How will the Mormon culture absorb Romney's failure?
Can they go on after the Mormon Moment has passed?
Typically TSCC declares a failure to be a success and then goes on figuring all that's left to represent the truth is what they said happened.
I think Mitt and Ann will spend the rest of their lives on the speaking circuit collecting several hundred thousand dollars for each time they grace a stage. They will have anecdotes from the campaign, faith-promoting stories of how a struggling young couple sold their car to contribute to the campaign and how Mitt wept after he gratefully accepted the money.
They will be martyrs, new Mormon Saints for the modern day, the loss of the presidency will be viewed as the result of persecution... the result of lies spread by apostates and other enemies of the church.
Will there be a backlash? Will they crack down on apostates like they are moving against Mormonthink?
Many people in the mormon church will consider this the result of persecution. People in and outside the mormon church will consider Mitt's loss the result of Satan being involved. Mitt will become a modern day martyr.
"Will Mitt be held personally responsible for the fallout?"
Maybe it's because Mittens and his pseudo-Osmond Family (he wishes) go boating on Sunday when they should be home, having no fun, not laughing, listening to uplifting music, reading the BOM or other fairytales and going through the house throwing out all the face cards they find...
Actually, I have read about some members of the repub hierarchy who are distancing themselves from him, now, in preparation for making it 'Mittens lost' not the repubs...
Either way, within 2 years Mittens will be in the first presidency. By 2016, he will be in the 15 on his way to the 'chair'.
The 15 are annoying enough now, imagine them with Mittens at the helm.
I, also, believe something will happen and, eventually, Mittens will be profit, seer & revelator. Although I haven't figured out what would be necessary for that to happen... (Bad food from the canneries? Wheat they've been storing for 30 years?)
Imagine an ex-president as profit, seer & revelator...
Wherefore Mitt said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their votes far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of Democrats...
For I know they will not vote for me, because they are a stiff-necked people.
If Mitt wins, that is good for Mormons. If Mitt loses, that is good for Mormons. Mormons have a way of never having to deal with reality.
I think there will be a two-pronged backlash (or Backlash and Clamp-down):
1. Religious conservatives will take this as God's answer on the "Is Mormonism Christian?" question. I think their restraint has contributed to the "Mormon moment", but only because they think that that serves a "higher purpose". They see God's hand in hurricanes and earthquakes, I cannot see how they would interpret defeat as anything other than God turning his back and they will be looking for a scapegoat. Even the less religious will be looking for a scapegoat so they can draw a line under 2012 and start again. Sorry Mormons, that will be you. Opportunistic anti-Mormons will pile-on.
2. Within the church, there has been remarkable restraint during the Mormon Moment, with gays, feminists, and intellectuals saying all sorts of things and apparently being tolerated. They even shut down the vicious ad-hom apologetics. I think they are just hanging on till the election - if Romney makes president it will have all been worth it. But will it carry on? In the past, the reaction to any threat or change (removing polygamy, the 60s) has been to make the rules more rigid, to tighten up and clamp down. Personally, I think that come November, regardless of the outcome, steps will be taken to clamp down on the members and bring them back in line.
Then, there is the church reaction to the possible external backlash at paragraph 1. Any "persecution" may make the clamp down worse.
I think the church would really really like to limit free speech - have people treat the Mormons as delicately as they do the Muslims. But I don't think they could risk doing anything - they can't afford to alienate any more religious conservatives.
They CAN score points by having bloggers and columnists repeatedly point out how well-behaved the Mormons are when they are mocked. They may be hoping to make it a "political correctness" issue not to criticize another religion.
I hope at least one columnist looks at how they reacted when they were in a position of power in the late 1800s - re blood atonement and the like.
Will Mitt be held personally responsible for the fallout?
I think it depends on the reaction - a heaping dose of "persecution" would actually bolster his standing with the saints and they can blame anti-Mormons (the religious voting-for-Jesus type) for his missing out.
This is how they'll justify Mitt losing the election......
The people of this country have hardened their hearts and are not ready (childlike enough and obedient) to have God leading the country through his faithful servant Mitt.
This will spawn a wave of public relations and love bombing like never before......which will harden more hearts.
Stupid mormons just can't see themselves as they are seen by others.
He drifts into obscurity having embarrassed Mormons and conservatives. His legacy is reinforcing the negative view of Mormonism and helping some find their way out.
The church is already working on the new Mittens2016 model. It's more humanlike, will be treated for foot-in-mouth disease and will have silver spoon removed from a$$.