More headlines: Mitt Romney on Principles & Values
(Following are older quotations. Click here for main quotations.)
Bush took on some tough issues and stood for strength
Bush took on some tough issues. He put forward a plan to reform Social Security. He was hit by something which completely took his agenda, and that was the Iraq conflict and the attack of 9/11, and Afghanistan. He did show that when someone attacks
America, there will be consequences. He kept us safe these last 6 years. I’m pleased that Bush has stood for strength. We did not deal with entitlements. He tried. He did fight for better schools. No Child Left Behind takes the ball forward, not backward
Source: 2008 Republican debate at Reagan Library in Simi Valley
Jan 30, 2008
Washington is broken & can’t deal with many problems
Primarily I saw that you had a President of the United States who is not running for re-election. His political career is over, and he has decided that he has a number of things he wants to say to the American people.
He said them honestly and forthrightly. I was disappointed that in many cases the Democrats wouldn’t stand and acknowledge the importance of some of the issues he raised. But I saw a President who recognizes that
Washington has been unable to deal with many of the problems we face. And whether that’s the ongoing threat from al Qaeda or whether it’s the need to reform Social Security or the need to finally secure our borders and have an immigration policy
that works. This was a President saying, ‘You know what? Washington ought to get the job done.’ Washington is broken, and I think that’s one more reason for us to see a change in direction in our nation’s capital.“
Source: Response to 2008 State of the Union address
Jan 28, 2008
Don’t think religion figuring into this race
When the Constitution and the founders said no religious test shall ever be required for qualification for office or public trust in the US that the founders meant just that. And I don’t believe for a minute that Republicans, or Americans for that
matter, are going to impose a religious test when the founders said it’s as un-American as anything you can think of. I don’t think you’re going to see religion figuring into this race after people have had a chance to get to know all the candidates.
Source: 2008 GOP debate in Boca Raton Florida
Jan 24, 2008
Acting like Hillary won’t keep Hillary out of White House
Q: [to Romney]: Sen. Thompson says that you run to the left of Teddy Kennedy in 1994, that you were proudly pro-choice, as recently as 2005, and that his philosophy doesn’t depend on geography. Who is more conservative: you or Fred Thompson? ROMNEY:
This is a critical time for our nation and for our party. We’re going to have to bring together the same coalition that Ronald Reagan put together; conservatives fiscally, conservatives from a military standpoint and conservatives socially.
Because we’re not going to keep Hillary Clinton out of the White House by acting like Hillary Clinton. Now, I’m proud of my record. Not just of the words, but of the record of the governor of Massachusetts.
THOMPSON: I was conservative as soon as
I put down Conscience of a Conservative when I was in the college. In 8 years in the US Senate, I fought for tax cuts, a balanced budget, and welfare reform, all of which we achieved. All that time, I compiled a 100 percent pro-life voting record.
Source: 2007 GOP primary debate in Orlando, Florida
Oct 21, 2007
Absent from Values Voter Presidential Debate
Q: You are running as a pro-life and pro-marriage candidate, but you have a history of being strongly pro-abortion-on-demand and pro-homosexual. My question is, why should voters trust you, after you spent so much of your career aggressively promoting
anti-life & anti-family positions? I understand a change of heart, but a change of position on life, marriage, gun control, pornography, and immigration all preceding your run for president?GOV. ROMNEY: [absent from podium]
MODERATOR: Next question.
Source: 2007 GOP Values Voter Presidential Debate
Sep 17, 2007
Apologized for phrase “tar baby”, but not meant racially
Let’s look at one of Mitt Romney’s memorable gaffes: “The best thing politically would be to stay as far away from that tar baby as I can.”
Governor Romney was speaking of his decision to take over the trouble-plagued Big Dig project in Boston.
He later apologized, saying he didn’t intend his remarks as a racial epithet, but used the phrase merely to describe a sticky situation.
The governor wound up mired in goo just like B’rer Rabbit in The Tale of Uncle Remus, where the phrase originated. It’s probably not a good idea to quote Uncle Remus in the new millennium.
