Mitt Romney: A Changed Man

Washington Post: GOP Candidate's Ideological Turnabout Has Critics Wondering: Who Is This Guy?

(Washingtonpost.com) 
But by 2004, Romney was one of the country's most vocal critics of gay marriage, and in 2005 he backed a state constitutional amendment that would ban not just gay marriage but civil unions, too. (The governor said at the time that he had supported civil unions in the past because gay marriage seemed like the only alternative; in his ideal world, he told the media, there would be no civil unions either.) The following year, he took his gay-marriage opposition on the road, pushing for a similar constitutional amendment in South Carolina, pledging $5,000 through his political action committee and promising to show up and campaign on the amendment's behalf.

By then, some Log Cabin Republicans were saying they'd been snookered.

"He shakes your hand, looks you in the eye," says Richard Babson, a Log Cabin member who attended the Romney meeting. "It's hard for me to know what Mitt Romney's first principles are on a given day."

Last week, the Log Cabin Republicans went public with their anger, running a TV ad that lambastes Romney by including video clips of his pro-choice, pro-gun-control stands as a candidate in Massachusetts.

If the gay-rights crowd sounds bitterly disappointed, the state's environmentalists sound like they'd gotten punk'd. By the end of his term, Romney had announced his support for oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. He'd supported an easing of regulations on power-plant cleanup, including Salem Harbor, the site of that confrontation. And he'd pulled out of a historic seven-state agreement designed to reduce greenhouse gases, an effort he'd initially championed.

"Hearts were broken," says Seth Kaplan of the Conservation Law Foundation. "That's the best way I can put it. And when someone is an unexpected advocate, like Romney was, it builds up your hopes and breaks your heart even more."

Most trace the turning point to the elections of 2004, when Romney backed a slate of Republican candidates, hoping to loosen the Democratic hold on the state legislature. When the GOP gained not a single seat, he seemed to abandon interest in a second term and set his sights on a run for the presidency.

That's not to say he gave up on the governor's job; in 2006, for example, he signed into law an ambitious health insurance bill that mandated coverage for all Massachusetts residents by July of this year. But he began traveling regularly outside the state for campaign-like, get-to-know-me appearances, more than 100 trips in 2005 and 2006, the Boston Globe reported. He stopped selling Massachusetts and started to make it the butt of jokes, telling out-of-state audiences that his job made him feel like "a cattle rancher at a vegetarian convention."

Even some members of the business community were let down.

"Everyone knew that rebuilding the economy here would be 40 miles of hard road, and Mitt bailed out after five miles," says Howard Anderson, a professor of business at MIT and a longtime investor in Bain Capital who has known Romney for years. "At some point, we in the venture capital community became skeptics, and that eventually turned into rampant cynicism."

Anderson has nothing but praise for Romney's performance as Bain CEO, describing him as a smart, consensus-building leader with terrific judgment, a man of integrity who was exceptionally generous to partners. Squaring Romney the executive with Romney the politician is something Anderson has never been able to do.

"It's as though he's let the market dictate his ideology, which is something no one who knew him in the private sector ever saw coming. Not a hint."

The Real Romney?

Romney's supporters acknowledge that he moved to the right during his years as governor, but they think the distance he traveled is no further than that of other great politicians. (Reagan, once a Democrat, is mentioned often.) They stress his competence, intelligence and leadership skills as well as his talent as a fiscal manager. His campaign says that when he took office, Massachusetts faced a deficit of $3 billion and when he left, it had a surplus.

"The people of Massachusetts will remember Mitt Romney as a person who came into office during a financial emergency, balanced the budget without raising taxes and found a way to get health insurance to all our citizens without a government takeover," writes Fehrnstrom, still Romney's spokesman, in an e-mail.

Whether Romney's rapid journey rightward will matter in the election isn't clear. In the town of Aiken (town motto: "Character counts"), what you hear is a lot of skepticism about Mormonism, still Romney's most problematic sale. And many who say that a person who came late to the anti-abortion camp can't be trusted to stay there.

