Personal finances, Bain dog Mitt among thought leaders on the right

Critics on the right have included Murdoch, Lowry, Noonan and Kristol. | AP Photos

Conservative elites club Mitt Romney

By ALEXANDER BURNS and MAGGIE HABERMAN, Politico.com | 7/18/12 4:51 AM EDT

In case you hadn’t noticed, there are some on the right who are less than wild about Mitt Romney.

The former Massachusetts governor has at times been the subject of withering criticism from conservatives since he started his presidential campaign. But in the past few weeks, the critiques have reached new levels of intensity, as columnists, commentators, operatives and donors fret that Romney is losing control of the 2012 debate amid a Democratic assault on his personal finances and stewardship of Bain Capital.

Most of the criticism falls into one of several categories: Romney’s not a reliable conservative. He’s inarticulate about policy and light on vision. He’s not tough enough for a presidential campaign. The aides who surround Romney aren’t up to the job.

Romney heard plenty of that during the Republican nomination fight and won anyway. So far during the general election, his campaign has seemed untroubled by the barbs from the top 1 percent of thought leaders on the right.

(More here.)