WASHINGTON – “Barack Obama is the poster child for the arrogance of government,” former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney told a packed and appreciative CPAC audience today.
Romney began his address to the Conservative Political Action Conference on a light note, getting a laugh when he explained Obama was a “good community organizer” for his ability to energize conservatives against him.
Throughout his speech, Romney said his business experience and his experience in politics have established his credentials as a bona fide conservative, and then he committed to the principles of constitutional government.
“I have been on the front lines of conservatism,” he told the CPAC audience, “and I expect to be on the front lines once again.”
He insisted Republicans must draw a strong contrast to Democrats on important policy issues affecting all Americans if Republicans intend to recapture the White House in November.
“We have to tell the nation why we want to win this election,” Romney said. “The election is not about getting enough votes, it’s about saving America. This country we love is in jeopardy.”
Romney said the failure of the Obama administration was a failure of ideology, as he identified himself as a conservative committed to the principles of the nation’s founding documents.
“History will record the Obama administration as the last gasp of failed liberalism in the conservative era to come,” he said. “Barack Obama is wrong. We conservatives do not want just to cling to God and our guns. We also want to cling to the Constitution.”
He championed America as a nation of free people exercising free will who can pursue their lives under their own direction, without relying on government to solve every problem.
“The choice is whether we want government to be of and about Washington or of and by ‘We the People,’” he said. “We conservatives believe in a free people believing in free enterprise.”
He explained that to win in November, he planned to set out a new vision for America.
“Right now, the federal government borrows 42 cents of every dollar. It’s immoral, it’s wrong and under my administration as president, it will come to an end.”
He vowed to balance the federal budget without raising taxes or cutting the military.
“I will start with the easiest budget cut of all,” he said to a standing ovation. “I will cut Obamacare. And if you want the United States to be a declining military power, I’m not your man. You have that president today.”
He vowed to cut the size of federal government and to tie the compensation of government employees to the compensation of workers in the private economy.
“Federal workers should not get a better deal than the working Americans who are paying their salaries,” he pledged.
He committed to reforming Social Security not by adjusting the benefits of those currently retired, but by redesigning the benefits of future retirees.
And he explained that he would reform entitlement programs, including Medicare, by establishing a variety of private savings plans operating in the private economy.
“I spent 25 years balancing budgets, eliminating waste, and staying as far away from government as possible,” he insisted, proclaiming his pride in his business success.
“I cast over 800 vetoes and I erased a $3 billion budget shortfall,” he said of his time as governor of Massachusetts. “Now, I want to get my hands on Washington, D.C.”
Romney spoke about his 42-year marriage with his wife, Ann, and their raising five sons in a family dedicated to belief in God.
“My presidency will be a pro-life policy,” he said. “I will assure that organizations like Planned Parenthood get no more federal support. I will make sure the U.N. funds that support a one-child policy in China get no more United States funding.”
“On my watch, I did my best to prevent Massachusetts from becoming the Las Vegas of gay marriage,” he said, proclaiming his support of the Defense of Marriage Act.
“In Massachusetts, I defended the right of the Catholic Church to pursue their faith by protecting their right to place adopted children into families headed by one mom and one dad.”
His own faith is Mormon.
He contrasted himself from competitor Newt Gingrich, noting that he “has never worked a day in Washington.”
January 27, 2012 at 10:47 am
Bain delivered Domino's turnaround
Romney's equity firm doubled work force and profits, hired Brandon
By Jaclyn Trop
The Detroit News
In 1998, Thomas S. Monaghan, founder and chairman of Domino’s, left, and Mitt Romney, managing director of Bain Capital, sign a sale agreement. (Scott Gries / Associated Press)
Mitt Romney's job record at Bain Capital is drawing scrutiny as the Republican vies for his party's presidential nomination and has put a spotlight on one of Michigan's most well-known companies: Ann Arbor-based Domino'sPizzaInc.
Romney's campaign has talked up Bain's role in resuscitating Domino's. True?
"To me, it's a largely positive story of how a private equity firm helped right a ship and move it in a direction that not only created wealth but added jobs," said Tom Gordy, senior managing director at Variant Capital Advisors LLC, an investment banking firm in Birmingham.
Domino's was the only Michigan company in which Massachusetts-based Bain directly invested during Romney's reign at the firm he co-founded in 1984 and ran as CEO. Romney was at Bain for one year of its 12-year investment in Domino's. Private equity firms raise money from investors to buy or acquire significant stakes in private companies they think they can better manage and make money on.
Romney says Bain created more than 100,000 jobs at companies in which it invested. He highlights Domino's as well as Sports Authority and Staples — non-Michigan companies with stores here — as fueling significant employment growth.
Romney's tally, which included 7,900 more jobs at the pizza delivery company, may not include job losses from other investments and is impossible to verify, according to online FactCheck.org and the Washington Post.
Bain bought the 93 percent ownership stake in Domino's from its founder, Tom Monaghan, in December 1998. Romney left Bain in February 1999 but not before Bain tapped David Brandon as Domino's CEO. The Boston private equity firm relinquished ownership with an initial public offering of stock in July 2004, but kept a significant minority stake in Domino's. It divested its remaining 15 percent stake in November 2010, according to Domino's.
Democrats and some Republicans — including Romney's presidential primary rival, Newt Gingrich — blast Romney and Bain as "exploitative" investors. Last week, U.S. Rep. John Dingell, D-Dearborn, said Romney's tenure at Bain "shows us that his goal was to make money for his investors while giving out pink slips."
But supporters and private equity experts argue Bain Capital strengthened Domino's business.
Domino's doubled its work force, sales and profits since Bain purchased a $1.1 billion controlling stake, said Brandon, who led Domino's turnaround after leaving Livonia's Valassis Communications Inc.
In March 2010, after 11 years, Brandon departed Domino's to become the athletic director at the University of Michigan.
A year after Brandon took over, Domino's reported a more than 1,000 percent increase in profit, to $25 million, in 2000.
"I am proud of the results we have achieved in reducing our costs. I am proud of our continued progress in net store growth," Brandon said then in the annual earnings statement, but added he was dissatisfied with flat growth in domestic same store sales.
In 2000, Brandon eliminated 100 jobs and jettisoned scores of underperforming stores.
"Innovation isn't always pretty," said David Brophy, director of the Center for Venture Capital and Private Equity at the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business.
"That's the way our economy grows. You've got to break eggs to make omelets."
As profits continued to grow, Bain took the company public in July 2004, but sold its first shares at $14 instead of the $15 to $17 it anticipated. Domino's shares closed Thursday at $32.20.
