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by Frank James
A good picture of the dilemma facing conservatives in terms of their choice for the Republican presidential nomination can be drawn from two essays in different conservative political journals.
As we wrote yesterday, the influential National Review has endorsed Mitt Romney as the most viable Republican candidate who also most embraces a conservative worldview.
More than the other primary candidates, Romney has President Bush’s virtues and avoids his flaws. His moral positions, and his instincts on taxes and foreign policy, are the same. But he is less inclined to federal activism, less tolerant of overspending, better able to defend conservative positions in debate, and more likely to demand performance from his subordinates. A winning combination, by our lights. In this most fluid and unpredictable Republican field, we vote for Mitt Romney.
Meanwhile, another important conservative journal, the American Spectator, just featured a piece on why conservatives should be wary of Romney. He's too focused on data and process, not principle, is the case Jeffrey Lord makes against Romney.
Mitt Romney loves data and lusts after process.
In a recent cover profile in the Weekly Standard by the magazine's Fred Barnes, Romney is portrayed as the man who would be the CEO-in-chief of America. Says Barnes quoting Romney, a Harvard MBA: "His idea of the perfect deal is not when one side wins but when 'you find a new alternative that everybody agrees is the right way to go. That doesn't always happen.'"
Indeed.
Barnes says Romney's "approach to government is not ideological." A Romney adviser is quoted as saying of his candidate: "He's super-pragmatic. He's an eclectic conservative." And Romney himself says flatly that as president he would "insist on gathering data...and analyze the data looking for trends."
Uh-oh.
Make no mistake. If the leading candidates in the GOP presidential race are to be litmus tested as conservatives, all would cause conservatives sleepless nights. If the Reagan coalition was of economic and social conservatives combined with national security hawks, each group has something to be disturbed about with this batch of front-runners. Giuliani famously has his issues with social issues, McCain his prickly insistence on First Amendment censorship and an addiction to sounding like Al Gore on global warming and Hillary Clinton on immigration. Huckabee amazingly sounds like Ted Kennedy in his attack on supporters of economic growth as greedy, while Thompson was not only assisting the pro-choice movement as a lawyer, but has an apparent bent for trial lawyers.
Yet the Romney approach as described not only by Barnes but more importantly by Romney himself is an approach that goes far beyond any particular issue. It is, as Romney himself freely admits, all about process. Whatever the issue -- economic, social or national security -- Romney would gather the data, look for a trend and thus "you make better decisions."
This should cause conservatives to break out in cold sweats.
What also should cause conservatives anxiety is that, with the Iowa caucuses so near, there's still so much uncertainty among them about who best can carry forward Ronald Reagan's legacy.
Clearly, when it comes to conservatives and the former Massachusetts governor, there appears to be something we could call the Romney Whipsaw.
Comments
Whatever the issue -- economic, social or national security -- Romney would gather the data, look for a trend and thus "you make better decisions."
This should cause conservatives to break out in cold sweats.
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Ain't that the truth? Relying on data and facts instead of the Bible? How absurd.
Posted by: Bruce Y | December 12, 2007 11:39 AM
Better to collect and analyze the data than to rush to judgment, don't you think? And where, oh where, does the evidence come from that Romney favors process over principle? Can't he favor both? Should he let an impulsive and blind adherence to principle alone (which, by the way, doesn't exist in a vacuum, study your jurisprudence) keep him from making the best decisions - which I think we all would agree come from having the best information? Can't he, like Sir Thomas More, look for ways to appease those who oppose him without violating his principles, insofar as that is possible?
And while we're talking about what's possible or not, remember that most people wouldn't be able to do what Romney has done in the business world: take hundres of companies on the brink of extinction and restore them to fiscal health. After all, if anyone could do it, why not the CEO's who took the companies down in the first place? He is a MASTER of doing what others think is 'impossible'. That isn't just smart, that's inspirational. And that's why so many people who examine his record see him as the next President of the United States.
Posted by: jdavelaw | December 12, 2007 11:41 AM
Romney clearly is the Republican the Democrats would fear the most. They will bash him on religion but that can be a two-edged sword. Otherwise, he's got a record of management success that none of the Demo front-runners can match, he's articulate, concise, extremely well-organized, a hard campaigner, well financed and like Obama a good family man. An Obama-Romney race will be
good for the country if the religious background of both is kept out of it.
Posted by: Aardmore | December 12, 2007 11:43 AM
The attacks on Huckabee thus far don't seem to really address his positions. I don't see the evidence that he is a fiscal liberal. The courts ordered the tax hike for education and if you had ever driven on the roads in Arkansas prior to his administration, you would have found a way to improve them!!!
Posted by: Brett | December 12, 2007 11:59 AM
Aardmore,
You are way off base. The Dems are playing head games. They secretly want Mittens Romney to be the nominee because in the 1960s the Mormon/Demoncrat cult devised a plan to infect American government by planting upstanding Mormans into the Republican Party to carry out their bidding. These plants would be naturally successful businessmen because of their Mormonism and accordingly they would win the praises of Republicans. Romney is part of this plan. Several of his aides who have now disappeared found e-mails from the Demoncrat Party on Mitten's laptop requesting his daily report and updates on the mission status. He is not the only one. There are many others. Sen. Hatch knows what I'm talking about.
Posted by: patterson emerson | December 12, 2007 2:07 PM
patterson emerson,
was that parody, or are you serious?
Posted by: Jones | December 12, 2007 3:36 PM
"An Obama-Romney race will be good for the country if the religious background of both is kept out of it."
Posted by: Aardmore | December 12, 2007 11:43 AM
Ardmore?? What would Obama's religious background be that ahould be kept out of it??
And the Dems would make mincemeat of Romney over his flip-flops on all the social issues.
Posted by: BobinATL | December 12, 2007 4:16 PM
And now this, from Boehner, who admits republipukes are having a hard time raising campaign money.
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“Now the money sucks for two reasons,” Boehner said in a Politico interview. “People are mad at the president; they are mad at the party. And then [there is] this whole immigration fight. People just turned off the spigot.”
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Boehner; missus connies. Boehner. I guess now he is also a known liberal, according to head in the sand knee jerk reich wingers like terriee, bruthiee, jwhitey and pillow. Let the bashing begin.
Posted by: rncbs | December 12, 2007 5:26 PM
**Romney would gather the data, look for a trend and thus "you make better decisions."**
C'mon, be consistent! Is Romney a mindless cultist or a rational decision maker?
Do we want a "decider" who makes national policy based on his "gut" feelings? Haven't we been burned by that already?
I don't know that I'll vote for Romney, but your 'criticism' has done little more than nudge me his direction.
"Gathering data," and "looking at facts," since when did this violate conservative ideals?
I'll leave it to theologians to argue whether Romney goes to a cult on Sunday. On the remaining days of the week, however, I want a President who makes decisions based on objective fact. Romney seems to be that guy.
Posted by: Will Argyle | December 12, 2007 8:26 PM
Conservatives need not fear Romney's approach, but rather embrace it. His approach is proven successful in almost everthing he does. It works very well. Lord, Barnes, and James are being silly.
Posted by: Lori | December 13, 2007 5:03 PM
There is NOTHING wrong and everything RIGHT with a president who is pragmatic, looks at the data first, and is not driven by pure ideology before making decisions. That is exactly what a president is supposed to be. Mitt Romney is a breath of fresh air, not someone to be scared of.
Posted by: Mike | December 15, 2007 9:04 AM