"If he changed his mind once, he could change it again," says Gene Hawkins, a private investigator, who was visiting a gun store during his lunch break. "If he's indecisive about that, what else might he be indecisive about?"

Among those who came to Romney's event, few seemed bothered by the idea that he'd run for his only other job in public office as a very different candidate. In a state so dominated by Democrats, how else was he supposed to win? And perhaps his willingness to rethink his stands, these people said, is evidence of a comforting kind of honesty.

"It takes a real man to admit he's wrong, but he's changed his mind and he tells you why," says Skipper Perry, Aiken's local representative to the state legislature. "I don't look at it as flip-flopping so much as soul-searching."

What liberal activists from the home state remember, however, is a governor who presented a thoroughly convincing persona in 2002 and effectively abandoned it two years later. Which is the real Romney, they ask?

Some think he was feigning his moderation then and is revealing his true self now. But it's a safe bet that Romney would have passed a lie detector test in both incarnations. And that speaks to his consummate skills as a salesman, the best of whom believe so deeply in their product that they internalize its merits -- which is why they never sound like they're selling.

[dlounsbury1]

I sure hear a lot of certitude from the Libs on this site. You soon forget that Hillary Clinton holds the all time record for flip flops. Hillary Clinton has flipped flopped more times in the last year on MAJOR issues than Romney has since his 1994 Senate Campaign than Hillary Clinton. Simply google "Hillary Flip Flops" and you will find plenty of Barrack Obama bloggers pointing out that Clinton flip flops more than a goldfish on a pet store floor.

[dfunderb83]

to jol310...
The Book of Mormon claims three distinct groups made the journey before Columbus. The Book of Mormon is merely a history of three distinct migrations. The archaeological record reveals many groups made the journey from many different points on this planet. Who is to say that the Book of Mormon people are not part of the bigger picture? The Church, based on "Free Agency," is interested in faith, and it is by faith and faith only that true converts accept the Book of Mormon. But, who is to say the Phoenicians did not transport the Jaredites? Yes, there are similarities in some cultural remains between the Ancient Near/Middle East and the Middle Americas, but none proves the Book of Mormon is authentic and it never will. Faith is the key. Did Romney do stupid things as Governor and CEO, etc? What is so preposterous about Joseph Smith''s experiences that wasn''t about the experiences that occurred when Jesus Christ personally walked upon the earth? The real fact is that Romney really appears to be the most capable candidate and it really is annoying the Protestant, Jewish and Catholic world.
To me Romney is a devout Christain practicing his faith as he understands it. He has raised a successful family and leads by example.

[wendy731]

Mitt Romney did not get rich from his Daddy.

Mitt''s Daddy didn''t get rich from Mitt''s granddaddy either. In fact, Mitt''s granddaddy knew very hard times. George and Mitt Romney both earned their money by working hard, serving well, and not aspiring to wealth. Sometimes wealth comes just by hard honest work and careful management.

We often live beneath our privileges because we don''t realize our own great potentional. We shouldn''t envy someone that has "made it" in the world. We would each hope for that for our own sons or daughters. It is the American Dream. We should all try a bit harder to apply our own intellegence more.

Mitt''s father George gave him a great pattern to follow; Mitt had to choose his way. It was not given to him. Would that every young man had a fine example in a father to pattern their lives after.

Learn about the history of extended Romney family. Brief paragraphs from newspaper columns won''t give you a full picture.

[wendy731]

My question is....Did Mitt Romney keep his promises to Massachuetts? Did he do all in his power to keep his campaign promises. If he won in the very bluest of states because he had the interest of that state in mind at the time he was running for Govenor ....Did he fulfill his promises? Did he have the interest of that particualar state in mind. Did he think he could improve conditions in Massachuetts? The people voted and he won a majority of the votes. Did he keep his promises? I think that is the issue. If he did keep all his promises...even if he personally did not indorse what he saw his state constituants wanted, then I think the man has integrity. If he makes promises as a candidate for President of the United States I think we can count on him keeping those promises. Integrity is keeping your word.

