beastie wrote:"After the election was over and [John] McCain was the nominee, I made a decision that I would never do it again," she said. "You know who your husband is. You know-- I know what a good person he is. And oh - the negative - it's so hard as a wife to sit there and listen to that."
But when Morales asked why she changed her mind, Mrs. Romney said, "We have a reason why we're running and it's because I believe in my heart that Mitt is going to save America, that economically we are in such difficult times and that he is the person that’s going to pull us through this."
http://rockcenter.nbcnews.com/_news/201 ... iding?lite
Maybe he'll be riding a white horse. One that does dressage.
Hi Beastie,
I am hoping that you (and others here with similar views of Romney) can explain the animosity you have against him and Ann.
Let me just say upfront that I was, for the majority of my adult life, a Republican. I am now an independent but lean to the right on economic issues and left on social matters like abortion and gay marriage.
As a young man I had political aspirations and I was also, like many here, a faithful Mormon. I've mentioned it here before that I am a Romney (my Mom's side) and Miles Park Romney is my Great Grandfather. Not sure what that makes me in relation to Mitt but in any case, my point is that I come from pretty staunch LDS stock.
At no point when I considered politics as a profession (I have since abandoned such aspirations) did I ever think of my role in terms of the "white horse" prophecy. Politics and economics interested me and I thought that perhaps public service would be a way to make a differerence in the world -- not that I was God-ordained.
The quote above doesn't sound much different than what any politican would say. Many conservative Republicans use radical language like "save America" etc... and have done so since the birth of modern conservatism in the late 70s (poor Barry Goldwater would roll over in his grave if he saw the GOP today).
I suppose my question is this: Has Romney said or done anything that indicates he 1) believes the white horse prophecy and 2) sees himself as a fulfillment of that prophecy?
I guess I just see this as standard right-wing political rhetoric -- rhetoric we would hear from any GOP presidential candidate.
Another thing I don't understand is why Romney's wealth is held against him. The man is a kick-ass businessperson. I worked closely for many years (as a technical and market data consultant) with PE and Hedge Funds and from my perspective, Bain Capital is a great example of what a PE firm should be. Yes, people lose jobs during M&A but jobs and wealth are also created. In other words, I see PE having a net positive impact on the economy. Many companies that would now be extinct have been rescued by PE. Sure there are some very bad apples out there but I don't see Bain/Romney that way. I agree with Bill Clinton's assesment of PE -- sometimes you do well and sometimes you don't.
I hope that someday, if I work hard and catch some breaks, that I can be as successful as Romney and that if my wife suffered from a painful disease that I could afford to buy things she enjoyed and mader her happy/comfortable. I don't see that as a character flaw.
Also, I know a couple of people from the Boston area who Romney helped personally with college etc... From what I'm told, he's very generous.
Now, I'm not defending Romney's likability. He doesn't have much personality and, having been a very wealthy man for a long time, has said some really dumb things about the 10k bet, etc... But let's not kid ourselves. Obama is wealthy. Reid is wealthy. Clinton is wealthy. They all have offshore accounts (which are perfectly legal -- if they didn't take advantage of Swiss/Cayman bank accounts they would be stupid). They just have more sense in how they discuss it.
Ann is actually VERY likeable.
Anyway, I'm rambling. I'm just sincerely puzzled about the animosity shown towards Romney. He's a politician -- not as skilled as Clinton or Reagan -- but still a politician.
Seth
ETA -- Glenn Beck hates Romney. Shouldn't that count in his favor? :)