The onset of the national recession in 2008 cut profits and helped trigger a plunge in domestic sales. Domino's executives also determined their pizzas had become stale and two years ago successfully reinvented its pizza recipe and public image with an aggressive marketing approach.
Now, "the company is literally twice as large as when they (Bain) bought it in terms of sales, number of stores and employees," Brandon said. "We're more than double in profitability."
But opponents continue to bore in on Romney's private equity record. The Democratic National Committee aired a television ad this month declaring "Mitt Romney has a record of destroying the economic lives of companies, individuals and entire communities as a corporate buyout specialist."
The commercial showed clips from Republicans such as former presidential candidate and current Texas Gov. Rick Perry, who labeled Romney a "vulture capitalist" and subsequently endorsed Gingrich.
Bain and the Romney campaign did not respond to The Detroit News' requests for comment for this report. Brandon, a Republican, defended Bain.
"Politics is politics, and it's mean, it's nasty and it's cruel," Brandon said. "But as it relates to Bain Capital, they just don't deserve to be dragged through the mud. It's grossly unfair."
Bain allowed Brandon to invest in growing Domino's, which opened thousands of new shops and pumped $20 million into its Ann Arbor headquarters "at a time when many of the Michigan-based companies were looking elsewhere for their headquarters," he said.
The firm also invested tens of millions of dollars in Domino's Web-based infrastructure, which accounts for a quarter of the firm's orders worldwide, Brandon said.
Mitt Romney likely to far outspend Newt Gingrich on Florida TV ads
By T.W. Farnam, Wednesday, January 25, 3:50 PMUpdated: Wednesday, January 25, 6:09 PM
Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich is getting a
boost from a pair of wealthy benefactors, but he’s still likely to get
drastically outspent on television ads in Florida.
Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney’s campaign and a
“super PAC” are spending more than twice as much on television as
Gingrich and the super PAC backing him, according to figures from a
Republican media buyer.
Romney had a similar advantage on the air in South Carolina, but television is likely to have a much bigger effect on the Florida primary
on Tuesday. Florida, the fourth most populous state, is more than four
times as large as South Carolina, and the vast majority of the expected 2
million Republican voters there will only see the candidates in a
mediated format.
The question looming over the contest is whether
Gingrich can use his debate performances and media coverage to make up
for the disparity in paid advertising.
Romney and the PAC, called
Restore Our Future, are once again focused squarely on Gingrich’s
character and record. The last time the former House speaker had such
dramatic momentum in the polls, he lost it amid a flood of negative
advertising in Iowa from Romney’s super PAC.
“Gingrich came up,
and they nailed him with paid media in Iowa,” said Ken Goldstein, who
tracks political advertising for Kantar Media’s Campaign Media Analysis
Group. “Now he’s got more momentum. Are they going to be able to knock
him back down again?”
Figures from Kantar show that 80 percent of broadcast spending by the Romney super PAC in Florida has been on negative ads targeting Gingrich.
The
super PAC backing Romney has been on the air in Florida for five weeks,
and Romney’s campaign has been there three weeks. Gingrich’s campaign
and super PAC went on the air this week.
Romney’s campaign began
running its first negative ad Tuesday, hitting Gingrich for work he did
for mortgage company Freddie Mac. The Romney super PAC also has a new ad hitting Gingrich for tying himself to former president Ronald Reagan, saying that Gingrich was mentioned only once in Reagan’s diaries.
Gingrich’s
super PAC, Winning Our Future, released its first ad in the state
focused on the health-care law Romney passed in Massachusetts. The spot
repeats a pixelated video of Romney saying, “I’m someone who is
moderate, and my views are progressive.”
The ad is being funded by a $5 million donation from Miriam Adelson, wife of billionaire casino executive Sheldon Adelson, who himself gave $5 million to back Gingrich early in January.
Gingrich’s
super PAC has said it’s placing a $6 million ad buy in Florida, about
the same amount as Romney’s campaign so far. But the super PAC backing
Romney is expected to spend an additional $9 million in Florida.
Gingrich’s campaign has bought only a negligible amount of air time to
date.
Staff writer Rachel Weiner contributed to this report.
Romney, Santorum Square off Over Felons Voting
By KASIE HUNT and THOMAS BEAUMONT Associated Press
FLORENCE, S.C. January 17, 2012 (AP)
Seeking to protect his standing here, Republican presidential
front-runner Mitt Romney on Tuesday assailed challenger Rick Santorum's
record on voting rights for felons, an issue that resonates strongly
with conservatives. Santorum separately argued that the former
Massachusetts governor "promotes lies" as the two intensified their
dispute from the previous night's GOP debate.
"We have a candidate who's not going to stand up and tell the truth,"
Santorum told reporters in Charleston, complaining that Romney refuses
to condemn TV ads run by his supporters. "That leads to real serious
questions about whether that man can be trusted to tell the truth on a
variety of things."
But Romney, speaking separately in Florence, defended the accuracy of
the ads in question, although he maintains he has no control over the
negative commercials by outside groups that are flooding South Carolina
in the days leading to Saturday's Republican primary.
"I hear that Rick Santorum is very animated that the super PAC ad says
that he is very in favor of felons voting," Romney said. "Well, he is!
That's his position."
While Santorum complained about the negative commercials during Monday's
debate, Romney's three other challengers also tried a host of other
attacks in hopes of knocking the former Massachusetts governor off
stride.
They kept the spotlight on the multimillionaire's wealth and business
dealings by pressing him to release his income tax returns. Romney
hesitated but eventually said he might make them public in April. By
then, he hopes to have the presidential nomination in the bag.
Speaking to reporters Tuesday, Romney seemed to qualify that even
farther, suggesting that he would release just one year of his tax
returns — not the six previous years that President Obama released or
even the two years that John McCain released in 2008. "People will want
to see the most recent year," Romney said.
Romney also came under heavy pressure in the debate on the issue of his
job-creation record at his former private equity firm Bain Capital, and
his evolving views on abortion. Blamed for the tide of negative
commercials, Romney stressed the independence of the super PACs that
have been running ads in his behalf against Santorum, former House
Speaker Newt Gingrich and other rivals.
On Tuesday, Santorum said that by refusing to condemn the ads, Romney
"supports lies, promotes lies and stands behind those lies."
Santorum was upset about an ad that says he "even voted to let convicted
felons vote." Santorum complained that the TV spot, while referring to
"felons," shows someone in an orange prison jumpsuit, suggesting
Santorum would allow felons to vote while still incarcerated. Santorum
has supported voting rights only for those who have served their
sentences and been released.