There are many in Massachuetts that don''t like the Govenor. They are probably the ones that didn''t vote for him in the first place. Did he keep his word to those who did vote for him? I believe that he did.

[gkc99]

Don''t any of the Romney boys want to thank America for their incredible good fortune, being multi-millionaires and all, by serving in the U.S. Armed Forces?

Or do the Romneys think all the dying should be done by lesser, inferior Americans?

[briannorwood]

DLounsbury1:

Gimme a friggin break! Mitt Romney is nothing but a flip-flopping panderer, who will apparently say or do anything to get elected.

I for one am sick and tired of it.

Furthermore, although most people are politely not admitting it, they still think Mormonism is a whacked out religion. I could never, never support a mormon candidate.

There. I said it.

[dlounsbury1]

This article is disingenuous. There is a huge difference between running for ANY governorship and president. That being the truth, if you look as far back as possible at Romney''s 1994 Senate Brochure Romney''s present positions lines up with his old positions on 12 of the 13 items (abortion alone being the sole exception).

The Log Cabin Matter: Romney still adamantly opposes discrimination against *** in housing, hiring, admissions etc. He had a gay cabinet member (not mentioned in the article either). I don''t know of any other republican governor who hired an openly gay cabinet member. Romney stood by his promise to prevent discrimination against ***. He never promised to jump on the gay marriage bandwagon. At the time there wasn''t one. The article fails to mention the dramatic pace at which the issue of gay marriage has been thrust on governors and courts. A simple look at the chronology of the movement dispels any myth of flip flopping.

When a liberal has nuanced positions they are complex, engaging and cosmopolitan. When an intelligent conservative has a nuanced or evolved position they are opportunists. Liberals just don''t do the heavylifting required to see the consistency in Romney''s position. The result is sloppy journalism at best and intellectual dishonesty at worst. Why not mention the multiple morphing of positions by all candidates? Could it be an underlying discomfort with the "mormon question."

[tbweb]

Mitt Romney: A Changed Man????

Mitt Romney is a human Chameleon, able to blend in and shape himself and his message on the fly! As long as Mitt Romney checks with his Lawyers first anything goes, including War!

[kansas1946]

That Romney positioned himself, and for a while governed as, a moderate: in favor of abortion rights, courting gay voters and crusading on environmental matters in a way that had the state''s green activists pinching
****************************************************

Flip-flop-flip-flop..
Poor Republicans.

[j-whitman]

COLONIEny,,,, Hillary does know what people want, no doubt about it -- She listens to the people... An audience member told her to tie her shoes & she did just that --------- Your GOP canidates would have ignored Americans, just as they have been for 7 years.

Notice, during the NY Yankee''s ball game Guiliani got booed not once, but twice.. The second was during the singing of "God Bless America"

[jol310]

Religion can be a divisive force in American politics. However, to respectfully question how a candidate''s beliefs might affect his or her decision making process is not necessarily out of bounds.

Should Mitt Romney%u2019s faith impact how anyone votes?

Mormon teaching declares that indigenous Americans are descended from two Jewish groups who arrived prior to the time of Christ. The Book of Mormon introduction states that these Semitic immigrants %u201C%u2026are the principal ancestors of the American Indians.%u201D

These are historical claims and are not about true or false faith. Faith by its nature is not provable or disprovable. Faith can do many things but it cannot alter facts.

If Romney accepts his church%u2019s teaching; he must reject all the empirical evidence accumulated by respected scholars who firmly declare Asia is the source of indigenous American origins. There is no evidence supporting the claim of Jewish ancestry and voluminous evidence debunking it. (I refer you to Charles Mann%u2019s excellent 1491 for a review of current scholarship regarding ancient America.) Maintaining willful ignorance by rejecting relevant evidence because it contradicts already held conclusions is legitimate cause for concern as it has already led to the deaths of too many soldiers.

Romney%u2019s presumed acceptance of demonstrably false claims as historical fact should give pause to anyone who values critical thinking abilities in a leader.

