Romney Runs. Romney Stumbles.

New West ^ | 3-13-07 | Jill Kuraitis

[EternalVigilance]

When a candidate for president blows into town, most reporters show up. There’s always a chance he or she will say something surprising or stupid, and there could even be a chance to ask a substantial question and get an answer with some teeth to it, but it’s not likely.

That’s just the way these things go.

But when the Idaho press showed up today for Republican candidate Mitt Romney, his people were still rehearsing – badly - the drill of the classic obligatory campaign fly-through. They issued conflicting information about the place and time of the press conference, with most reporters never notified at all and nobody in charge who could straighten it all out. Attempts to reach the campaign by phone with follow-up questions went unanswered. Multiple cell phone and landline numbers were available, but nobody responded except to refer us to someone else – who wasn’t there. It was a disgraceful runaround. It’s early, but when a field organization is THIS bad, it’s not encouraging.

Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, a nice man with good hair who was considered a superior governor by opinion leaders on both sides of the aisle, provided a possible reason for all that uncertainty: he’s remarkably uninspiring. Anybody who has ever called Al Gore “wooden” has never seen Mitt Romney.

It’s nothing to do with politics or party; it has everything to do with electability. Everyone wants their horse in the race to have what it takes to cross the finish line first, and today, Romney didn’t have it.

I was eerily reminded of the novel and film of “The Manchurian Candidate,” a thriller in which a handsome war hero is controlled via a brain microchip and turned into the perfect presidential candidate, who is later directed by evil forces via the chip. His speeches are repetitive platitudes which seem to arrive in his mouth by computer. Romney is good-looking, fit, beautifully turned out with perfect white teeth, and unfortunately, he speaks that way, too.

He’s certainly not the first presidential candidate to employ banality in an attempt to say nothing which would commit him to any firm policy, but it’s still disappointing. The weariest old adages flowed from Romney like so much water. “Look at my wife and me and our family if you want to know our values,” he said.

“Look at my heart, character and experience.”

“I see the internet age and the YouTube era as a great opportunity to take my message directly to the people.” And that message would be…..?

Romney did name universal health insurance, on which he has an impressive record, as a top priority of his, but was equivocal about exactly how he’d handle it as President. He said the “Muslim jihad” needed a solution, but offered none. He worked up a little enthusiasm about global competition – “especially with the Chinese” – but really only came alive when talking about his experience as President and CEO of the Salt Lake Organizing Committee for the 2002 winter Olympics. “We took something in trouble and made it a success.”

Which he did. An excellent Olympics, indeed.

Outstanding comic relief was provided by a protestor who, complete with rolled R’s and dramatic Shakespearean tones, boomed out, “MISTAH RRROMNEY! WHY DO THE MORMONS SAY JESUS IS THE DEVIL’S BROTHAH?”

Nobody answered that, or was much interested in Romney’s Mormonism. That was good.

Asked about the Rocky Mountain West, Romney said he saw “the spirit of innovation. The opportunity-seeking of the American West has long been the character of the American people.” (I can’t interpret that one.) He spoke of technology innovations which came from the West, but again, nothing about what that had to do with….anything.

“Coal has a major role to play in our future energy policy, along with wind and solar power.” No specifics.

Of the evangelical Christian groups which seem to dog Romney wherever he goes, he had this to say, “I will do my best to establish my bona fides with that group.”

“On the internet, people can see me in speeches, get to know a candidate on a personal basis, in unguarded moments, and see the true character of a candidate.”

Despite many years working in, and watching campaigns - enough to know the hard realities - I still say enough, enough, enough with the Family Values and the Spirit of America and the Heart and Character and Hope for the Future and…..holy MOTHER of mercy….STOP! For once, can’t we please have a candidate who says, “I believe this. I will do this. I will not do that. I don’t care who gets mad; it’s the right thing to do. I don’t care who gave me money, it’s the right thing to do.”

I know. Incredibly naïve. Hopelessly idealistic. Never going to happen, and all that.

But isn’t it, in our unguarded, raw heart of hearts, what all of us truly want from candidates? If you could wave a wand and turn them all into decisive, plain-speaking, committed people who said what they mean and mean what they say, wouldn’t you?

Of course you would. But in the words of Governor Romney, “If this is a place where I can come and raise money as well as strengthen my political base, I’m going to do it.” And at $1,000 a plate, 100 people showed up to have lunch with him.

MISTAH ROMNEY! YOU’LL BE BACK!

[EternalVigilance]

Well, we need some political leaders like that, post haste, or this republic is in deep trouble. We can not afford faux conservatives in leadership at this time in our history.

