Opinion: Surprise political move: Mitt Romney buys a home in California

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Mitt Romney, the former Republican presidential candidate, the former Republican governor of Massachusetts and a current silent candidate to become Sen. John McCain’s vice presidential running mate, is also about to become a Californian.

A Southern Californian.

The Romneys await closing on a home in La Jolla. On the oceanfront, of course. Are there any other kind there?

According to SignOnSanDiego.com, the savior of the Salt Lake City Olympics and self-made multimillionaire has decided to pour a few more of his millions into a home in that oceanfront community in the state that just happens to have the most electoral votes.

Or maybe he just wants to watch the seals sun themselves.

The Romneys currently have a home in Massachusetts, a home in New Hampshire and a home in Utah. If the La Jolla deal goes ...

... through, that will leave them only 46 more states to go. (Or 53 if Sen. Barack Obama gets elected.)

As The Ticket reported back in February, Romney and his wife of 38 years, Ann, invested $42.3 million of their own money in his unsuccessful $98-million campaign this last year. That worked out to about $150,000 for every Republican National Convention delegate he won. Who can pass up a deal like that, eh?

Yes, the Romneys mark holidays in San Diego with family. But this being a politics blog, we have to examine everything through a political magnifying glass. If Romney was to become McCain’s choice as running mate, would a California residence finally give the GOP at least a shot at winning the state’s 55 electoral votes?

Or at a minimum, force the Democratic ticket to play some expensive defense on that front instead of taking the Golden State for granted as usual?

And we must also point out something else on the calendar:

2008 -- Romney establishes legal California residency.

2010 -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger cannot run for reelection because of term limits.

And there are a couple of U.S. Senate seats to fight over out here.

Oh, and don’t forget, John and Cindy own a couple of beach condos on nearby Coronado Island.

We’re not saying. We’re just saying.

-- Andrew Malcolm

For a Mitt Romney photo gallery, click here.