If you're leaning toward voting for Governor Romney...

...please make your case. Again, the idea is to make a positive case for your candidate, not to tear down President Obama. They'll be plenty of mudslinging in this election and plenty of negative threads.

I will likely vote for Gov. Romney, but I'll state my case after seeing posts from others (if there is anyone else in here that will vote for Gov. Romney )

 

I think it's more interesting to try to make a case for somebody you won't vote for. Forces you to put yourself in others' shoes. I'll try:

He doesn't seem as simple-minded or beholden to Cheney-like father figures as Dubya, so I don't think he'd fall for War On Evil type of arguments that get us into Iraq-like quagmires. I don't think he gives a damned about Iran, which is fine with me. He strikes me as the sort who takes foreign policy seriously (and always in terms of trade), which mean maybe less of the John Bolton-types and more of the Jon Huntsman types in diplomacy. I think he'd rather have realists work for him than ideologues, because he knows personally how easy it is to fake being an ideologue, and how much talent it takes to have true competence. I think he's both a great fake ideologue and a truly talented individual, and those types know the value of their kind. But that's just my gut instinct.

For most of his political life, Romney has been a pretty moderate-to-liberal Republican. He was a friend to the gay community, pro-life, and not anti-gun but also pro-Brady Bill. He was governor of one of the wealthiest, most liberal states in our country, that's 14th in the nation in population. So he was responsible for running a pretty big budget (ie, he's no Sarah Palin). So you can definitely argue he knows how to get along with Democratics to pass meaningful legislation. The signature bill he'll always be remembered for is Universal Health Care, which is also the model for Obamacare. Even though he renounces it now, its example may be the only reason Obamacare was ever allowed to pass, and so it may prove more lasting than any other major policy initiative of his career, even if he wins the White House. It's certainly one of the most important pieces of state legislation (in any of the 50 states) passed in the 2000's.

He seemed to do a pretty competent job of organizing the Olympics in Utah, although I don't know that "event planner" makes him more qualified to be president than "community organizer." *wink wink*

Many view his corporate experience as a path forward for running our country, although it can be difficult to see how the lessons of outsourcing/closing factories/laying people off can apply directly to killing bad guys or delivering checks and services to old people (the two primary functions of the modern federal government). The two most prominent CEO-turned-presidents aren't remembered so fondly (GWB and Hoover), but there is something to be said for running large and disparate organizations.

His father was a very prominent politician in his own right, although again I'm not sure the dynastic argument is a pro or con in terms of ideal presidential candidates. Much like the Clintons and Bushes, his family is well-connected.

If the 2006 version of Romney were running today, I'd be quite comfortable in voting for him. Since then he has taken a very, very sharp turn to the right. Some feel this is really his natural inclination and that Massachusetts Mitt was a charade, while others think the current "strict conservative" Mitt is the charade, while still others feel like there is no real Mitt but only whatever Mitt it takes to be successful. I think the third option is the most likely, and I oddly take some comfort in that.

I have a gut feeling that once he finally had all the power he wanted, he'd pretty much exercise it to get people to get along. The man clearly cares about amassing a legacy, so unilateral massive tax cuts/deregulation is a non-starter while Democrats can still filibuster. Romneycare makes me feel like he'd rather pass legislation that actually accomplishes stuff than win ideological battles that have little tangible or lasting real-world impact. In much the same way that Nixon could only go to China, maybe only a "strict conservative" as the current brand of Romney could get away with moderate policies that can muster some bipartisan support. *shrug* It's a hope at least.

That's the best I can do. I'd encourage the conservatives on this board to try to put together their own arguments on the Obama thread. I personally found the exercise both interesting and oddly reassuring.

 

I think points #2 and #3 are actually very, very important in a president. In this respect I think he's a much better Republican candidate than McCain (smart, but pretty reckless with Sarah Palin and Bomb Bomb Iran) and George W Bush (both dumb and reckless).

The more I think about Romney, the more he reminds me of George Bush Sr. A guy who faked his way (ideologically speaking) into the presidency, but in hindsight is remembered for being both cautious and pretty bright.

