Mitt Romney shunned by the Republican Party: Failed presidential candidate becomes 'persona non grata' as officials begin planning for 2016

Almost two weeks on from Mitt Romney's crushing loss to Barack Obama, the memory of his gracious and widely praised concession speech is fading fast.



Since then the defeated candidate has made series of ill-received remarks blaming his loss on President Obama's 'gifts' to African Americans and Latino voters - putting him at odds with party leaders.



And as Republicans struggle to comprehend the scale of their defeat, the former Massachusetts governor is said to have become persona non grata to the party at large - a remarkable fall from grace for a man who expected to be president-elect right now.

Fading Memory: Republican presidential candidate and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney taking the stage to concede his quest for the presidency, at the Boston Convention Center in Boston

Indeed, according to those close to Romney he was taken aback by the scale of his election loss and while for a moment it seemed he would silently exit the stage, his divisive comments about the reasons for his loss have caused other Republicans to rush to distance themselves from him.



'He’s not going to be running for anything in the future,' said Representative Raúl R. Labrador.



'He's not our standard-bearer, unfortunately.'

In a post-election conference call with some of his key donors on Wednesday, Romney said that he had lost because the Obama adminstration gave 'gift's such as health-care law and immigration reform which attracted young and minority voters.



'The Obama campaign was following the old playbook of giving a lot of stuff to groups that they hoped they could get to vote for them and be motivated to go out to the polls, specifically the African American community, the Hispanic community and young people,' Romney is reported to have said.



'In each case, they were very generous in what they gave to those groups.'

Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal was deeply critical of Mitt Romney's remarks regarding 'gifts' that Obama apparently gave to sections of the electorate to ensure his victory The defeated candidate added that 'it's a proven political strategy to give a bunch of money to a group and guess what, they'll vote for you.'

The remarks echoed Romney's notorious claim that '47 percent' of the nation were living off the government and saw themselves as 'victims' who cannot be made to take responsibility for themselves.

However, senior Republicans and some with one eye on the 2016 presidential race were quick to denounce the defeated candidate.

No, I think that’s absolutely wrong,' said Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal earlier this week. 'Two points on that: One, we have got to stop dividing the American voters. We need to go after 100 percent of the votes, not 53 percent. We need to go after every single vote.

'And, secondly, we need to continue to show how our policies help every voter out there achieve the American Dream, which is to be in the middle class, which is to be able to give their children an opportunity to be able to get a great education.

'So, I absolutely reject that notion, that description. I think that’s absolutely wrong. I don’t think that represents where we are as a party and where we’re going as a party.'

Senator Marco Rubio (left) and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie (right) have been somewhat more conciliatory in their message to Mitt Romney

Two of the party's most prominent female voices were equally quick to insist that the Romney era was over and urge the party to move on under new leadership.



New Hampshire senator Kelly Ayotte, a strong supporter of the candidate during the campaign, told MSNBC: 'The campaign is over, and what the voters are looking for us to do is to accept their votes and go forward.'



When asked about his 'gifts' remarks, she simply said: 'I don't agree with the comments.'



And Susan Martinez, the governor of New Mexico, described the Romney gaffe as a prime example of 'what sets us back as a party'.



She continued: 'Republicans need to stop making assumptions, and they need to start talking to younger people, people of colour, and ask them, "What is it that we can do better? How do we earn your vote?"'

Popular Touch: United States President Barack Obama jokingly mimics U.S. Olympic gymnast McKayla Maroney's 'not impressed' look while greeting members of the 2012 U.S. Olympic gymnastics teams in the Oval Office

Senator Marco Rubio, who many see as a strong potential candidate for 2016 was slightly more diplomatic in his criticism of Romney.



'I don’t want to rebut him point by point,' Rubio said of Romney.



'I would just say to you, I don’t believe that we have millions and millions of people in this country that don’t want to work. I’m not saying that’s what he said.



'I think we have millions of people in this country that are out of work and are dependent on the government because they can't find a job.'



And the notoriously outspoken Republican New Jersey Governor Chris Christie made it abundantly clear on Friday morning that it is time for Mitt Romney to 'move on' after his election loss.



'I always think this is kind of scapegoating after elections,' the governor said while appearing on MSNBC’s Morning Joe Friday. 'When you lose, you lost.'



The governor said that it was now time to 'pivot' and ‘move on’ from the campaign.



'So someone the other day asked me, "Why did Romney lose?" I said it’s because he got less votes than Barack Obama. That's why,' Christie said matter-of-factly on Morning Joe.



In fact many Republican leaders, including former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, conceded that Obama did not win simply because he offered his base incentives, but because he ran a better campaign and got more votes.

Victorious: U.S. President Barack Obama convincingly defeated Mitt Romney in the November 6th general election

However, senior Romney adviser Stuart Stevens disagreed with the sentiments expressed by prominent Republicans in the aftermath of the defeated candidates 'gifts' comments.



He called Romney 'the most popular Republican on the national scene at the moment'.



Stevens continued: 'Even those who have been critical of the campaign on our side realise in the end that Governor Romney was resonating with millions of Americans and was running the kind of campaign we could all be pround of.'



'I think the governor can have the political road of his choosing. I have no idea what that would be.'



While Romney aides have offered differing explanations for the November 6th defeat which gave President Obama 332 electoral votes, many have pointed to Romney's loss in white rural states such as Wisconsin and Iowa as evidence his campaign failed among multiple demographics.



So crushing was Romney's defeat that many have wondered what future public life he could have, especially as he has no elected office to return to.

The now infamous picture of Democratic Presidential Candidate Michael Dukakis riding a tank has become synonymous with bad public relations

Senators John McCain and John Kerry, defeated candidates in 2004 and 2008 respectively, are still major presences on the national political scene.



Even Al Gore, who suffered a traumatic defeat to George W. Bush in 2000, has re-invented himself as an environmentalist and antiwar campaigner.



But some are wondering out loud if Romney's fate will be somewhat more embarrassing - suggesting he might be this generation's Michael Dukakis, who was roundly beaten by George H.W. Bush in 1988.



'There is life after presidential defeat in some cases, but not all,' said Stephen Hess, a presidential historian at the Brookings Institution to the Washington Post.

'There are still possibilities for service, whether public or otherwise. If you live long enough, there’s often a process of restoration.'



One man who has hinted that Romney's vast experience in the private business world could be put to use for the economy is President Obama himself.



'There are certain aspects of Governor Romney’s record and his ideas that I think could be very helpful,' Obama said during his first post-election news conference on Wednesday.

