Governor Romney on the Issues

Gov. Romney is for traditional marriage and he has proven it:

• He pushed for an amendment to Massachusetts’ constitution to overturn the same-sex “marriages” that courts have imposed
• He testified before Congress and wrote to senators in favor of the Federal Marriage Amendment
• He ordered enforcement of a little-known 1913 law to prevent out-of-state gay couples from getting “married” in Massachusetts and provoking a national constitutional crisis
• He opposes civil unions, but the Democrats in the state legislature demanded that they be legalized in the constitutional amendment

Gov. Romney is for the sanctity of human life and he has proven it:

• He is a “convert” to the pro-life position, much like Ronald Reagan
• He believes life begins at conception even though his church has no official position on the matter
• He vetoed a bill to give kids access to emergency contraception without parents’ knowledge
• He promised a “moratorium” on changes to abortion laws in his 2002 gubernatorial run
• He opposes Roe v. Wade and thinks states should set abortion policy
• He opposes cloning of human embryos for stem cell research—even though his wife has multiple sclerosis
• He vetoed a bill to expand such research despite the overwhelmingly hostile liberal majority in his state legislature
• Quote: “In considering the issue of embryo cloning and embryo farming, I saw where the harsh logic of abortion can lead—to the view of innocent new life as nothing more than research material or a commodity to be exploited.”

Gov. Romney understands the threat jihadists pose to the United States and he isn’t afraid to say so:

• He criticized the administration’s decision to rely solely on WMD rationale for Iraq rather than making a positive case
• He endorsed surveillance of radical mosques
• Quote: “The president is right to point to an international jihadist movement aimed at the collapse of the United States. He has gone after that threat in the right way and with great energy and vigor, and I applaud the fact that he has taken it on very seriously and has not considered it just a criminal action but instead a war action, which requires a military…response.”

Gov. Romney is pro-growth on economic issues and he has proven it:

• He balanced Massachusetts’ budget without raising taxes despite finding a $3 billion deficit when he entered office
• He is seeking to cut the state income tax from 5.3% to 5%
• He opposes Kyoto-esque “global warming” proposals, unlike John McCain
• He secured the enactment of a sweeping health care reform plan that the Heritage Foundation, America’s premier conservative think tank, supports

Gov. Romney is for the rule of law and he has proven it:

• He opposed a bill that would have allowed illegal aliens to get driver’s licenses
• He vetoed a bill to give illegal aliens the right to in-state tuition at public universities
• He is seeking to allow state troopers to arrest illegal immigrants
• Quote: “I’m against an amnesty and against anything that provides an incentive for people to come here illegally.”

Gov. Romney has earned the praise of conservative leaders:

• “Charming. Smart. Conservative.”—National Review
• “We couldn’t be happier with him.”—Barbara Anderson, Citizens for Limited Taxation (the leading taxpayer group in Massachusetts)
• “On either [gay marriage or stem cells], a good case can be made that Romney has fought harder for social conservatives than any other governor in America, and it is difficult to imagine his doing so in a more daunting political environment.”—John J. Miller, National Review
• “In the worst possible circumstances, he confronted one of the toughest issues of our politics with considerable moral seriousness and political skill. That’s the mark of a conservative statesman.”—Matthew Spalding, The Heritage Foundation
• “I could in very good conscience support Romney as a fellow social conservative on most of the issues we care about.”—Chuck Colson
• “As more Americans meet Mitt Romney, I think they’ll see beyond the handsome exterior and see not just a good salesman, but a thoughtful (and, yes, conservative) leader.”—Kathryn Jean Lopez, syndicated columnist and editor of National Review Online
• “Mr. Romney could be an attractive presidential candidate. His sunny disposition puts one in mind of Ronald Reagan—he laughs easily and smiles almost continuously….[His] views put him well within the mainstream of GOP conservatism.”—James Taranto, Wall Street Journal
• “On marriage and cloning, he has provided aggressive leadership as a positive, pro-family governor”—Kris Mineau, Massachusetts Family Institute
• “Mitt Romney is a brave man. While the GOP glitterocracy attended the first gay wedding of one of their own, Gov. Romney was in Washington, D.C., making the single most eloquent and articulate defense of our traditional understanding of marriage I have heard from an American politician.”—Maggie Gallager, President, Institute for Marriage and Public Policy
• “As a politician, Mitt Romney is considered by friend and foe to be the total package.”—Dean Barnett, The Weekly Standard