 

He is less crazy and more modeerate than Sarah Palin, the crazy christrian right and the tea baggers.

He wouldn't be as bad as Bush.

 

Managed of the most successful consulting firms in America
Governor of a State which is traditionally democrat leaning
Successful financial guy

basically a mix of business and government experience, which is an upgrade over learning on the job. Probably would think of other ways to stimulate job growth than solar power bullshit and "shovel ready jobs". that ain't the future son.

 

Why would I ever vote for a Mormon to run our country? Talk about a lack of judgement. I may as well vote for the first scientologist that runs for President. No difference in my mind. This is very much like the McCain campaign in my opinion. You have to question the judgement of a campaign/presidential hopeful that puts Palin on the ballot. It's all about intent and sanity. What's the politicians intent and are they sane? That's all we have to differentiate one candidate from the other and I don't believe Romney's intent is pure and I also do not believe he's sane. No sane person could ever believe in Mormonism.

 

Repped. As a complete novice regarding politics, I'd love to see more posts like this, about Romney and Obama. I wan't to make an informed decision when I vote for the next President of the United States, the first time I have been old enough to. Is there any site or something that compares them issue by issue, policy by policy? It's not any of your responsibility to educate me on the matter, but it would be greatly appreciated.

 

This is the main obstacle I have when I consider voting for Romney. I'm an atheist, but I try not to discriminate against religious people, and for the most part it doesn't matter to me. Religious extremists are the exception, including atheist extremists. However, Mormonism and Scientology perplex me, and I'm not sure how a very bright person could believe and follow a religion like that. I don't know Romney's history, but it doesn't seem like his faith has impacted his decision making much, so that somewhat puts me at ease. It's still just confusing.

 

I'm interested in something. What do you think of black liberation theology? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_liberation_theology. Would a belief in those ideas disqualify someone for the office of President?

 

Maxie, honestly, I'm at a point in my life where I can apply any religious leanings towards insanity. It's a process for me. A white boy raised in suburbia. Became a Christian in his late teens. Was kicked out of the church in his early 20's. Ignored all of it until recently. Came to the realization that religion, a belief in an absolute version of something you've never seen is not an intelligent stance. A higher power? Yes. But believing in an absolute version of a higher power is just flat dumb. And to put your life in to the hands of that absolute version of a higher power is even more dumb. To campaign on it is Mt Everest dumb. I wish I thought this way back in the Bush years. I will admit he's more "evangelistic" than Romney without question and I voted for Bush both times. I never would have voted for Gore and especially Kerry under any circumstance. Hated them both. I would have probably voted for you. You're sane and I believe in your intent. I don't ask for much.

With that said, I did and I do believe in Obama's intent. I do believe he cares about the people of this country and I do believe the decisions he makes and the avenues he takes are motivated by the collective good of our nation. I don't believe that about Romney. At all.

 

Yes, of course, every unsavory situation or statistic America finds itself in can be attributed to the last three and a half years of the current President's tenure. This exact same statement sounds equally dumb for any president of any party of all time. And you know that. I get that message boards are meant for disputing here and there and quite frankly this would be a boring place without the constant head butting. But at some point, for fuck sakes, can we all just take a god damn step back and at least attempt to see the other person's POV? Fueling the fire of divisiveness isn't helping a fucking thing.

 

I'd probably be considered an atheist by many, so I don't really get why people get their jimmies up about Mormonism. The major difference between it and any other religion is just that it was founded by backwards hicks 150 years ago instead of backwards bronze agers 2000 years ago. At least the Mormons understood that the earth revolved around the sun and some of them got the idea of Newtonian physics. If you're going to believe a made up story to make yourself feel good about people dying and bad things happening, go with the one made up by people who at least understood some basic ideas about how the world really works.

Being from Idaho, I've known some very fine people who were Mormons. Aside from the weird underwear, I don't really see that how they live their day-to-day lives any more questionably than mine or the average Christian or Hindu or Muslim. People can think what they want about the afterlife and as long as they don't legislate it into my life, I don't see the big deal.