Posted on 09/10/2007 9:43:01 AM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
No novices to big time politics, Midlanders are anticipating Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney's Wednesday appearances but unsure they will support him.
The handsome, dark-haired former Massachusetts governor, a high powered Boston private equity investment executive worth $400 million, will not meet skepticism so much for his membership in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.
Apparently it will be more for his perceived lack of conservative credentials.
Notwithstanding his endorsement by Congressman Mike Conaway, who will host a breakfast fundraiser, observers say Romney has changed positions on abortion and other issues to appeal to conservatives, who provide much of their party's money and most of its passion.
He will address a standing room only luncheon of the Midland County Republican Women's Club at the Midland Center downtown. Tickets are $15 and available from officials Kathy Reeves at 694-5045, Rhonda Lacy at 694-3037 and JoGi Hutchinson at 697-4199.
More than 1,000 people are expected, but only half that many can be seated for lunch. There is no charge to hear Romney speak.
The 60-year-old son of the late former Michigan Gov. George Romney (1907-95) was valedictorian at Brigham Young University in 1971 and earned business and law degrees at Harvard University four years later. His father unsuccessfully sought the presidency in 1968.
"He's from Ted Kennedy land and they don't elect conservatives in Massachusetts," said J.D. Faircloth, a former Midland mayor who is vice chair of the county Republican Party.
"He can pretend to be a conservative, but his comments with respect to abortion rights don't lend themselves to it. I view Romney the same way I do (former New York City Mayor) Rudy Giuliani. They're from a liberal part of the country and got elected by having liberal views.
"A lot of times, politicians will say anything to get elected. The real positions are what his track record indicates."
Faircloth and Republican Chair Sue Brannon like former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson and ex-Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, but Brannon is somewhat more receptive to Romney.
"I want to meet the man Wednesday and look him in the eye and see what his thoughts are," Brannon said. "His being a Mormon doesn't concern me. I want a God fearing man who believes in the good Lord. He's not ashamed of his religion and I like that.
"I like Thompson and I'm anxious to compare him to Romney. I'm not keen on Arizona Sen. John McCain or Giuliani, who is against guns. I'm sorry, but it's hard to trust McCain. He did a lot of good in the Vietnam War, but he's just got a funny look in his eyes."
Former Republican national committeeman Ernie Angelo won't attend the events but hopes eventually to meet Romney because he is impressed with the candidate's leadership of the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City and other achievements.
"He has a terrific record as a businessman and as governor of Massachusetts, which was extremely difficult," said Angelo. "He has changed his opinions, but he changed to agree with me. So that's a good deal.
"He has a great family and has done significant things in business and community service. To some extent, I'm willing to take people at their word."
Angelo said Hillary Clinton is the prohibitive favorite in the Democratic field while Republicans Duncan Hunter, a California congressman, Huckabee, Newt Gingrich, Giuliani and McCain all have disabilities -- Hunter and Huckabee a dearth of money and name recognition, Gingrich's mistakes when speaker of the U.S. House from 1995-99, Giuliani's liberalism and McCain's quixotic positions.
When asked if his party misread last fall's elections to conclude it must run a moderate, Angelo said, "People were disgusted with the fact Republicans weren't being Republicans.
"I don't think there was a philosophical reason. Republicans had been spending money like Democrats and doing other things they hadn't been elected to do."
County Democratic Chairman Chris McCormack disagreed that Clinton, a New York senator, is sure to be her party's nominee. "I don't think we can get a good idea about the field until after the Iowa Caucus and New Hampshire primary," he said.
Contending Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson and former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards are still in the mix, McCormack said, "Clinton and Obama have the money to stay in it even if they falter early.
"Richardson has to remain within striking distance in the first or second tier of candidates and the money will dry up for Edwards if he doesn't do well early.
"Each of the Republicans is extremely flawed in one way or another. Romney is a big-time flip-flopper. I don't see why his religion should make any difference and I respect his resume and personal values. But he's shown a remarkable level of political cynicism by changing positions so readily, depending on who is in the audience."
Ministers Greg Fleming of North A Street Church of Christ and Randall McDonald of Calvary Assembly of God Church said the sincerity of Romney's religion is more important than its doctrinal features, though Fleming said Mormonism is non-biblical in many respects.
"I don't think that religion would necessarily disqualify him," Fleming said. "Whether he practices what he says tells a person's character because we have had people more interested in being characters than in showing character.
"Certain tenets of the Mormon religion don't mesh with the Bible. Those beliefs rise out of the Book of Mormon and are something other than historical Christianity."
McDonald will not support Clinton or Obama because their positions on moral issues "are shaky and you want a good, upstanding person in that office.
"There is so much trash out there with all the scandals and Romney seems like a good man," McDonald said. "That's why I wish we could give George W. Bush a third term. He has done us well. I'm looking for conviction in a candidate's walk as a sincere Christian.
"I have some interest in Thompson because I like his stances, but beyond him, Romney is in the top five."
Well, since I am from Midland, the answer is “no.”
If Thompson and Romney both stay in the race through the primaries, Rudy Giuliani will be our nominee, and Hillary will become President.
A Thompson/Romney or a Romney/Thompson ticket is the only way to see to it that a liberal doesn’t win the Replican nomination, or the 2008 Presidential election.
Well, I just got this email from another Midlander, so Romney will not get a warm welcome:
Debate with Ted Kennedy:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a9IJUkYUbvI
In 2002 regarding abortion:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_w9pquznG4
Romney on gun control:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kk1bJOpYUqE
Ditto from another Midlander.
