Mitt Romney

The Secretive Mitt Romney: An Enigma Wrapped Inside Of A Mystery

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Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney may have been running for President for the past six years, but we hardly know him.

His time in public office was limited to one four year term, and he did not exactly endear his state to his personality. Polls indicated he would have problems being re-elected in 2006.

While running for President in 2008 and 2012, his opponents found him to be the least engaging, friendly and approachable of all of their competitors. He was not well liked!

He refuses to talk much about his religion, as if to do so might convince us that a Mormon should not be President. So he is reluctant to let us learn about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and that is a failure to communicate which is actually tragic.

He has told us little about his family history voluntarily, and hardly talks about his father, George Romney, who he much admired, but refuses to be as open as his dad was about his tax returns. He also shields his sons from too much being investigated, even though they are all full grown adults with careers and families.

His refusal to release more financial information is a sign of secretiveness, almost of being on the defensive, making one wonder if there are aspects of his financial background that he feels a need to hide.

He has wealthy financial backers, but does not wish to reveal them in depth.

He refuses to reveal his real feelings about anything, and if he became President in 2013, there is no way to know what kind of President he would be–a moderate, a traditional conservative, or a far right winger if the Congress were to be controlled by Tea Party radicals. Would he fight for anything with commitment, or just cave in to powerful forces in either party which might control the Congress?

No one really knows Mitt Romney and his core, and is unlikely to know even if he is President, as he would likely be a blank slate, hard to pinpoint.

Mitt Romney is a mystery, an unknown quantity, who is stiff, plastic, uncomfortable around people. He would be hard to warm up to, and for the average American to connect to on a personal basis.

The last two losing Republican Presidential candidates, Bob Dole in 1996 and John McCain in 2008, both had extensive experience in government and years of news coverage, and gave a feeling that we knew them much better, and in some ways were likeable and approachable.

Mitt Romney remains an enigma wrapped inside of a mystery, not likely to be revealed to the American people by Election Day!

Barack Obama Evokes FDR: Don’t Change Horses In Mid Stream!

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In 1936, Franklin D. Roosevelt was President, and the nation was in the depths of the Great Depression.

From a high of 25 percent unemployment, we had seen the unemployment rate decline to about 17 percent, in most estimates. In other words, we had seen a decline, but there was a lot of work to do on improving the economic picture. FDR chose to emphasize the progress made, and the idea why would anyone want to revert to the policies that had failed under Herbert Hoover.

He would use the concept of “Don’t Change Horses in Mid Stream” as the argument to re-elect him. It worked, as even with the high but improved unemployment rate, FDR won all but Maine and Vermont, and a total landslide in both electoral and popular votes against Kansas Governor Alf Landon in 1936.

Now in 2012, Barack Obama is using the same appeal: that with unemployment skyrocketing in 2009, and the rate raising to almost ten percent before declining, that great progress has been made in job creation, about 3.7 million jobs, with the chance of regaining ALL of the lost jobs by the time of the election, and with the rate now 8.3 percent, it could go down below 8 percent by November.

So therefore, why would one wish to return to the George W. Bush policies that failed economically, and led to the Great Recession, the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression?

The Obama strategy seems to be working, as he now has a majority of the registered voters supporting him, and meanwhile, Mitt Romney is gaining fewer voters for himself, even as he wins primaries and caucuses!

Richard Nixon Health Care Proposal 38 Years Ago Today: Another Republican President Besides TR Calls For Health Care For All!

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One of the readers and commentators on my blog today made me aware of the fact that on this day in 1974, at the height of the Watergate Scandal that would bring him down six months later, President Richard Nixon sent a message to Congress calling for a comprehensive Health Care reform to cover all Americans, as a basic right of citizenship!

The link to this is on the entry today on Republicans, and Hispanics and Latinos being wary of backing the party and Mitt Romney, due to their anti immigrant mentality. I wish to thank “Engineer Of Knowledge” for contributing this idea, and that has provoked me to mention it in a followup post here on the blog.

Nixon, like Theodore Roosevelt before him, understood the importance of this idea of health care for all, and it becomes clear that the Republican Party of today would reject both TR and Nixon for their far sighted ideas.

It is further proof of why the GOP in 2012 is dramatically different than it was in 1912 or 1974!

The Anti Immigrant Mentality Of Republican Party Lowering Primary-Caucus Participation: Danger For Party’s Electoral Future!

Ronald 1 Comment

George W. Bush and John McCain, for all their shortcomings, understood something that Mitt Romney and many other Republicans refuse to acknowledge: that the image of being anti Hispanic and anti Latino is going to kill support among that growing population group for the Republican Party.

