Not really, of course, but if you choose an action, you choose the consequences of that action[1].

Comes the news that the Romney campaign put together a conference call discussion with media outlets, and the outlets they chose came exclusively from the leftoid-liberal side. Moe Lane is resignedly indignant that no right-leaning outlets were included, and Stacy, The Tech Guy, and Ed Morissey are a little more outspoken. It’s quite true that “left-liberal media” is very nearly a unitary phrase, but c’mon, Romnists — there are some that aren’t quite as far out as Mother Jones.

What the incident points up is that Republicans don’t really lust for death. The Republican leadership longs to be Democrats, or at least to get the kind of coverage from the media Democrats get, and in seeking such favor from the media mavens they betray the “base” they depend on for votes. That being a form of political suicide, it’s easy to conclude that self-destruction is what they intend. It’s the major reason support for John McCain was so lukewarm, and why I, personally, will go out on a limb to add Mitt Romney to the list of people who will never be President of the United States of America. He chooses to appeal to the media gatekeepers, and thereby chooses that I (and a lot of people) will stay home rather than voting for him. Choose the action, choose the consequences.

It’s also the much-sought-for reason for the appeal of Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul. Whatever else can be said of those two, it is impossible to visualize either of them performing the full proskynesis on the sidewalk in front of 620 Eighth, piteously imploring Pinch & Co. to say something nice about them. The primary difference between McCain and Romney in that respect is that John would try hard to build a wall of bystanders to prevent public notice, whereas Mitt would call in the cameras before heading for New York. Flash traffic for all Republican hopefuls: this does not endear you to the hinterlands.

[1] With apologies to L. M. Bujold, who articulated Cordelia’s Law.