But Romney noted that "people who have been released from prison are still called felons if they've committed felonies."
Meanwhile, Gingrich picked up the support of South Carolina Lt. Gov. Ken
Ard, who appeared with him in Florence, calling the former U.S. House
speaker the smartest and toughest candidate. Romney already has the more
coveted endorsement of Gov. Nikki Haley, a tea party favorite, however.
Monday's night's debate was as fiery as any of the more than dozen that
preceded it. Romney, the man to beat after back-to-back wins in the Iowa
caucuses and the New Hampshire primary, took heat not only from
Gingrich and Santorum, but also from Rick Perry and Ron Paul.
The five will meet again in debate in Charleston Thursday night, the
last time they will share a stage before the primary two days later.
Monday night, Romney said that while he might be willing to release his
tax returns, he wouldn't do so until tax filing time. The
multimillionaire former businessman didn't get much gratitude from his
rivals, who want him to release the information in time to influence
South Carolina voters going to the polls on Saturday.
Gingrich was quick to suggest Romney wouldn't delay for months if he had
nothing to hide and that his hesitation wouldn't sit well with voters.
"Last night weakened him," Gingrich told CBS' "This Morning" on
Tuesday.
Romney seemed hesitant when confronted with the tax issue on stage. He
at first sidestepped calls from his rivals to release his returns, then
said later that he'd follow the lead of previous presidential
candidates.
"I have nothing in them that suggests there's any problem and I'm happy
to do so," he said. "I sort of feel like we're showing a lot of exposure
at this point," he added.
The first Southern primary could prove decisive in the volatile contest.
Gingrich has virtually conceded that a victory for Romney in South
Carolina would assure his nomination as Democratic President Barack
Obama's Republican rival in the fall, and none of the other remaining
contenders has challenged that conclusion.
That only elevated the stakes for Monday night's debate, where the attacks on Romney often were couched in anti-Obama rhetoric.
"We need to satisfy the country that whoever we nominate has a record
that can stand up to Barack Obama in a very effective way," said
Gingrich.
The five men on stage also sought to outdo one another in calling for
lower taxes. Texas Rep. Ron Paul won that competition handily, saying he
thought the top personal tax rate should be zero.
In South Carolina, a state with a heavy military presence, the debate took on a martial tone at times.
Gingrich drew strong applause when he said: "Andrew Jackson had a pretty clear idea about America's enemies. Kill them."
Perry won favor from the crowd when he said the Obama administration had
overreacted in its criticism of the four Marines who were videotaped
urinating on corpses in Afghanistan.
Gingrich and Perry led the assault against Romney's record at Bain
Capital, a private equity firm that bought companies and sought to
remake them into more competitive enterprises, with uneven results.
"There was a pattern in some companies ... of leaving them with enormous
debt and then within a year or two or three having them go broke,"
Gingrich said. "I think that's something he ought to answer."
Perry referred to a steel mill in Georgetown, S.C., where, he said,
"Bain swept in, they picked that company over and a lot of people lost
jobs there."
Romney said the steel industry was battered by unfair competition from
China. As for other firms, he said, "Four of the companies that we
invested in ... ended up today having some 120,000 jobs." And he
acknowledged, "Some of the businesses we invested in were not successful
and lost jobs."
It was Perry who challenged Romney to release his income tax returns.
The Texas governor said he has already done so, and Gingrich has said he
will do likewise later in the week.
"Mitt, we need for you to release your income tax so the people of this
country can see how you made your money. ... We cannot fire our nominee
in September. We need to know now," Perry said.
Later, a debate moderator pressed Romney on releasing his tax returns. His response meandered.
"If that's been the tradition I'm not opposed to doing that," Romney
said. "Time will tell. But I anticipate that most likely I'm going to
get asked to do that in the April time period and I'll keep that open."
Prodded again, he said, "If I become our nominee ... what's happened in
history is people have released them in about April of the coming year,
and that's probably what I'd do."
April is long after the South Carolina primary and the Republican
nomination could easily be all but decided by then, following Super
Tuesday contests around the country in March.
Mitt Romney's new ad in New Hampshire targets Obama
Mitt Romney speaks at a
campaign event outside the city hall in Nashua, N.H., on Sunday.
(Winslow Townson / Associated Press / November 20, 2011)
November 21, 2011, 10:55 a.m.
Mitt Romney
will launch his first paid television advertisement in New Hampshire on
Tuesday, rebuking Barack Obama just as the president is set to visit
the state for the first time in nearly two years.
In an interview with
Fox News Channel's Sean Hannity
set to air Monday evening, Romney says the spot will remind Granite
State voters of the promises Obama made to them as a candidate.
"The contrast between what he
said and what he did is so stark, people will recognize we really do
need to have someone new lead this country," Romney said, according to
excerpts released by the network.
Romney has spent the last three days in the nation's first primary
state, announcing endorsements from two of the state's top elected
Republicans -- Sen. Kelly Ayotte and Rep. Charlie Bass.
Polls have long shown Romney to be the frontrunner in New Hampshire,
though the gap appears to be narrowing with just 50 days until the
state's primary. Still, the ad shows Romney is keeping his focus on a
potential general election matchup with Obama rather than engaging
directly with Republican rivals.
Romney told Hannity that he is simply returning fire; the Romney
campaign says Obama and his campaign team have an "obsession" with the
Republican.
"One of his advisors said their strategy will be to kill Romney," the
presidential hopeful said. "He can't talk about his record and get
reelected. So what he'll do is try and assassinate, on a character
basis, his opponents and his opposition. I'm hoping that's me, but I'm
not looking forward to those attacks."
New Hampshire is "critical" to his campaign, Romney said, but he'll also "campaign aggressively" in the other early states.
"New Hampshire shouts when it comes to deciding who our nominee will
be," he said. "I want to win here in -- in New Hampshire. Heck, I'd
like to win everywhere. ... I want to get the nomination. I'm going to
do what it takes to get the nomination."
The White House
said Monday that Obama will meet with a New Hampshire family during his
trip to Manchester, and urge Congress to extend the payroll tax
holiday.
Obama's last event in New Hampshire was in February of 2010, when he was
pitching his healthcare reform plan. He has since spent considerably
more time in other, more electorally rich general election
battlegrounds.
A Bloomberg News poll released last week showed Romney leading Obama 50%
to 40% in a hypothetical general election matchup in New Hampshire.
Bloomberg
Romney Campaign Said to Raise Up to $14 Million in Quarter
September 30, 2011, 5:07 PM EDT
By Kristin Jensen and Julie Hirschfeld Davis
Sept. 30 (Bloomberg) -- Former Massachusetts
Governor Mitt Romney anticipates taking in between $13 million and $14
million in the third quarter for his presidential campaign, according to
a person close to the campaign.