Source: The Man, His Values, & His Vision, p. 16
Aug 31, 2007
Misspoke that sons’ campaign service comparable to military
Q: You caused a bit of a stir this week when someone asked you whether or not your sons had served in the Army, and you answered that they had not, explaining that “one of the ways that my sons are showing support for our nation is helping me get
elected because they think I’d be a great president.” Can you understand why that answer has upset some people?A: Oh, I misspoke there. I didn’t mean in any way to compare service in the country with my boys in any way.
Service in this country is an extraordinary sacrifice being made by individuals and their families. I’ve been calling for a surge of support, as you know, by the American citizens. There’s no comparison.
I’m very pleased and proud of my boys and the help they’re doing for their dad, but it’s not service to the country. It’s service for me. And there’s just no comparison there.
Source: Fox News Sunday: 2007 “Choosing the President” interviews
Aug 12, 2007
Withdrawing from race to help McCain beat Democrats
I disagree with Senator McCain on a number of issues, as you know. But I agree with him on doing whatever it takes to be successful in Iraq, on finding and executing Osama bin Laden, and on eliminating Al Qaeda and terror. If I fight on in my campaign,
all the way to the convention, I would forestall the launch of a national campaign and make it more likely that Senator Clinton or Obama would win. And in this time of war, I simply cannot let my campaign, be a part of aiding a surrender to terror.
This is not an easy decision for me. I hate to lose. My family, my friends and our supporters--many of you right here in this room--have given a great deal to get me where I have a shot at becoming President.
If this were only about me, I would go on. But I entered this race because I love America, and because I love America, I feel I must now stand aside, for our party and for our country.
Source: Speeches to 2008 Conservative Political Action Conference
Feb 7, 2008
Not seeking re-election as governor; speaking around US
Popular Republican Governor Mitt Romney has announced that he will not seek an additional term, citing the need to finish the objectives he has set for himself and to allow others to serve. Romney has fueled the speculation that he plans on seeking the
GOP presidential nomination by recently appearing in key political states, including a recent speech before Republican Governors in a convention in California. “My decision comes down to this: In this four-year term, we can accomplish what
I set out to do,“ he said. ”A year from now, it will be time for me to pass that privilege to someone else. I will not be a candidate for re-election.“
Often describing himself as a ”red speck in a blue state,“ Romney has successfully navigated
liberal waters as a traditional conservative. He has positioned himself as a reasonable and prudent politician who is open to discussions with all political persuasions, even where he is morally opposed to certain liberal causes.
Source: 2008 speculation in Beehive Standard Weekly (NV)
Apr 12, 2006
Respects Kerry’s Vietnam record, but not his Senate record
I’m proud to be from Massachusetts, where John Kerry will be the junior senator until 2008. You see, I don’t believe Senator Kerry is the leader our country needs.
Let me say I respect his four months under enemy fire in Vietnam; we should honor that service as we do the service of all our fighting men and women.
No, it’s John Kerry’s record in his nearly 40 years since Vietnam that’s the question. Study that record; if you want someone who voted for tax hikes 98 times, then yes, send him. If you want cuts in intelligence funding, then yes, send him.
If you think that during the great national policy debate of the 1980s Ronald Reagan was wrong and Ted Kennedy was right, then by all means send in John Kerry.
Source: 2004 Republican Convention Speech
Sep 1, 2004
Kerry’s leadership is 57 varieties; Bush is unwavering
Senator Kerry now tells us he has a clear position on the war on terror. He voted NO on Desert Storm in 1991 and YES on Desert Shield today. Then he voted NO on troop funding, just after he had voted YES.
He’s campaigned against the war all year, but says he’d vote YES today. I don’t want Presidential leadership that comes in 57 varieties! I want a strong President who stands his ground.
I want George W. Bush! We need unwavering leadership. America is under attack from almost every direction. We have been attacked by murderous, crazed terrorists, even in this great city.
Our employers and jobs are threatened by low cost, highly skilled labor from abroad. American values are under attack from within.
Source: 2004 Republican Convention Speech
Sep 1, 2004
Page last updated: Jun 15, 2016