Mitt Romney looks ahead as string of victories make clear rivals no longer a threat
[fragment number=0]MANCHESTER, N.H. – Sweeping all five primaries Tuesday was almost an afterthought as Mitt Romney took the stage in New Hampshire to deliberately, if unofficially, put the Republican primary campaign behind him and shift his focus to his general election battle with President Obama.
Instead, with a calmness borne by no longer having to glance back at carping nomination rivals, Romney looked ahead to deliver not so much of a victory speech as his mass introduction to the American audience.
Over 15 minutes, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee purposefully hit all the touchstones aimed for in such a pivot.
-He sought to connect with angst-ridden voters, mentioning single mothers, grandparents, moms and dads, and small-business owners.
“I have a simple message: Hold on a little longer. A better America begins tonight,’’ he said.
Amplifying his message, Romney added: “The last few years have been the best that Barack Obama can do, but it’s not the best America can do!’’
-He sought to move beyond the image of him as a Gordon Gekko corporate raider, talking about his father’s own hardscrabble life and taking head-on the criticism of a venture capital career that made him a near quarter-billionaire.
“I’d tell you that not every business made it, and there were good days and bad days, but every day was a lesson. And after 25 years, I know how to lead us out of this stagnant Obama economy and into a job-creating recovery,’’ he told an audience of several hundred at the Radisson Hotel Armory.
-He sought to recapture Ronald Reagan’s penetrating 1980 question – “Are you better off than you were four years ago?’’ – by asking, “Is it easier to make ends meet?’’
A chorus of “No’’ rang out as Romney continued to ask about pocketbook issues: “Is it easier to sell your home or buy a new one? Have you saved what you needed for retirement? Are you making more in your job?’’
-He sought to outline the contrast he hopes will dominate the remainder of the campaign, his support for what he terms a free-enterprise society versus what he says is Obama’s belief in a government-centered one.
“This president is putting us on a path where our lives will be ruled by bureaucrats and boards, commissions, and czars. He’s asking us to accept that Washington knows best – and can provide all,’’ said Romney. “Those who promise to spread the wealth around only ever succeed in spreading poverty.’’
Romney said with his vision, “because there are so many enterprises that are succeeding, the competition for hard-working, educated and skilled employees is intense, and so wages and salaries rise.’’
-He sought to undercut the prime mantra of the political party rivaling that which he now leads, challenging the Democrats’ argument that they are the guardians of fairness.
“We will stop the unfairness of urban children being denied access to the good schools of their choice,’’ he said, alluding to his support for charter schools.
“We will stop the unfairness of politicians giving taxpayer money to their friends’ businesses,’’ Romney said, smoothly delivering a more pointed shot he usually takes at Obama’s support for Solyndra, a failed renewable energy company.
-And, finally, Romney sought to provide the inspiration that people expect not just from the nation’s chief executive officer, but its leader.
“There was a time – not so long ago – when each of us could walk a little taller and stand a little straighter because we had a gift that no one else in the world shared. We were Americans. That meant something different to each of us but it meant something special to all of us. We knew it without question. And so did the world,’’ he said. “Those days are coming back. That’s our destiny.’’
Democrats predictably disagreed and said Romney’s beliefs represented the past, not the future.
“The title for Governor Romney’s speech tonight should have been ‘Back to the Future,’ because he has proposed a return to the same policies that got us into the economic crisis in the first place,’’ said Obama for America spokesman Ben LaBolt. “This marks the end of that monologue. Now he must put his record and his agenda next to the president’s.’’
Mitt and Ann RomneyDominck Reuter/Reuters
Truth be told, Romney had already begun his general election pivot before Tuesday night.
Rick Santorum publicly revealed he was suspending his campaign as Romney was flying from California to Delaware on April 10 – presenting the former Massachusetts governor’s campaign with a welcome present.
Romney’s son Matt termed it a “great development’’ in a tweet. “My Dad’s focus has already been on President Obama, but things should heat up even more now,’’ he added.
When Romney spoke at RC Fabricators in Wilmington Del., he, too, was more transactional than visionary.
“This has been a good day for me,’’ he said. “Senator Santorum has decided not to proceed with his campaign, and I had the chance to speak with him this morning. We exchanged our thoughts about going forward and we both have a great deal of interest in seeing the country taken on a very different path.’’
A day later, in Hartford, Conn., and Warwick, R.I., Romney was knocked off-message by suggestions that his policies were harmful to women. But the campaign regained its footing that night, after CNN contributor Hilary Rosen said Romney’s wife, Ann, was not a good spokesman for his economic policies because she had been a wealthy stay-at-home mother.
That prompted the Romney campaign to try to capitalize on the remark for an entire day, before the candidate himself had a chance to step back and speak to his more fundamental contrast with Obama.
He did so on April 13, during a speech to an NRA convention in St. Louis.
Seeking to rally his base, Romney said: “We need a president who will stand up for the rights of hunters and sportsmen and those seeking to protect their homes and their families. President Obama has not. I will.’’
He also flashed a common general election closing argument, raising the specter of Obama having power to nominate Supreme Court justices in a second term.
“In his first term, we’ve seen the president try to browbeat the Supreme Court. In a second term, he would remake it,’’ Romney told the conventioneers. “Our freedoms would be in the hands of an Obama court, not just for four years, but for the next 40. That must not happen.’’
A week ago, Romney also delivered another major speech in which he sought to frame the general election rather than focusing on a primary campaign that is all but over but technically will continue for at least another month.
During an address on April 18 in Charlotte, N.C., scene of this summer’s Democratic National Convention, Romney offered a “prebuttal’’ to what he envisioned as Obama’s nomination acceptance speech.
The appearance highlighted the campaign’s decision to bracket the president by staging high-profile events either before or after Obama makes an appearance.
“We’re a trusting people, we’re a hopeful people, but we’re not dumb, and we’re not going to fall for the same lines from the same person just because we’re in a different place,’’ Romney said.
This week, Romney more substantively signaled his turn to general election mode.
He made two stops in Pennsylvania, a battleground state. The first was with former Governor Tom Ridge, still a popular figure, while the second was with Florida Senator Marco Rubio.
The tandem naturally attracted questions about whether Rubio was auditioning to be Romney’s vice presidential running mate, which both fended off.
But it also gave Romney the chance to talk about two pieces of policy: the impending doubling of Stafford Loan rates unless Congress passes legislation to preserve the current rate for college students, and whether Romney supports Rubio’s proposal to modify to DREAM Act immigration legislation.
Both are big-tent issues.
On the former, Romney agreed with Obama, saying: “Particularly with the number of college graduates that can’t find work or can only find work well beneath their skill level, I fully support the effort to extend the low interest rate on student loans.’’
On the latter, Romney was more circumspect – a sign he was considering embracing Rubio’s modification to the original legislation. Romney has opposed the original version of the legislation, favored by Obama and the Democrats.
“I’m taking a look at his proposal. It has many features to commend it,’’ said the presumptive nominee. “But it’s something that we’re studying.’’
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