The total is still being tallied for the period
that ends today, and may vary depending on proceeds from New York
fundraisers, said the person who spoke on condition of anonymity because
the campaign hasn’t authorized disclosure of figures.
Polls show Romney and Texas Governor Rick Perry
are the frontrunners for the Republican presidential nomination, and the
so-called money primary may provide momentum for one of their
candidacies.
Ryan Williams, a Romney campaign spokesman,
wouldn’t comment on specific fundraising estimates, saying only that
officials expect to bring in “considerably less” than the $18 million
haul from the second quarter.
Because Perry is the governor of a large state, a
former Republican Governors Association chairman and a new candidate,
“we suspect he will lead the Republican field in fundraising for this
quarter,” Williams said in an e-mail.
Perry Goal
Perry will raise at least $10 million, according
to a person close to the campaign; that would put his fundraising
strength near parity with Romney in the third quarter. As Perry has
slipped in polls after being attacked in back-to-back debates, it
remains to be seen if his fundraising operation can grow in the next
quarter.
Another person close to the campaign said Perry
was able to raise the first $10 million fairly easily, much of it from
his home state. The pace began to slow as questions surfaced about his
positions, particularly on immigration, this person said. The two people
spoke on condition of anonymity because the campaign hasn’t authorized
release of fundraising information.
Perry backed a state law that provided
discounted, in-state college tuition to children of illegal immigrants, a
stance widely criticized by his opponents.
Steffen W. Schmidt, a political science professor
at Iowa State University, said the pressure on Perry to produce a
competitive fundraising sum is heightened by continued speculation about
the presidential intentions of New Jersey Republican Governor Chris
Christie.
‘Christie Fever’
“Perry needs to squash ‘Christie fever,’” he
said. “It is a killer for Perry, that even with him in the race, the GOP
is still looking. If I was a Republican fat cat, I would sit on my
political money until the dust settles.”
Texas Representative Ron Paul, another Republican
contender, raised more than $5 million in the period, said Campaign
Chairman Jesse Benton in an interview. That tops the $4.5 million Paul
brought in last quarter.
Herman Cain, a businessman who beat Perry in the
Sept. 24 straw poll in Florida, today sent out a tweet declaring his
“best fundraising week....ever! THANK YOU! Let’s finish Q3 strong!” Cain
raised almost $2.5 million in the second quarter, which ended June 30.
His campaign couldn’t be reached for comment.
Representative Michele Bachmann of Minnesota also
sent out a fundraising appeal today, urging her supporters to send
money to prove she’s a viable candidate.
Washington ‘Elite’
“The Washington ‘elite’ are chomping at the bit
to see the numbers our campaign reports,” she wrote. “I need your
support today more than ever.”
Former Utah Governor Jon Huntsman, who has
struggled with fundraising and in the polls, donated $500,000 to his
campaign during the quarter. His campaign this week also shuttered its
Orlando, Florida, headquarters to save money and invest more in New
Hampshire. Huntsman has said a strong performance in New Hampshire’s
first-in-the-nation primary is critical to his presidential aspirations.
“New Hampshire’s always been our top priority,”
said Tom Miller, Huntsman’s spokesman. “We need to be successful in New
Hampshire to make sure we have a head of steam to compete successfully”
elsewhere. The decision to leave Florida reflects “recent poll numbers
showing movement in New Hampshire, and the fact that we wanted to
reallocate our resources to take advantage of that,” he said.
All the Republicans will probably lag behind
President Barack Obama, a Democrat. He raised $86 million for the
combined total of his campaign and the Democratic National Committee in
the second quarter. The campaign and party are targeting a combined goal
of $55 million for the third quarter.
Obama’s campaign spokesman, Ben LaBolt, declined to comment on specific figures for the quarter.
Buffett Headliner
In a last push before tonight’s midnight deadline
for the quarter, Obama is speaking at a campaign event at a private
residence in Washington. Donors also will gather at a private event in
New York tonight hosted by billionaire Warren Buffett, 81, the chairman
and chief executive officer of Berkshire Hathaway Inc.
The Buffett event will be held at the Four
Seasons restaurant and will feature an economic discussion led by Austan
Goolsbee, a former Obama economic adviser now at the University of
Chicago Booth School of Business. The event is sold out, with about 100
people expected to attend the $10,000-a-ticket session.
Romney has raised more than twice as much money
from Wall Street as Obama, an edge gained in part by luring away at
least 100 donors, mostly investors, who backed the president in 2008,
according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
In 2008, Obama received $15 million from
employees in the securities and investment industry, more than any other
candidate, according to the center. Romney received $5 million. Some
donors who gave to Obama during his 2008 race also gave to Romney or
other Republicans.
--With assistance from Kate Andersen Brower and Jonathan D. Salant in Washington. Editors: Jeanne Cummings, Jim Rubin.
To contact the reporters on this story: Kristin Jensen in Washington
at kjensen@bloomberg.net; Julie Hirschfeld Davis in Washington at
jdavis159@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Mark Silva at msilva34@bloomberg.net
August 13th, 2011
10:34 AM ET
Romney sees political gain in controversial remark
Manchester, New Hampshire (CNN)
– Mitt Romney is doubling down on a remark he made this week equating
big business to everyday people, hoping to use it as a differentiator
between himself and President Obama on the top issue facing the nation:
the ailing economy.
Romney's response that "corporations are people" to a liberal heckler
during an exchange over fiscal policy at the Iowa State Fair Thursday
immediately lit up the blogosphere and was shown repeatedly on cable
television. Even the Democratic National Committee jumped on the comment
and saw its own political gold in trying to score points against a
leading contender for the GOP nomination. The DNC released a 30 second
television ad on Saturday morning blasting Romney for it.
But Romney, a successful businessman whose primary campaign message is
focused on turning around the economy, is embracing the comment on the
campaign stump and in fundraising appeals.
"Look at your paycheck there is the name of a business on there
that's paying for your salary," Romney said after addressing about 250
people Friday evening in this New Hampshire city. "Look at your 401k and
see the names of businesses that your part owner of. Businesses are
comprised of people and it's amazing to me that the Democrats and
President Obama are so far behind the times."
Romney added that he found it "pretty astonishing that the Obama folks would try and argue that businesses aren't people.
"What do they think they are little men from Mars? Businesses are comprised of people."
