First of all, it ain't just his Mormonism that concerns me, though that is part and parcel of my cautious approach to the man. M. Mason continues to articulate a position very close to my own over at VFR. The main difference between us being that Mr. Mason has already written Romney off; I haven't.
In an email to Auster, I replied to Mr. Mason's latest thus:
Mr. Mason writes:
"Unless the ideological dynamics of the race shifts in a significant way, I'll most likely have to settle for a write-in vote next November for Tancredo."
While I'm not absolutely convinced of Romney's unqualified status as yet, increasingly I find myself contemplating this exact situation for me (and my wife ;-)) next November. Mr. Mason and I are very close in our assessments of Mitt Romney. However, to my mind Romney's governorship of the state of Massachusetts comes mighty close to a disqualifier in and of itself.
LA replies to me:
Tell us what about his governship disqualifies him in your view.
First, let me clarify something. I didn't say that his governorship or any of the particularities of it "disqualifies" him from being president. To be honest I've not investigated the matter in its particulars yet. What I said was that his governorship of the state of Massachusetts, in and of itself, comes mighty close to a disqualifier in my view. The explanation is this: I view the state of Massachusetts as the epitome of modern American liberalism and how it corrupts people. Any electorate that effectively appoints a Ted Kennedy or a John Kerry et al, to a life tenure in the U.S. Senate, is an utterly liberal and corrupt electorate; totally self-absorbed. The same electorate appointed Mitt Romney as its governor. Since I'm one of these people who firmly believes that our leaders more or less reflect ourselves, this fact about Romney--his governorship of the state of Massachusetts--has me deeply concerned.
Now, I'm not saying that all people from Massachusetts are corrupt leftists, just most of 'em. As I recall (someone from Massachusetts correct me) Kennedy enjoys about a 70% approval among the voting citizens of his state. In my state someone as obviously and thoroughly corrupt as Ted Kennedy would most likely be in jail right now. He most certainly would not be serving as our representative in the United States Senate, nor Kerry.
If you think my cautious approach to Romney on that basis is unfair or irrational or whatever, I have one thing to say to you: whoopti-do.
Update: Mr. Auster says that my argument amounts to pure prejudice. Okay, so I'm prejudiced toward the political judgment of the people of Massachusetts. I'm prejudiced toward them in the same way that I'm prejudiced toward the people of the State of Arkansas; the same electorate that gave us Bill Clinton and Mike "open borders for Christ" Huckabee. Call me crazy (or prejudiced or whatever) but I think this is relevant; that I must consider these facts until I learn more about Governor Romney.
2 comments:
Terry,
I don't support Romney at this point — later, I might have to if there is no better alternative when it gets to fourth down and a foot from the goal line — but I would not rule him out just for being from Massachusetts.
Sure, he probably told the residents of that intellectually benighted state what they wanted to hear and tailored his policies to the People's Republic of Massachusetts. That's what politicians do.
Now that he's going for the top of the greasy pole, he no longer has that excuse. Everything he says now has to be taken as a pledge to the United States as a whole. If he acts like the U.S. is Massachusetts, then I'll treat him as a plague carrier. But he deserves a chance to rise above the ultra-liberalism of his home state, which he hardly created himself.
Rick,
I agree with you. Romney did not create the leftism that seems to permeate his state, so it would be unfair to judge him solely on that basis. Though he must be, it seems to me, at least to some degree, a product of it. I guess the question for me then is, to what degree is Romney a product of his environment?
I really need to take the time to do a lot of research on Romney. Until I do so, I really can't speak to his candidacy, favorably or unfavorably, in any specific terms.
I hear tell that in his governorship bid he stated once that he agrees with everything Ted Kennedy says, he just thinks he has a better way of accomplishing it. But that's hearsay. I've not investigated the matter yet.
But your perspective is valued around here, so I appreciate your stopping by and leaving your thoughts.
-Terry
Post a Comment