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Mitt Romney, quite simply, doesn't get it.

In the end, that's what it comes down to with Mitt Romney. He's running as the non-Barack Obama.

Conservatives have long been suspicious that Romney isn't truly one of them. The release of his tax returns should settle the matter once and for all: He's not only to be accepted, but admired and emulated - and by liberals as well as conservatives.

Part of the problem is voters know relatively little about Romney. And some of what they know about him complicates his task: Romney has a history of flip-flopping on issues, he's extraordinarily wealthy, and he can be tone-deaf about what moves voters. He just doesn't seem comfortable in his skin.

Republicans always try to paint Democrats as weak on defense. This time, they can't. After all, Mitt Romney's idea of an overseas accomplishment is sending U.S. jobs there.

Unlike President Obama, Mitt Romney has been inside the bubble all his life. He has no idea what's going on here. He has no idea how destructive Bush's eight years were to this country.

Romney, like Sen. John McCain and Bob Dole before him, were meant to mollify moderates, attract Independents, and 'rebrand' the party in a way that mostly fits the ideal of media types who would never vote Republican anyhow. Each of them lost.

I'm confident that Gov. Romney can win over the American people on the promise of limited government, defending individual liberties and a return to common-sense solutions to our country's biggest problems.