As Romney continues to pound this theme on the campaign trail, his
top campaign aides are engaging in a full court press fundraising effort
highlighting it. Within hours of his "corporations are people" comment,
Romney campaign manager Matt Rhoades sent out a fundraising email
describing it as a "defining moment." In the first 24 hours, the
campaign had raised more than $25,000 from this pitch, communications
director Gail Gitcho said. And the campaign plans to expand the pitch
pushing this message in the form of a national direct mail piece.
By embracing this comment and theme, the Romney campaign is clearly
hoping to drive a wedge between the business community and Obama at the
same time using this "defining moment" to further highlight Romney's
business background for undecided Republican and independent voters.
Romney Blows Off Tea Party with Debate Snub
Monday, 18 Jul 2011 06:21 PM
By David A. Patten
Presidential contender Mitt Romney’s decision to opt out of the first-ever presidential debate via Twitter, to be held this Wednesday at 3 p.m. Eastern, appears to be further alienating him from the GOP’s grass-roots conservatives.
Todd Cefaratti, head of TheTeaParty.net group that is hosting the event, tells Newsmax Romney’s non-participation is “just another thorn” in his relationship with grass-roots conservatives.
Romney is the only candidate to decline the invitation outright, according to Cefaratti.
“There are a lot of disgruntled conservatives out there regarding Mitt Romney,” comments Cefaratti. “Him bowing out of our debate is just another thorn.
“Why wouldn’t he be involved in our debate?” Cefaratti said. “He’s definitely not scoring any points -- and there’s definitely that opportunity out there.”
Cefaratti says the governor’s staff has indicated they are worried he may not adequately be able to convey his views over Twitter due to its limitation of 140 characters per response.
But Cefaratti tells Newsmax that the debate rules allow candidates to issue as many responses as they want to a single question, as long as they do not exceed their two-minute-per-question response time.
Participating candidates include: Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann, business executive and talk host Herman Cain, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, former New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson, Michigan Rep. Thaddeus McCotter, former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum.
Two other candidates, Rep. Ron Paul and Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman, have yet to accept the organization’s invitation. Cefaratti says he is hoping they will join as late additions.
Wednesday’s debate will be hosted by nationally syndicated talk-radio host Rusty Humphries, whose show airs on SiriusXM as well as 250 stations nationwide.
"What an honor to be involved in something with such historical importance,” Humphries stated in a news release. “Direct access to our leaders is what our founders envisioned, and this ‘Twitter debate’ is exactly what our Republic needs at this time. I can't wait to see what a politician can say in 140 characters."
Some commentators hope the abbreviated format will force the candidates to abandon the spin and nuance that often makes it difficult to understand what their responses actually mean.
Columnist and commentator S.E. Cupp also will help moderate the debate, which will illustrate the growing importance of social media in political campaigns.
Voters interested in participating can log onto the organization’s website, TheTeaParty.net, to suggest a question for the candidates. They can also watch the event stream online at 140Townhall.com.
According to some analysts, Romney’s decision to forgo the debate is another signal his campaign does not envision a concerted appeal to the grass-roots, which already is highly skeptical of Romney due to his support in Massachusetts for healthcare reforms similar in some respects to the president’s Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
Democratic pollster, Fox News contributor, and Newsmax magazine columnist Doug Schoen says that Romney may be distancing himself from the tea parties out of concern they could become radioactive due to the ongoing battle over the debt ceiling. He adds they weren’t particularly inclined to support him anyway.
“He sees where the tea parties are going with the deficit, and rightly believes their approach could damage him in the general election,” Schoen tells Newsmax. “His play is for moderates -- and let everyone else split the conservative/tea party constituency.”
The TeaParty.net was founded in 2009 and sees its role as facilitating the grass-roots organizational efforts of others. It embraces the core tea party values of smaller government, less taxes, and constitutional governance, and is more interested in growing grow the movement than in espousing its own views, Cefaratti says.
The organization is represented on Capitol Hill by BrainTrain’s Donna Wiesner Keene, who is the wife of David Keene, former CPAC chief and current president of the National Rifle Association.
Cefaratti tells Newsmax his organization expects to have an opt-in e-mail list of some 2 million names by Election Day 2012. He credits its Rally Congress software with giving grass-roots efforts a major boost on Capitol Hill.
A few weeks ago, Rep Darrell Issa, R-Calif., asked TheTeaParty.net to support The Postal Reform Act, which sets up supervisory boards that would trim the U.S. Postal Service’s deficit, currently over $8 billion per year. Cefaratti put up a banner on TheTeaParty.net site to do just that. Based on zip code, the software automatically directs a message to the voter’s congressional representatives.
“Your representative has to answer to you, they can’t filter them out,” Cefaratti explains.
So far over 80,000 e-mails, letters, and faxes have gone out to urge the passage of The Postal Reform Act, he says.
“My assistant and I were sitting there laughing because it was like that commercial where you watch how many people are logged on and doing it, and it was spinning, we had like 12,000 in like 30 minutes,” Cefaratti says.
ALLENTOWN, Penn., June 30 (Reuters) - Republican White House hopeful
Mitt Romney accused President Barack Obama on Thursday of failing to
understand how to fix the U.S. economy and urged him to focus on jobs instead of playing golf.
"Obamanomics is not working," Romney said, standing in a
weed-strewn back entrance to the shuttered American Metal Works
plant Obama had visited in 2009 as a potential symbol of
economic renewal. It closed early this year.
Taking aim at an issue that could be Obama's key vulnerability in the 2012 election, Romney also launched a 40-second Web video blaming the Democratic president's economic policies for 100,000 job losses in Pennsylvania.
Romney, arguably the front-runner in the field of
candidates competing for the 2012 Republican presidential
nomination, said Obama is not sufficiently focusing his
attention on the economy.
This is a view with which the White House would strongly
disagree. Obama repeatedly says he is working every day on the
economy and ways to reduce the 9.1 percent jobless rate after
the worst recession since the Great Depression.
Romney, who says his business experience makes him ideal to
turn the economy around, visited Allentown on a day Obama was
raising money elsewhere in Pennsylvania, a state that went for
the president in the 2008 election.
"The president is a nice guy and I know he's trying, but he
doesn't understand how the economy works. He doesn't know what
it takes to create jobs," he said.
Romney, a former governor of Massachusetts and businessman, said Obama
should instead be back in Washington working on the economy and
negotiating a debt deal with Republicans and Democrats.
DEFAULT IN AUGUST
This was Romney's rejoinder to Obama's accusations
on Wednesday that Republicans are taking too much time off
without working on a deal to avert a government debt default on
Aug. 2.
