Romney waits for Iowa's verdict

By Michael Levenson, Globe Staff

WEST DES MOINES -- Mitt Romney had just introduced his five sons -- known on the campaign trail as the "five brothers" -- to the employees of Krause Gentle, a West Des Moines firm, when he reflected today on how much time his family has spent in Iowa.

"I was up late last night surfing through the channels and saw an old movie. Have you seen it? 'Seven Brides for Seven Brothers,' " Romney said. "And I thought, gosh, have we been here so long that Ann and I have two more sons?"

The crowd laughed, but the larger point was not lost. Romney has spent countless hours in Iowa, aired $7 million worth of TV ads, and vastly outspent his rivals as he tries to vault from the Massachusetts State House to the White House.

His biggest challenge: to convince conservative Republicans and evangelical Christians who dominate Iowa’s caucuses that he is their champion.

Tonight, he will find out whether he succeeded.

In the final hours before the caucuses, Romney tried to keep things light. Under assault from Mike Huckabee, who has attacked him as dishonest, suggested he is trying to buy the election, and compared him to everyone's least favorite boss, Romney cracked jokes and showcased his smiling family.

Throughout the campaign, Romney's large clan has helped him defuse concerns about his Mormon faith and respond to critics who say he is out of touch with average Americans. This week, his wife, Ann, has been a near constant presence at his side. And today, his five sons fanned out across the state to speak to caucus-goers. They also invited the media to watch them skate with Dan Jansen, the Olympic speed skater and Romney supporter.

Today, Romney spoke in two venues -- the airy glass-and-steel atrium of Krause Gentle and the wood-paneled auditorium of Principal Financial Group in Des Moines -- that pointed up his background as a successful venture capitalist and consultant. His choice also highlighted the risk posed by Huckabee, who surged ahead of Romney in the final Iowa polls after portraying Romney as the candidate of the financial elite. On "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" Wednesday night, Huckabee said that voters are looking for a presidential candidate who "reminds them more of the guy they work with rather than the guy that laid them off."

Romney used the appearances to cast himself as a family man and an innovator from outside Washington who can find the "new generation of solutions to the challenges we face." He also poked fun at his increasingly bitter battle with Huckabee, the former Arkansas governor and Baptist preacher who has galvanized evangelical Christian voters.

"Tensions are getting high," the impeccably groomed Romney said at Principal Financial. "I saw just yesterday the chairman of Governor Huckabee's campaign said that he would like to knock my teeth out. My only comment on that is -- don't touch the hair."

The crowd laughed.

Ed Rollins, the national chairman of Huckabee's campaign, had told the Washington Post this week: "What I have to do is make sure that my anger with a guy like Romney, whose teeth I want to knock out, doesn't get in the way of my thought process."

The jokes masked what has been a long, methodical campaign that has transformed Romney from a little-known governor of a Democratic state to a front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination.