It’s time for Mitt to return to Massachusetts politics, and run in the special election to replace the departed “Liberal Lion” of the Senate, Ted Kennedy. Peter Roff makes a solid argument for Romney’s candidacy in today’s US News.

Surprisingly enough, this brings things back full circle to Romney, who up to now has been busy laying the groundwork for another presidential bid in 2012. It would be an intriguing thing if, after waiting a day or two out of respect for the late senator, Romney were to downshift and announce he will be a candidate in the upcoming election to fill Kennedy’s vacant Senate seat.

Such an announcement would likely be embraced immediately by the Republicans, who would like almost nothing more than to deny Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada his new, hard-won, 60-vote, filibuster-proof majority. As a self-funding candidate who has already been elected once statewide, Romney has nearly 100 percent name ID. And, in an environment where President Obama seems to be dragging the Democrats down, he would be a serious threat to the Democratic hegemony in Massachusetts’s congressional delegation. Meaning Romney likely would win.

As Roff points out, Romney’s perch in the US Senate would give both him and the GOP a leg up. As a Senator, Romney could put forth proposals based on all the chatter and proposals from his 2008 campaign, giving him a chance to show that he was serious about solving the nation’s problems. It would also give the GOP that 40th vote, allowing them to filibuster the Liberal agenda and someone who they could use as a fresh face in the Senate, a focus for the public debate on health care, cap and trade, etc.

Whether or not that helps Romney seal up a 2012 nomination, is yet to be seen, and as far as I’m concerned, secondary to the importance of making an impact in the Senate. However, if Romney is calculating a way to get his name back on the national stage on a regular basis, short of getting his own Huck-style Fox News show, I’m not sure there is a better way, and frankly, this method will give him more than just a platform to talk about problems, but a way to do something about them as well.

Run, Mitt, run!