The evidence is already in, based on Florida and Nevada, that there is not much enthusiasm among Hispanics and Latinos to participate in primaries and caucuses, and that, added to general decline in participation in all of the primaries and caucuses so far by a few percentage points, only makes the job of mobilizing voters for the Republican Party this fall all the more difficult.

With the growing Hispanic and Latino population in many swing states and throughout almost all of the 50 states, the GOP may be painting itself into a corner politically, and giving the Democrats an advantage that could continue into future elections.

Nine Months To Presidential Election, And Obama Is Over 50% Support Against Mitt Romney!

Ronald 1 Comment

With nine months to go to the Presidential Election Of 2012, President Barack Obama has broken a barrier that is very significant.

The President has, for the first time ever in an election poll, the Washington Post–ABC News Poll, hit a majority of registered voters, with 51 percent to 45 for Mitt Romney, his likely GOP opponent. Obama had last been over 50 percent in May in a non election poll, when he was able to accomplish the killing of Osama Bin Laden.

At the same time, among all Americans, Obama has 52 percent to 43 for Romney, and among independents, Obama leads by the razor thin margin of 48 to 47, his first lead.

Obama is ahead of Romney on issues including who would better protect the middle class, handle foreign policy, and fight terrorism.

Romney is seen as out of touch with average Americans, and having not paid his fair share of taxes. But his business experience makes many voters feel that he could handle the economy better, and on job creation, the candidates are seen as equal. Of course, the good jobs report in January helps Obama, and if it continues, could give him a lead over Romney in later polls on economic policy.

The timing looks good for Obama to win the election, unless there is a major economic downturn, or a major foreign policy crisis that he is seen as mishandling.

Stock Market Revival Under Barack Obama: Wonderful, But Not Time To Declare Victory!

Ronald 2 Comments

Three years into the Obama Presidency, and the great news is that the stock market has seen a tremendous revival under his watch.

Yesterday, the stock market reached a level unseen since before the economic collapse of 2008 and the Great Recession, as the Dow Jones reached its highest level in four years, and the Nasdaq reached its highest level in eleven years.

With a 5,000 point gain since the Obama inauguration, there is a temptation to think that the economic decline is over, but that would be unwise to believe. There is still too much unemployment, and too many people who are underemployed, so it is not a time to declare victory in any shape or fashion. 8.3 percent unemployment is the lowest in three years, but not good enough to rest on one’s laurels.

However, if Obama can bring about or have the fortune that at least 150,000 jobs are created every month from now on, with last month bringing 250,000 growth in jobs, then the unemployment rate will go below 8 percent, and the odds of Obama winning a second term will be greatly enhanced.

The point is that Mitt Romney and other Republicans will have less of an issue to use against Obama if that growth occurs, and already, one can see that Romney is having problems being coherent in his reaction to the job and stock market gains.

The long range issues of foreign policy and defense and national security, and the significance of the federal courts and the Supreme Court, will, hopefully, start to come to the forefront, as in the long run, these are the more important issues for the future of the nation.

GREAT News: Unemployment Drops to 8.3 Percent, With Larger Employment Growth Than Expected!

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The nation’s unemployment rate dropped dramatically in January, by two tenths of one percent, from 8.5 percent to 8.3 percent, a great sign of economic recovery.

About a quarter of a million jobs were created in the private sector, more than was expected.

This is great news for the Obama Administration, and for those who found work, and it gives hope of a more rapid economic recovery than previously forecast by economists.

It also makes the economy, at least for the moment, much less of a political plus for Mitt Romney or any other Republican Presidential nominee, which is a good thing, as the main focus in the election should not be the economy, but rather foreign policy leadership, and the effects on the future of a President selecting federal judges and the Supreme Court Justices, which has a longer range effect on all Americans than the economic problems we have faced in the past few years.

The Truth About The Safety Net: Full Of Holes And The Worst In The Developed World!

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Mitt Romney claimed two days ago that we have a “safety net” for the very poor, and that, therefore, we don’t have to worry about them.

What a distortion of the truth, as we have the absolutely WORST “safety net” for the very poor in the developed world. It is not enough to say how fortunate our poor are as compared to Africa and parts of Asia and Latin America, as this is America!

Here are the facts:

The official US poverty rate is 15.1 percent, and it does not include the millions of the middle class who have been impoverished by the Great Recession and its aftermath.

One out of five children lives in dire poverty in America, and if one is born into that background, the odds of escaping it are far less likely than for other children.

Our Food Stamp program provides $1.44 per meal to each of its recipients.

