Mitt "Universal Health Care" Romney (UPDATED)

Get ready to hear MA Governor Mitt Romney's name with the phrase "universal health care" in the same sentences, especially from conservative voices.

Via The American Spectator:

Now, to be clear, I do not expect Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney to pull off an elaborate mask moments after signing a bill bringing universal health care to the Bay State, thereby revealing himself to be a certain senator from New York. (No, not Schumer.) In point of fact, during a lengthy chat with Romney for a profile that ran in the March edition of TAS, one of the first things the governor said when I broached the topic of health-care reform was, unequivocally, "I oppose the concept of Hillarycare," and then, "Republicans believe in health care, just like Democrats. We just believe the right approach is not a government takeover, but, instead, the application of free market principles."

Nevertheless, when Joe Klein calls Romney's health-care plan "rather remarkable" and Ted Kennedy is asking to be on hand for the signing ceremony and Hillary Clinton herself is weighing in favorably (i.e. not sarcastically frowning or smirking) and the New York Times really, really loves the idea...

And next comes my favorite line of the day:

Well, fiscal conservatives can perhaps be forgiven for instinctively reaching for some garlic bulbs and a flask of holy water.

Apparently ol' Mitt didn't get the "you better appease the right wing if you want the GOP presidential nod" memo.

UPDATE: This is what I'm talking about:

Real quick thought -- yesterday I watched, quite slack-jawed, as Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney told Fox and Friends that his proposed universal health care for Kennedy enablers was (something like this) ''taking a Democratic party ideal and implementing it using Republican market values.'' Un-freaking believable. Massachusetts will mandate across the board health care, but the market will ... what? I'll tell you what. The market will cause an explosion in health care costs, just like Medicare did. Duh. And this sumbitch thinks he can win the Republican nomination? That's strike number 2 in the game of Smart.