A theme emerges in moderate/conservative endorsements of Obama

I'm sure you know by now that this morning Colin Powell endorsed President Obama. He basically said that - while we still have a ways to go - we are on the right track.

I found it interesting to contrast that with what he said about Mitt Romney.

The governor who was saying things at the debate on Monday night ... was saying things that were quite different from what he said earlier. I'm not quite sure which Gov. Romney we would be getting with respect to foreign policy.

That reminded me of what we've heard from some of the conservative newspapers who have also endorsed President Obama. Like the Winston-Salem Journal:

The Democratic president has done all those things and more. He is calm under pressure and courageous in standing up for the rights of all Americans, including the poor, veterans, the elderly, women, gays and immigrants. In contrast, we’ve sometimes found it hard in the last few weeks to tell just what Obama’s challenger, former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney, really stands for...

And the Lincoln Journal Star:

After his first four years, Obama is a proven leader. He wins the Journal Star’s endorsement for president...

Republican nominee Mitt Romney at times makes us optimistic that he would do a creditable job as president. But he changes positions on issues so frequently we’re uncertain what he actually would do in office.

And finally, the Salt Lake Tribune:

From his embrace of the party’s radical right wing, to subsequent portrayals of himself as a moderate champion of the middle class, Romney has raised the most frequently asked question of the campaign: "Who is this guy, really, and what in the world does he truly believe?"...

Therefore, our endorsement must go to the incumbent, a competent leader who, against tough odds, has guided the country through catastrophe and set a course that, while rocky, is pointing toward a brighter day.

Its important to remember that all of these endorsements come from moderates/conservatives. It is clear from listening to them that if they were given the choice of a sane trustworthy Republican, they would endorse her/him gladly. But they've all taken a close look at the candidates and decided that's not what is happening in this election. What they're seeing is that Obama has proven himself to be a steady competent President and they don't know what the hell they'd get from Romney.

We don't hear about it much in the media, but I believe that there are moderates/conservatives all over the country who are making the same calculation.