It seems odd, but I was once a speechwriter for Mitt Romney’s father.
George Romney was Governor of Michigan, and I was a young copywriter at MacManus, John & Adams, the advertising agency for Pontiac and Cadillac Divisions of General Motors and a supporter of the Governor’s re-election campaign. This was way back, of course, when I was a cautious Democrat. However, I felt not the least bit hypocritical in putting words into Romney’s mouth. He was not an extremist; he supported most of the social issues I favored; he was already Governor of my newly adopted state; and, besides, it was my job. I was proud that my creative director, Bob Marker, thought I was good enough to write a speech that the Governor would approve.
Mitt would never approve a speech I had written.
An article in last Sunday’s North County Times, “Making Sense of Mitt Romney,” remembered his father trying unsuccessfully to denounce extremism in the Republican Party platform of 1964, and his being booted out of presidential politics for saying he had been “brain-washed” into supporting the Vietnam War. “It did tell me you have to be very, very careful in your choice of words,” Mitt recalled.
Unfortunately, the fruit falls pretty close to the tree. Mitt forgets what he says from one speech to the next. He failed to follow his father's attempts to denounce extremism, especially in his choice for VP. His solution for re-building the middle class is not to raise taxes on the rich. His goal for the economy is to eliminate Medicare, or is that just what he's saying now?
I must admit, when Republicans recently ran through their list of presidential misfits, Mitt sounded – well, better by comparison. If we lose to Mitt, how bad could it be, I thought. I’ve changed my mind. I do that occasionally – not as often as Mitt, mind you. He may be sound of mind and body; I just don’t like the sound of it.
