I think the Republican candidates speak in generalities because they are caught in a quandry: if they state specific conservative goals which they cannot meet, the conservative electorate will be disappointed. Then again, some of the conservative goals, like downsizing government, gives a large sector of business the willies!
Damned if they do - damned if they don’t!
Romney did not have the voting record to back it up either, made it difficult to etch-a-sketch