Romney says his conservatism will shine through at CPAC

By: Rebecca Kaplan
Topics: Campaign 2012

Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney speaks at a campaign rally in Atlanta, Feb. 8, 2012.

(Credit: AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

In yet another sign of the distrust Mitt Romney faces from Republican voters, he found himself promising Fox News' Sean Hannity he will prove his ideological purity in a speech to the Conservative Political Action Conference he is set to deliver on Friday.

"I have a record of being a strong conservative on the issues that matter, and I'll point that out to my friends at CPAC," Romney said Thursday night on Fox News, pointing to his efforts to fight Massachusetts mandates that forced some religious employers to provide access to contraception in their health care plans as well as attempts to stop the legalization of gay marriage in the state.

Romney is in Washington to speak to the annual gathering, where he ended his candidacy for president in 2008. But after his rival Rick Santorum swept three nominating contests this week in Colorado, Minnesota and Missouri, the former Massachusetts governor has been forced to address concerns about his presidential bid.

He met with a small group of conservative leaders ahead of his speech at the conference. Santorum and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich are expected to do the same when they will speak to the conference as well.

Romney had a lucrative day in the district, where he held a series of policy discussions that participants - many of them Washington lobbyists - paid at least $10,000 to attend. He also held a photo opportunity and reception, and the sum total of his efforts are expected to raise about $1 million.

Among the attendees tonight were former Sens. Jim Talent and Trent Lott, as well as Rep. Connie Mack, R-Fla., and Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., two campaign surrogates.

Mack defended Romney against criticism from DNC Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, who held a press conference outside the J.W. Marriott, the site of the fundraiser, to accuse Romney of selling the ability to dictate his policies.

"That is not who the governor is," Mack told CBS News/National Journal as he left the fundraiser. "Nobody's buying anything. He's a man of integrity."

Rebecca Kaplan
Rebecca Kaplan covers the 2012 presidential campaign for CBS News and National Journal.
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by occupy_cbs February 12, 2012 12:43 AM EST: Seems that willard mittens romney is the shape-shifting conservative, calling himself "a severely conservative Republican governor." It is a weird linguistic formulation, and in reality, willard romney was not nearly so severely conservative a governor.

His cuts to the state bureaucracy, however, turned out to be fairly modest. After four years, he reduced the payroll of agencies under his direct control by 603 jobs, according to his administration's tally. At this rate of downsizing government, willard romney would have to serve more than fifteen hundred years as president to trim the federal work by 10 percent.; Reply to this comment


by noloyalisti February 10, 2012 2:30 PM EST: Robmee is everything that religious and conservative principles are against. He is just another Top 1% wacko who hates America and wants to change everything for his own greedy desires. He is campaigning on an agenda of hate against women, children, the poor, minorities, workers, women and the middle class.

I can see why the Wall Street Banksters and the Top 1% like him.; Reply to this comment


by Lindag10 February 10, 2012 12:31 PM EST: Romney's conservatism will "shine"? Fool's gold shines too. Neither one is the real thing. LOL; Reply to this comment


by andrewjsacks February 10, 2012 10:55 AM EST: I'm more conservative than you...no, I'm more conservative than you...no....; Reply to this comment


by kevjustice February 10, 2012 10:50 AM EST: willard's record is pro gun control, pro abortion rights, romneycare A.K.A. obamacare, etc. he said he would run to the left of ted kennedy years ago. in sum, the right wing is supporting a LIBERAL! LMAO!! LOL!!! so hannity,rush, beck, etc you will give up all your conservative principles to support mitt because you think he has a chance to beat obama? obama vs the three stooges? yuk, yuk, yuk!; Reply to this comment


by andrewjsacks February 10, 2012 10:44 AM EST: I'm more conservative than you are! No, I'm more conservative than you! No,...

OBAMA 2012!; Reply to this comment


by w_roos February 10, 2012 10:15 AM EST: The Mitt Romney Campaign's New Slogan: "What happens in Massachusetts stays in Massachusetts."; Reply to this comment


by skyk801 February 10, 2012 9:38 AM EST: Mittens, you are going to have to get more crazy than anyone has ever been to gain the support of these crazies. I just heard a SITTING US Senator say yesterday that Compromise with the "Other's" is not in the cards. I really doubt anyone but crazies like that loser will vote for you if you do though! Tough going IF you don't know the code and how to deliver it my Friend!; Reply to this comment

by wdrussell1 February 10, 2012 9:34 AM EST

CPAC has become the meeting place for aryan nationalists.
Criminals Posing as American Citizens,CPAC

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by occupy_cbs February 10, 2012 9:54 AM EST: They sure do seem quite like rabid, far-right extremists that America can no longer afford to listen to!


by w_roos February 10, 2012 1:10 PM EST: ...Commonly referred to as the republikkkan base.


by occupy_cbs February 10, 2012 9:33 AM EST: "Obama leads Romney in Virginia poll"

Heck, President Obama leads all the GOP 3-ring circus clowns, and from the depressed republican turnout and muted enthusiasm for the front-running willard romney, apparent in Tuesday's contests in Missouri, Minnesota, and Colorado, the GOP is headed for a long, drawn-out negative attack ad battle, that reflects the major disenchantment with the GOP field.

Since the republicans have nothing more than MORE OF THE SAME failed GOP economic policies, I really don't think they want to win in 2012, and would rather just keep making their partisan attacks on President Obama as the economy steadily improves.; Reply to this comment