"The president's time is being focused on playing golf and
campaigning, campaigning in Pennsylvania today, and blaming. He
should be spending his time and his energy working on getting
Americans back to work and fixing this economy," Romney said.
Obama has played dozens of rounds of golf on weekends as a
stress reliever from his high-pressure job and recently played
a round with the top Republican in Washington, House of
Representatives Speaker John Boehner, to try to get to know him
better.
The U.S. economy and joblessness are considered among
Obama's main weaknesses in his re-election effort.
Romney is trying to promote himself as an economics-savvy
jobs creator.
Obama's victory in Pennsylvania in 2008 was instrumental in
his presidential election victory. The state could be pivotal
again in his 2012 re-election campaign.
The state has recently shown signs of favoring Republicans,
partly as a result of the conservative Tea Party movement that
helped Republican Pat Toomey win election to the U.S. Senate in
2010.
Bob Toth, an Allentown City Council candidate who attended
the Romney event, said Allentown is tough for those looking for
work.
"I just graduated from college in May. I can't get a single
$20,000 a year job ... I can't even secure an interview
anywhere," he said.
Theresa Texter also said times are tough. She works at
McDonald's, but got cut back from five days a week to two.
When people look for work, she said, they run into
situations where "there are two slots and 500 people applying
for them."
Romney Knocks GOP Rivals, Obama, on Heels
Monday, 13 Jun 2011 12:21 PM
By Dan Weil
For weeks, Republican presidential front-runner Mitt Romney couldn’t get no respect, to borrow deceased comedian Rodney Dangerfield’s classic line.
Many party members complained that a field with Romney in the lead lacked punch. But that view may change soon, as Politico reports.
Potential competitors have fallen to the wayside. Romney snapped up $10 million of cash in a fundraising spree that lasted less than two days. A poll last week from ABC News/Washington Post showed Romney leading President Barack Obama by 3 percentage points.
“Romney has clearly solidified his role as the front-runner. He’s shown that money is not going to be an issue, and he’s made some strategic decisions on the early states,” Republican strategist Scott Reed, who advised Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour on a possible run, told Politico.
“He got a nice bump out of the combination of the announcement and the jobs news that reinforced his campaign message: Obama has made things worse.”
Meanwhile, a new CNN/Opinion Research Corp. poll shows that 24 percent of Republican voters nationwide support Romney.
Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin came in second with 20 percent, followed by former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani with 12 percent, former Godfather’s Pizza CEO Herman Cain and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich with 10 percent, and Texas Rep. Ron Paul with 7 percent.
"For Romney, his official announcement of his candidacy June 2 moved him to the top of the GOP list, up nine points from a CNN poll conducted late last month," said CNN Polling Director Keating Holland.
"Palin took the opposite tack, acting like a candidate but staying far away from any official declaration . . . [Still,] her well-publicized bus tour from the nation's capital to the Northeast made her share of the GOP vote grow seven points from late May."
Another poll, from USA Today/Gallup , also shows Romney with 24 percent support from Republicans (as of June 8-11), up from 17 percent in late May.
Palin took second with 16 percent, up from 15 percent in late May; Cain placed third with 9 percent, up from 8 percent; Ron Paul came in fourth with 7 percent, down from 10 percent; and Tim Pawlenty was fifth at 6 percent, unchanged.
Romney’s lead is the biggest Gallup has measured for any candidate since beginning its Republican presidential polls in September.
“Romney may be emerging as a front-runner in a GOP race that has been characterized to date by its lack of a leading candidate,” writes Gallup’s Jeffrey Jones. “Republican nomination contests usually have a clear front-runner, and that candidate often goes on to win.”
Yet another survey, from Public Policy Polling, shows Romney running neck and neck with President Barack Obama in the key electoral state of North Carolina.
The survey has Obama leading by 45 percent to 44 percent over Romney, 47 percent to 40 percent over former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, 50 percent to 40 percent over Gingrich, 48 to 37 percent over Cain, and 52 percent to 38 percent over Palin.
The bad news for Republicans in this poll is that they all have negative spreads measuring their favorability vs. unfavorability ratings. Romney stands at 35 percent favorable and 44 percent unfavorable, Cain at 20/28, Pawlenty at 23/37, Palin at 31/62, and Gingrich at 23/58.
As for the Romney campaign trail, he launched a new Web video today, entitled “Bump in the Road,” that presents an economy in crisis.
During the video, text appears reading: “Millions Have Lost Their Jobs Under President Obama. Long Term Unemployment Is Now Worse Than The Great Depression. June 3, 2011: Unemployment Hit 9.1 percent. President Obama Called It A Bump In The Road.”
Then there’s audio of Obama saying, “There are always going to be bumps on the road to recovery.” That is followed by a group of 11 people, each saying “I’m an American, not a bump in the road.”
A novice no more, Romney focuses on Obama, economy
AP – Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and his wife, Ann,
arrive at the Carroll County Republican Committee …
By LIZ SIDOTI, AP National Political Writer Liz Sidoti, Ap National Political Writer
– 3/6/11
BARTLETT, N.H. – This time, Mitt Romney has a clear
pitch: I'm the strongest Republican to challenge President Barack Obama
on the country's single biggest issue — the economy.
"He created a deeper recession, and delayed the
recovery," Romney said Saturday, previewing his campaign message before
Republicans in this influential early nominating state.
"The consequence is soaring numbers of Americans
enduring unemployment, foreclosures and bankruptcies. This is the Obama
Misery Index, and it is at a record high."
"It's going to take more than new rhetoric to put Americans back to work
— it's going to take a new president," said the former businessman and
Massachusetts governor, essentially offering himself up as the best — if
not only — solution.
But will GOP primary voters buy it?
Specifically, will this argument from the once-failed
GOP presidential candidate be strong enough to convince conservatives
who dominate the nominating contests that they should overlook their
unease about him: his signing of a Massachusetts health care law similar
to Obama's unpopular nationwide one, as well as his reversals on social
issues and his Mormonism?
This is the central question of Romney's all-but-announced second White House bid.
An answer will come over the next year.
He's virtually certain to enter the race this spring, though campaign signs posted along the road leading to the New Hampshire hotel
where he spoke this weekend may have gotten a bit ahead of him. They
said "Mitt Romney for President" and suggested this theme: "True
Strength for America's Future."
He and his aides insisted they were leftovers from 2008.
Never mind the other signs: Romney lapel pins in the
shape of New Hampshire. They dotted the audience, and at least one
adviser was overheard all but confirming to attendees that Romney was
running again.
In his first campaign, Romney struggled to explain to
Republicans why he would give the party the best chance to win the
White House.