Medicaid only covers the poorest children, of parents working at 63 percent of the poverty line, and 37 percent of non working parents. The new health care law would cover the gaps, but Romney endorses repealing it.

Only one in four poor renters get housing vouchers as assistance to pay the rent.

Supplemental Security Income helps the impoverished elderly and disabled, but only 27 percent of this group receives such welfare assistance, while in 1996, 68 percent received such aid. And SSI at its best only lifts those families to 75 percent of the poverty level.

Any person who wishes to be President should have the decency and the compassion to recognize that the “very poor” are not well treated in a society which believes in mobility, and that we MUST do better, and stop having conservatives and so called “religious” people continue to condemn and deplore the poor, and not give a damn about their ability to survive and advance in society, with a sense of dignity! This is a MORAL cause above all!

Mitt Romney And His Mormon Church: Disturbing Realities

Ronald 4 Comments

With Mitt Romney seemingly the likely Republican Presidential nominee, focus turns to his religious beliefs, as he would be the first Mormon President if he won.

The Mormons, a much persecuted religion in its less than 200 year history, is seen by mainstream Christians of all denominations as a cult, rather than a Christian sect, even though Mormons claim to be Christian. There is discontent about its polygamous past, and the fact that a radical separatist sect still practices polygamy in areas of Texas, Arizona, Utah, Idaho, Nevada and Wyoming. Its decision to get involved often in politics, rather than promote separation of church and state, also disturbs many.

But there are other more important issues.

The Mormon Church forbids any non Mormon from entering its temple in Salt Lake City, Utah.

When Mitt Romney was married to Ann, his wife, she needed to be converted, but her parents were not allowed in the Mormon Temple for her marriage, and had to stay outside.

When Ann Romney’s father died in more recent times, he was converted to the Mormon faith after death without his permission, and despite the fact that he was a religious skeptic, in actuality a declared atheist.

This tendency to convert dead people has included Jews who died in the Holocaust, who unknown to their families, have been converted.

The Mormons keep detailed genealogical records on many millions of people around the world, useful in studying ancestry and family connections, but disturbing to many as intrusion, and wonderment about why they are gathering so much personal information on non Mormons.

The Mormon Church never allowed blacks in the church until suddenly in 1978, from on high in church leadership, and under a federal lawsuit on civil rights, magically they were finally allowed into the church as equals.

The Mormons, like all other religious groups, treat women as second class citizens in the church, and promote the traditional family role as a norm for women, who are not allowed leadership in the church and are expected to obey their husbands, and spend their life pleasing them in all possible ways.

Mormon women are encouraged to have large families and avoid using birth control of any kind.

The Mormon Church will disown any member who is homosexual, and the norm in most Mormon families is to do so, and the names of such people are officially banned from the Mormon Church records as if they never existed. The church led the fight against gay marriage and Proposition 8 in California in 2008, financing the attack openly.

While the Mormon Church has tended to support immigrants and work to promote citizenship for illegal immigrants, it is seen primarily as a practical matter, due to the widespread missionary movement of the church in Latin America.

The Mormon Church has been strongly anti labor oriented, in regards to union organization and workers rights, even before the recent anti labor crusade by conservative Republicans.

The Mormon Church takes a very conservative view on most issues, and most of its political arm are Republicans. although there are major exceptions such as Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada, Senator Mark Udall of Colorado, and his cousin, Senator Tom Udall of New Mexico.

These realities stated above are not pointed out to promote bias or discrimination, but to make the general public aware of the growing influence of the church in American life, much of its practices and agenda highly disturbing!

Presidential Empathy And Emotional Connection With The American People

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There are so many talents, abilities, and skills required for a person in any occupation or field of work to have success, and the same is so for the American Presidency.

We have had Presidents who, despite many other talents, abilities and skills, were simply unable to show empathy and emotional connection with the American people. Instead, they came across as aloof, distant, plastic, and unable to relate to the “common man”!

Among those Presidents who failed to demonstrate empathy and emotional connection with the American people would be the following:

William Howard Taft
Woodrow Wilson
Warren G. Harding
Calvin Coolidge
Herbert Hoover
Lyndon B. Johnson
Richard Nixon
Jimmy Carter
George H. W. Bush
George W. Bush

Among those Presidents who had the ability to display Presidential empathy and emotional connection were the following:

Theodore Roosevelt
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Harry Truman
Dwight D. Eisenhower
John F. Kennedy
Gerald Ford
Ronald Reagan
Bill Clinton
Barack Obama

Does Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum, or Ron Paul have these abilities? The answer is ABSOLUTELY NOT, and this will make it more difficult for any or them to serve in the Oval Office in a time of great human suffering due to the economic collapse since 2008.