IMHO W. Texas AND Midland go for Thompson.
I’ve gotten the email posted above 2X now.
Send it to everyone. Let’s give Mitt a warm TX welcome.
“Faircloth and Republican Chair Sue Brannon like former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson and ex-Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee,”
My Fellow Texans: Why does he like Huckabee? Huckabee is less of a conservative than Romney is ... pro-nanny-state, soft on illegals, and ClubforGrowth reports showed how Huckabee was a tax hiker but Romney held the line on spending in Mass. and stopped a tax hike and turned it into a tax cut. The smoking gun is Huckabee’s smoking ban advocacy.
Meanwhile, here in Texas, our supposedly conservative Republican lege increased spending more than Romney did. our supposedly conservative Republican lege can’t stand up for school choice nor stop new taxes like Romney did. And our own Gov who ran on ‘secure the border’ in last election has gone soft and criticized the fence. A fence that Romney is advocating we build and that we want built, and we are undercut by our own Rick Perry.
I’ve said in another thread that Romney was a more conservative Governor than Gov Perry (R-TX) has been... I got no arguments from anyone on that. Throw KBH, Dewhurst, Combs and Carillo in that bucket too, of people who have done far less to fight liberals than Romney did on hostile soil.
I have to conclude that it is mere parochialism and folly to discount Romney’s conservative credentials just because he had to get himself elected in a northeast state. Maybe Arnold governs as a RINO, maybe Rick Perry even is a RINO, but Romney’s record in Massachusetts was about as conservative as one could govern in that state.
“If Thompson and Romney both stay in the race through the primaries, Rudy Giuliani will be our nominee, and Hillary will become President.
A Thompson/Romney or a Romney/Thompson ticket is the only way to see to it that a liberal doesn’t win the Replican nomination, or the 2008 Presidential election.”
I AGREE that Romney and Thompson together would make a great ticket.
I also think that we need to be careful and do what we can to stop Rudy, since he would be the wrong nominee.
Some people think that Romney has a hard time speaking clearly, but here is one of his more revealing quotes.
“These guns are not made for recreation or self-defense. They are instruments of destruction with the sole purpose of hunting down and killing people.”
You mean the Mitt Romney that supported and voted for Paul Tsongas...the same Mitt Romney that supported and make contributions to Dick Swett (D) NH (son-in-law of California's own socialist representative Tom Lantos). Beware the many faces of Mitt Romney.
It’s a pity you are not sharing a more balanced view of things by including Mitt Romney’s 2005 message when he vetoed a bill concerning contraception and abortion, and declared himself pro-life ...
“YESTERDAY I vetoed a bill that the Legislature forwarded to my desk. Though described by its sponsors as a measure relating to contraception, there is more to it than that. The bill does not involve only the prevention of conception: The drug it authorizes would also terminate life after conception. ...
I understand that my views on laws governing abortion set me in the minority in our Commonwealth. I am prolife. I believe that abortion is the wrong choice except in cases of incest, rape, and to save the life of the mother. I wish the people of America agreed, and that the laws of our nation could reflect that view. But while the nation remains so divided over abortion, I believe that the states, through the democratic process, should determine their own abortion laws and not have them dictated by judicial mandate.”
- Mitt Romney, July 26, 2005
Yeah, back when Rick Perry was still a Democrat in Texas, he may have helped some friends out on the other side of the fence in a deep blue state. You’d be surprised at how many Texas bigshots have done the same, ie helped or even were Democrats once.
Romney even had to try to take of social issues off the table and be a choicer in his Mass. runs. It lasted less than 2 years in office though, once some real issues hit his desk ... his family values homelife shows up the real Romney. A ‘conservative of the heart’ as Pat B. would call ‘em. JMHO.
Deseret News, Sept. 1, 2002. Philosophically Pro-Life - “My political philosophy is pro-life.” - Mitt Romney
“He’s been a pro-life Mormon faking it as a pro-choice friendly.” -Romney political consultant Michael Murphy.
Contrary to what he might say he's still a democrat.
I know him. He can talk a good game, most of the time, but in reality he's just another squishy RINO. Fits well with the uber-RINO, Romney.
Midland is a strange political environment. The good folks there think the entire universe revolves around their fair city. We'll see how it all pans out.
That will go over like a turd in the punchbowl in Midland.
Midlanders (and Southerners) are much more apt to factor in Biblical authority in their decisions than the east and left coast. Their Biblical roots run deep. Hence they are much more apt to view with disdain the idea of someone who holds to the Mormon view of Biblical authority.
Mormons, like the Mohammedans, claim the Bible as authoritative, but hold the book of Mormon and Joseph Smith’s writings, and the Koran and Hadith even more authoritative.
The idea of a Mormon president does not sit well with Biblical minded midlanders.
In other words, his own political consultant says Romney routinely lies to the electorate to get votes. Which of his positions is he "faking it" on now? How can we trust ANYTHING he says?
“” They are instruments of destruction with the sole purpose of hunting down and killing people.””
Usually the lefties only attack the rifle, but Romney is painting those of us that own these popular rifles as psychotics.
It is an unusual position to take, by the way what is his new position on this.
RINO Rick Perry. Ug.
Wonder if he has a wide stance when he goes to the men’s room, too?
But we’re talking about the other RINO with good hair, Mitt Romney.
Romney vs Edwards.....Hairdryers @ 10 paces.
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