2. No DSG = More affordable Golf R in the US.
I suspect outside and technical or supply issues, if they had to pick just one, the choice of stick was down to two factors. First, it holds the line on pricing. Presumably the 4 cylinder and manual configuration drops cost sufficiently to price the R right around where the last R32 was which puts it in a slot where there really is no competition. (the Rex/Evos might be track competition, but from a daily driver standpoint, the dub is far more refined and really aimed at a very different sensibility). Given that with the announcement less than 24 hours old we've already seen the inevitable comparisons to S4s and 335s, having a $12-15K price advantage makes such diatribes seem at best academic and of tremendous advantage to VW when its time to actually pull out the checkbook rather than rant about it.
But the second factor, and I suspect likely the more important one, is the history of this car in the US. The reality is that the original R32 with stick was revered (and still is), the subsequent DSG version was shunned. Right around this time in 2008, I negotiated a deal on a brand Blue R32 with Nav for 8Gs off list. Around here there were still a few new R32s languishing on lots unsold well into the early summer of 2009. Given all the bile spilt on boards over the DSG, I'm sure that left a bad taste in the mouths of VWoA execs, hence we get the stick.
I do somewhat share the disappointment that the DSG will not be available. I think at the time of the previous generation, the DSG was less mature, of questionable reliability and enthusiasts were still coming to terms with the loss of manual transmissions. A lot of this is going away now. Personally, I was actually looking forward to having to make a decision again about which way to go, but OTOH half of you just lost interest, which should make it easier for me to negotiate for one.
As an aside, this whole DSG vs. Stick thing reminds me of a moment back in my grad school days, when a bi-sexual neighbor of mine remarked at a block party, 'I feel so sorry for you, everybody at this party looks good to me.' I really hated her for that, but I'm beginning to take her point.