we have in office now. I am convinced most of Obama's base are well represented by the lazy, stinky, loud-mouthed leaches in the OWS ranks. Sponge off the hard work of responsible people – that's the Left's motto. Anyone who disagrees is the 1%. Strange how the 99% are only supported by some 30% of those polled. Lib math at work again....
Doesn't really matter as Obama's ratings will be in the mid thirties by election time. The guy at the MacDonalds drive thru would win against Obama. It is VERY SCARY that even after 4 years of failure, there are people that would vote for 4 more years of this disaster. I guess Greece is the country they hope to become.
Never mind if Romney has any good ideas to make the country better.....all that's important is that he beat Obama. When are these politicians going to get a clue?
This man flip-flops on everything. Is this what we want for someone in the White House? I understand that most politicians may say something to get elected and may change their mind once they are in the White House... but this man has flip-floped on EVERYTHING!! Why would anyone trust him? Isn't TRUST something that should count for a lot??
She doesn't look like a BIG backer ,just another cute average lady, I am glad she isn't backing the Philanderer in gerneral NEWTY.
I couldn't care less about who endorses who (whom?) Is this really a headline making story? Must be a slow news day. And to: Democrat Class Warfare. Bet you voted for Bush twice. Now talk about someone who created a disaster! No accounting how some folks think.
Why is this newsworthy CNN?
This is a joke, right? This "endorsement" is utterly worthless.
"Never mind if Romney has any good ideas to make the country better.....all that's important is that he beat Obama. When are these politicians going to get a clue?"
Apparently, when you do. What do you think this is, a football game? Just "beat the other guy" and we'll sort out the details later? Pretty dumb. We NEED A LEADER. Not just another "I finished first" contestant.
Why would i care what she thinks. I have never heard of her, so I think she is sleeping on the job.
She overlooks the fact that he is controlled by a cult.
And in other news, the maker of "magic underpants" is contributing $5,000 to Romney's campaign.
.
Romney isn't crazy enough to win the GOP election. He needs to take it up a notch. Maybe he could shoot some illegal immigrants attempting to cross into the US on live TV. Or bomb an abortion clinic? Then the GOP would nominate him in a heart beat.
Ayotte endorsed him but I was looking to see who the "big backer" indicated by the article title was.
Ayotte can endorse Sarah Palin, too.
One brainless tea partier endorsing a flip-flopping opportunist because he is the best of the worst.. Sad to think that the GOP has declined to this level.
"Mr. Romney's not perfect, but let's face it, no candidate is. Romney's leadership and business intellect are powerful and critical skills that we desperately need in the Oval Office. His personal character has been proven. "
No, he's not perfect. But personal character? The man made his millions breaking up American companies, laying off American workers and shipping American jobs overseas. He thinks we should let people lose their homes, so they can be bought up at fire-sale prices by investors and then rented back. He used to support choice; now he's anti-abortion. His healthcare reform was the model for Obamacare, and now he disavows it, even though the majority of Mass. residents like it.
Worst of all, he thinks corporations are people, even though they are not born and cannot die, do not have a gender and can't cough when the doctor tells them to.
The last thing we need in the Oval Office is someone so beholden to the very corporate masters who are taking our country down the toilet.
Some GOPers stilll looking for a Mr. Perfect because they don't like Mitt Romney? You could be searching past 2013! Enough already! Unite around Mitt Romney and help him beat Obama! Otherwise, you're just as good as giving Obama four more years!!! WAKE UP!
Big endorsement! Wow can't get any bigger than this.
Romney is pandering to his base. Left to his own devices his history shows he would compromise for taxes. GOP Teapartiers can't get traction with anybody else. It is precisely because Romney's image is of a centrist that he is leading the poles. If he panders too much to the Teapartiers he will lose broader support. As a known fip-flopper he is mercurical in his changes of direction. A steady rock of Gabraltar and a shining beacon of principal he is not.
As the corporation's self-professed friend what does that really mean? Does he support Main Streets that needs demand more than anything, and employment here, or Wall Street whose many members serve this market from off-shore like Apple or GE that expands employment primarily off-shore and keeps their profit off-shore doing our Treasury no favors. Will the real Mitt Romney stand up!
Says Romney will keep America safe and fight Al-Queda. She better look for a better angle – people won't forget that Osama Bin Laden cruised while Bush was in office and it was supposed Muslim, Barack Obama that got the job done.
Romey diaagrees with everythng he knows nothing about as long as it is opposite of the POTUS. Who is he? What does he stand for? today? Is he a yes or no? or maybe so? Rommy, like all the republican'ts has been bitten by a rabid Fox and is in the 1st phase of rabies. The foaming at the mouth and biting each other is sure to follow. See Michele Bach man-up; Watch Newt, there isn't a play fair bone in his Old body. He's going to bite the all before he goes out the door. Watch
Another buyer's remorse....your time in Congress is short live...
"emphasized Mitt Romney's strength in a potential general election match-up against Barack Obama."
Uh, "Generic Republican" beats Obama in most polls. I'd pick Ron Paul myself.
we need a real christian leader who is not a mormon.
Romney is another, and especially sad, Republican hypocrite: He changes his position week to week, not even realizing that sometimes he got it right.
She voted against the debt deal, but Romney supported TARP and the bailouts and Obamacare, yet she supports him for President. Nice. Makes just tons of sense.