[colonieny]

bIASED REPORTING AGAIN FROM cbS:
iMAGINE:
...................................................
"HILLARY MANY MAY IDEOLOGICAL U-TURNS HAS DEMOCRATS HEAD SPINNING, WONDERING DOES THIS WOMAN KNOW WHAT SHE WANTS ? "

[gkc99]

Gee if I get a rich Daddy who gives me $100 million, can I be a biznissman too?

[condumism]

Heres the response from 3 Iowa Republicon gals as to why they support Mitt Romney: "Oh, he is soooo good looking!" Why else I asked? They just gave me blank looks without further reply. Leave it to the Republicon base, the one issue voter party.

[fibonacci_]

America only wants religious (= superstitious) presidents. All you religious people, please think about the fact that your beliefs have every characteristic of superstition. How can we people without religion discern it from superstition?

Better throw some salt over your right shoulder!

[prinzowhales]

Romney will continue the mindless Bush Iraq policies...He has support from many of the minions of the Jeb Bush gang in Florida--where hundreds of children are missing from the children services division of that state...where kids are tortured to death for not obeying instructions to exercise in that state''s boot camps.

Romney, with the loathsome Neo-Con, former UN ambassador John Bolton called on the UN to ban President Ahmadinejad and for the Court of International Justice to indict him for ''incitement to genocide''--this based on lies made up by the Zionist press that claimed he called for Israel to be wiped from the map...what he called for was regime change in Jerusalem.

A vote for Mitt the Gitt is a vote for war, it is a vote for AIPAC--the Israeli Intelligence front that spies on America...just like the ADL, which has been convicted in California of spying on Americans.

[taddles-2009]

I''''m voting for Mitt because he''''s the most qualified of any of the candidates running from either party.

Posted by perception5 at 05:53 PM : Oct 10, 2007

You''re voting for Mitt because you have a 4th grade education and are easily lead.

[perception5]

Mitt is the most viable moderate conservative in the Presidential race and the best qualified to bring new leadership with his vision for America''s future.

Gov. Romney has an impressive resume to showcase. When elected governor in 2002 he assumed a monstrous 3 billion dollar deficit and put the state of Massachusetts back in the black without raising taxes. Mitt also brought HEALTH INSURANCE TO ALL THE citizens of Massachusetts in 2006 WITHOUT RAISING TAXES......WOW!

His success in public office mirrors his record in the private sector at Bain Capitol where he reorganized and made household names of companies such as Domino''s Pizza and Staples.

Mitt also bailed out the U.S. Olympics in Salt Lake City in 2002, and turned a profit there for 100 million dollars. I have nicknamed Mitt, "the Rominator", for obvious reasons.

Candidate Romney graduated valedictorian in undergrad; then pursued a double degree at Harvard (M.B.A. and law) graduating in the top 5% of his class while doing so.

Romney has also taken a tough stance on terrorism and in an interview with the AP in June, Mitt indicated that he was against any permanent US bases in Iraq.

Romney currently leads all Republican candidates in New Hampshire, Iowa and Michigan, Nevada, and South Carolina

I''m voting for Mitt because he''s the most qualified of any of the candidates running from either party.

[taddles-2009]

Mitt Romney is a man who will look you square in the eye, take your hand in a firm handshake and say exactly what''s on his mind....namely whatever he has to say to get your vote. Then he will do whatever he wants to do while you stand there amazed that he can lie with such a straight face.

But that''s what you get when you cross a lawyer with a business man, you get a liar who believes in his own lies enough to get up on a soap box and sell them to anyone who will listen.

Nice candidate Republicans, I guess you can''t expect much more from that party these days.

[nolalou]

Romney was hired in 1999 to run the Olympics in Salt Lake City. He said he wouldn''t use that job for political gain and hat he would not accept any severance pay when he finished the job.


Romney not only accepted a $476,000 severance package according to federal tax records, but he helped to lobby the committee for similarly large amounts for his 25 senior managers, 17 of whom contributed to his 2002 Massachusetts gubernatorial campaign or the state Republican Party soon after the games ended!