[NapkinUser]

Also, can you justify the government telling you that you must own something, or buy something?

[EternalVigilance]

With regards to RomneyCare, I say you just watch and see how it works in Massachusetts and I think you will be surprise how it does.

It's already crumbling.

[Neu Pragmatist]

Who do you recommend ?

[EternalVigilance]

Not Romney.

[WOSG]

This is an uninformed trite rant from a liberal journalist.

Jill is a "A University of California, Santa Barbara graduate in theatre management, ..." has her own uninformed opinions and clearly has it 'out' for conservatives in Idaho (see her New West writings). But did she say anything substantive? Nope.

I heard similar BS about a candidate for Governor of Texas in 1994. .... oh yeah, it was G W Bush.

Romney, like Dan Quayle before him, should take their scorn as a badge of honor.

[WFTR]

It's no wonder that she didn't hear anything from Governor Romney. From the tone of her last few paragraphs, she was too busy wondering why all of the attention wasn't on her.

[NapkinUser]

Is it fair to say that if he had vetoed the AWB legislation that it would have been overidden by the legislature and the pro-gun provisions would have been scrapped?

I really don't know. But is it fair to say he could have signed it without saying this crapola?

“Deadly assault weapons have no place in Massachusetts. 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.”
-Mitt Romney after signing the Massachusetts AWB.

[NathanR]

yes. never saw it, but there was one. they were in the gulf war, not the Korean.

[Neu Pragmatist]

Who then ?

[EternalVigilance]

Well, conservatives in Idaho are none too happy with him either. His support is to be found primarily among LDS members. That's why he was in Boise. That's where they are. And he's going to need traincar loads of their money to keep the hacks he's hired across the country going.

[nowandlater]

Interesting, the recent reports are $175/month instead of the projected $250/month. It looks like market forces are driving the pricing down.

[onyx]

He's a one percent fringer. Think President Alan Keyes.....lol. That was his guy and if the money is right, Keyes will likely run again.

[GSlob]

As the country is at war, I would rather get a good warrior of the anti-PC variety, and if I could get one then I could not care less whether he is a conservative, a faux conservative, or not a conservative at all. First things first.

[EternalVigilance]

You just go right on defending socialized medicine. See where it gets you.

[nowandlater]

Mitt Romney Ran as a Liberal in the 1994 Senate Race Against Ted Kennedy??? WRONG!!!

Some conservative critics of Mitt Romney claim he ran as a liberal in his 1994 campaign against Ted Kennedy for the U.S. Senate. They charge that only within the last two years has Romney attempted to build his conservative credentials in preparation for his run for the Republican nomination for U.S. President in 2008.

However, literature from the Romney campaign in 1994 reveals the truth about Romney's conservative positions on the issues in the Senate race. One campaign flyer unearthed from the 1994 race lists a side-by-side comparison of positions between Romney and Kennedy for 24 election issues. Images of the front and back of the flyer are available on the web. A closeup of the flyer with the candidate comparison on the issues is shown below:

Romney held the solid conservative position for 23 of the 24 issues listed; the only exception being the pledge to maintain the status quo in Massachusetts regarding a woman's right to choose. A pro-choice position in Massachusetts in 1994 was a socially moderate stance accommodating the large majority opinion of voters in the state. In hindsight, it was wrong for a conservative to accommodate a pro-choice stance even in a liberal state, a mistake that Romney freely admits today. However, it's understandable how a first-time candidate and former businessman running a crusade for fiscal conservatism with solid conservative positions on issues of crime, welfare, foreign policy, healthcare, and congressional reform in a very liberal state might accept the status quo on a social issue respecting the constituency he would represent.

[MHGinTN]

The weariest old adages flowed from Romney like so much water. “Look at my wife and me and our family if you want to know our values,” he said. I am astonished that it was you, EV, who posted this despicable piece of sludge journalism. The commonality of being a dedicated family man ought not be a negative for a man's character profile, but this piece of sludge implies it is. And you thought so much of this sewer sludge that you posted it proudly. Despicable ...

[TAdams8591]

"Anybody who has ever called Al Gore “wooden” has never seen Mitt Romney."

The above tells me the writer's judgement is sorely lacking, and thus the entire rest of his piece is suspect. He must not have seen Romney's C-PAC speech.

[Lancey Howard]

holy MOTHER of mercy

[Neu Pragmatist]

It is Mass and there were some good pro-gun parts to that bill. It's not like Romney was instituting the bill for the first time and pushing it down everyones throat . There is no way he could have vetoed that bill and made it go away . I think he took what he could get as far a pro-gun parts and let it ride on through .
This isn't Idaho or Florida we're talking about here .