He never settled on a single campaign message. He
embraced social issues even though financial ones were his forte. He
picked big and small fights with opponents — specifically front-runner
John McCain. He floundered as he tried to convince voters that he was a
hard-core conservative, even though he had governed a Democratic bastion
as a moderate.
Today, Romney is a different candidate in a different time.
Back then, he was little known and fighting to be
heard. Now, he weighs in on the national debate only when he has
something to say. He's the closest thing to a front-runner in a GOP
field that lacks one.
It's a blessing that he's universally known. It may be a curse because GOP opponents are likely to come after him hard.
In the last race, the top issues — war and
immigration — didn't play to his strengths. Now, stubbornly high
unemployment, slow economic growth and budget-busting deficits are
voters' chief worries.
It's no doubt a much better fit for this successful
businessman who co-founded a venture capital firm and helped rescue
failing companies.
In the 2008 campaign, Romney stood out by relentlessly attacking McCain
and other opponents. He struggled to outline what he stood for and how
he would govern. Now, he's focused on assailing Obama on the economy as
well as selling his own credentials and ideas for long-term prosperity.
In doing so, he's drawing a more subtle contrast with his GOP
challengers.
Compared with the feeling-his-way campaign of 2008, Romney's advisers
say writing his book "No Apology: The Case for American Greatness"
helped him focus on the topics he cares most about and crystalized his
thinking about running for president.
But there's this political reality: Romney's best chance to win the
nomination rests with economic issues, and the remnants of the recession
give him the chance to emphasize his business credentials. He can't let
the race again be defined by cultural topics or he risks losing because
many conservatives still don't trust the sincerity of his conversions
on gay rights, abortion and other issues.
His appearance Saturday night at the Carroll County Lincoln Day Dinner
at a northern New Hampshire hotel both provided a template for his
upcoming campaign and showed how Romney has evolved as a candidate.
Scripted to the point of coming off as stiff in his first run, Romney
now is clearly more comfortable doing the retail politicking that
primary voters demand. He worked the room with ease, shaking hands and
chatting up well-wishers with an almost neighborly air. His tie — ever
present in 2008 — was gone. His hair — always perfectly coifed — flopped
over his forehead.
And he didn't seem to care.
With his wife, Ann, by his side, Romney took the stage and immediately
deviated from his prepared remarks to share a few lighthearted stories
about living part time in the state. He reminisced about his last
campaign in New Hampshire. He noted that his wife was trying to push him
to run.
"When we were driving in here, we saw these old Romney for president
signs ... I don't know where they came from," Romney said. Then he joked
that his wife may have pulled them from his garage.
Then he launched into what can only be described the central case for a candidacy.
"I like President Obama, but he doesn't have a clue how jobs are
created," Romney said, noting that Obama has never run a business.
Romney reminded his audience that he spent much of his life in the private sector. "I know how jobs are created and how jobs are lost. I have helped guide more than one enterprise that was in crisis."
He said "turnarounds work when the leader focuses on what's most
important." He then tried to make the case that Obama did just the
opposite.
"He delegated the jobs crisis to (Democratic congressional leaders)
Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid and he went to work on his own liberal
priorities," including a climate change plan and a health care overhaul.
"The next president must focus on what's most important: getting
Americans back to work."
Romney explained what he said he stood for: lower taxes for companies, a
smaller bureaucracy, a ceiling on federal spending. He called for
repealing the health overhaul that conservatives view as a symbol of costly government overreach.
The issue is an obvious political vulnerability for Romney; Obama's law
was modeled in some ways after one that Romney signed in Massachusetts.
Romney addressed it head-on with an argument voters are likely to hear often.
"Our experiment wasn't perfect — some things worked, some didn't, and
some things I'd change," he said. But, he added, "One thing I would
never do is to usurp the constitutional power of states with a
one-size-fits-all federal takeover."
It's not his only hurdle.
Many conservatives, particularly in Iowa and South Carolina, still view
his religion skeptically and don't trust him on social issues. That
helps explain why his focus is heavily on New Hampshire — where fiscal
conservatives are the key electorate — as he gears up for an
economy-focused campaign.
With primary voting set for February 2012 if not earlier, Romney has less than a year to make his case — now that he has one.
Emmer rally: Romney on liberals and American exceptionalism
By Cyndy Brucato | Published Tue, Oct 19 2010 10:10 am
MinnPost photo by Terry GydesenMitt
Romney campaigning for Tom Emmer in Bloomington Monday: “We are a
nation of pioneers and liberals are trying to smother that spirit.”
As they say in the news business, Mitt Romney was a good get for Tom Emmer.
Not
only did the former governor of Massachusetts and GOP presidential
contender attract some 200 donors at a $500-a-plate fundraising dinner
for Emmer Monday, he later worked up a crowd at a rally at the Ramada
Hotel in Bloomington.
With just two weeks before the election,
Emmer needs to rouse every base within the Republican base, from the
fiscal conservatives to the Tea Party discontents to the patriots.
Romney,
who sounds and looks like a corporate CEO, rolled up his sleeves and
delivered a brief speech to a crowd of about 500 at the rally. He didn't
focus on fiscal conservatism as anticipated, but on the new social hot
buttons: the Constitution, patriotism and American exceptionalism.
"It's
not just about failed policies in Washington," Romney said. "Liberals
are changing the very face of America. We are a nation of pioneers and
liberals are trying to smother that spirit.
"America needs no apologies to the world," he said. "The best ally peace has ever known is the United States of America."
The crowd gave him love as he doffed his jacket and worked the line of attendees for pictures.
Minnesota's GOP candidate for governor was impressed as well.
"Mitt
Romney, wow — he is really a standard bearer for American
exceptionalism," Emmer said in an interview after the rally. "Yes, he
just touched on the fiscal policy. But people in Minnesota that I meet,
we know what the problems are. When you remind people it's about the
American spirit, you heard them here tonight — they don't want leaders
who apologize for America."
Preceded by visits by Louisiana Gov.
Bobby Jindal and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, the Romney event
was billed as Emmer's big fundraiser before Election Day. But with two
weeks to go, Emmer acknowledged he can't let up until he touches those
GOP bases a few more times. Don't be surprised to see another Republican
heavyweight come to town for Emmer before Nov. 2.
Update: As mentioned above, we now have confirmation
that two more big GOP names will rally for Emmer. New Jersey Gov. Chris
Christie and Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour will join Gov. Tim Pawlenty
at a rally for Emmer Saturday, Oct. 30, with location and time to be
announced later.
