The Hill News

Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney is to be among the field of Republicans looking to challenge President Obama in 2012, White House senior adviser David Axelrod said Wednesday night.

Axelrod sized up some of the potential GOP candidates for president in two years, taking a jab at Fox News and professing uncertainty over former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's (R) intentions.

Romney is "certainly going to run," said Axelrod, who intends to leave the White House sometime in 2011 to begin working on Obama's reelection campaign.

"You know, he started off as a moderate Republican in Massachusetts â€" passed a healthcare plan very similar to the president's healthcare plan. And I always thought that if he had just stuck to who he was, he would be a far more formidable candidate," Axelrod said. "But he's trying to cater to the right wing of that party, and I don't think that's a prescription for victory."

Some potential Republican candidates h! ave a newfound optimism that Obama is beatable in 2012, fueled by the GOP's resurgence and threat of retaking the House (and maybe the Senate) in November's midterm elections.

The growing field of possible challengers includes Palin, the 2008 Republican vice presidential candidate who's stayed in the public spotlight through her media appearances, books and work on behalf of conservative candidates.

"I really don't know," Axelrod said when asked if he expected Palin to run. "She, too, has her own special kind of charisma. I have a soft spot â€" I was at the vice presidential debate, you know, and she winked at me."

The White House senior aide noted, though, that many of the potential GOP challengers â€" like Palin, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee (R) and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) â€" are contributors to Fox News, the cable network with which the Obama administration has often jousted.

"One of the interesting t! hings is, a lot of the names you're rolling off and a lot of t! he names you hear, they all work for Fox News," Axelrod said. "There's going to be a lot of openings over there, so if you know anybody, send them over."