Romney captures one-vote win in straw poll at GOP
conference
By Aaron Blake
-
04/10/10
NEW ORLEANS -- Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney continued
to make his case as the early GOP frontrunner for the 2012 presidential
nomination, picking up a surprise one-vote win in the straw poll at the
Southern Republican Leadership Conference.
Romney did not attend
the conference, but he was still able to pull off something of an upset
over Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) and former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.
Romney got 439 votes (24 percent), Paul was second with 438
votes (24), and Palin and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich both were
at 18 percent, according to results that will be announced shortly. The
poll was run by Wilson Research Strategies.
Paul won the straw
poll at the Conservative Political Action Conference in February and
generally performs well in activist-driven events. Palin spoke to the
crowd Friday and was the big-ticket speaker for the event.
Romney
improved his stock in the 2008 presidential race by finishing a
surprising second at the 2006 Southern Republican Leadership Conference
straw poll. He is in a much different position now, with expectations
much higher for his candidacy. He risked not fulfilling those
expectations by showing up here and not performing well in the straw
poll. Romney is currently on a book tour.
Grow jobs and shrink government
August 18, 2010
IT’S
NOT happening the way President Obama had planned. Unemployment blew
past his 8 percent ceiling and hasn’t looked back. Private sector
investment in new jobs and capital has languished. Even the head of the
president’s Council of Economic Advisers, Christina Romer, has resigned.
Almost every action the president has taken has deepened and
lengthened the downturn. The private sector has retreated, frightened by
his agenda and paralyzed by the uncertainty, lack of predictability,
and outright hostility he has engendered.
His policies are anti-investment, anti-jobs, and anti-growth. Raising
taxes — with a 15 percent hike on certain small business corporations,
new taxes to pay for ObamaCare, and an increase on the dividend tax from
15 percent to nearly 40 percent — depresses new investment throughout
the economy. Promoting an open-ended cap-and-trade tax dissuades
expansion by employers in the energy sector. Bowing to the demands of
unions to tilt the table in their favor — with proposals for card check
and mandatory arbitration as well as the installation of a labor stooge
at the National Labor Relations Board — chills new hiring.
Hostility toward foreign trade — by delaying agreements with Colombia
and South Korea and by threatening punitive taxes on US businesses that
compete abroad — stalls opportunities for new jobs at home. The
so-called stimulus that focused on government spending and bailing out
states and unions has boosted GDP only modestly and temporarily; the
latest stimulus reincarnation will likely do no better. All the while,
the president’s failure to address the looming deficits, national debt,
unfunded entitlement liabilities, ballooning Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae
liabilities, and incalculable government pension obligations causes
employers and investors to ask whether the dollar will be worth very
much in the future, and thus, they hold back. The policies of the
president and congressional Democrats are job killers.
Thanks to the innovative, can-do spirit of the American people, the
economy will recover, even with the burdens the president has put upon
it. But to speed the recovery and to ensure its long-term ascent, it is
time to adopt a bipartisan growth and jobs agenda. Republicans made
mistakes when we were in charge, yes, but Democrats pointing that out
doesn’t absolve them for the mistakes they are making today. Job and
income growth can only come from a growing, successful private sector.
Of course, government can create innumerable public sector jobs, but in
doing so, it supplants the private sector and ultimately depresses the
prosperity of its citizens.
A pro-job, pro-prosperity government works to create the conditions
that enable businesses of all sizes to grow and thrive. These should
include aligning corporate taxes with those of other developed
economies, eliminating special corporate tax breaks that lobbyists have
inserted over the years, and preserving the Bush tax cuts — especially
for small business.
To give an immediate boost to jobs and investment, permit businesses
to write off in 2010 and 2011 the capital investments made in those
years rather than over time. Aggressively negotiate and sign trade
agreements with other nations to promote American exports. Adopt an
energy policy that will actually eliminate our dependence on OPEC and
hostile states. Preserve our balanced labor-management rules and
regulators. Rather than raising the tax on investment dividends,
eliminate it and the tax on capital gains and interest for all
households earning less than $250,000 a year.
Reshape government programs to ultimately put spending in balance
with revenues. Restructure entitlements to make them fiscally
sustainable, honoring our commitments to seniors. Rather than opening
the door to ever-increasing demands from states for bail-outs, take
action to enable the states to solve their unfunded pension obligations.
And tame the growth of government by limiting the political power of
public employee unions.
The president said last week that Republicans have no economic ideas
other than lowering taxes on the wealthy. This brief agenda is not the
only refutation: Republicans in Washington and in states like New Jersey
and Texas are promoting and implementing economic policies that do what
the president has not: grow jobs and shrink government. It’s time for a
growth and jobs agenda to replace the special interest political
agendas that we have endured over the past decades. So much is at stake —
a strong economy provides for the strong defense which preserves our
liberty and promotes peace.
Monday, February 15, 2010 9:42 PM
Romney threatened on flight out of Vancouver
Jane Taber
Republican politician Mitt Romney was physically threatened by a violent passenger on an Air Canada flight leaving Vancouver this morning.
Mr. Romney, who has been in Vancouver since Friday for the Olympic Winter Games, did not respond to the attack. Instead, he allowed the airline crew to deal with the incident, according to his spokesman Eric Fehrnstrom.
Mr. Romney, 62, and his wife, Ann, were sitting in Row 15 of the economy section of the Embrarer 190 airplane, waiting for the plane to take off when the incident happened.
The man sitting in front of Mr. Romney’s wife dropped his seat back and when Mr. Romney asked him to move it upright for takeoff, the man became “physically violent.” Another report said that the man tried to strike Mr. Romney.
“Gov. Romney did not retaliate,” said Mr. Fehrnstrom.
Mr. Romney was not injured. The pilot returned to the gate and the passenger and his bags were removed by the RCMP.
Mr. Romney ran unsuccessfully for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008. He also served as governor of Massachusetts. There is much speculation that he is preparing for another bid for the Republican nomination in 2012.
He and his wife were in Vancouver for the opening of the Olympic Winter Games. As the former president and CEO of the 2002 Salt Lake Games, the Romneys were guests of honour at these games.
They attended Friday’s opening ceremony and had always been scheduled to leave today.
About his Olympic experience in Vancouver, Mr. Romney wrote on his website: “An Olympic update from Mitt and Ann Romney shows they’re having fun in Vancouver as they take in the action at the speed skating venue. As you can see, it’s a great place to wear some great USA Olympic gear of one’s own.”
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Potential competitors have fallen to the wayside. Romney snapped up $10 million of cash in a fundraising spree that lasted less than two days. A poll last week from ABC News/Washington Post showed Romney leading President Barack Obama by 3 percentage points. 
