Why Mitt's Not a Flip-Flopper

The media has put forth huge effort to paint Mitt Romney as a "flip flopper" in a number of areas, but as I have studied him, I've come to the conclusion that this is not the case. The label "flip flopper" implies a lack of personal beliefs, and being swayed by the crowd. This does not describe Mitt Romney. In fact, I believe he's as solid as they come.

First, the issue on Abortion.

Mitt Romney originally believed that Government shouldn't have a say with regard to abortion. Does this mean Pro-choice? That's up for discussion. Regardless, Mitt has believed all along that abortion is wrong. But what role should Government play? There are many things which are wrong which are not restricted by laws. Adultery, for example. Romney's position was partly influenced by his mother, who had also been pro-choice, and also that a family friend had died from an illegal (and I presume not medically safe) abortion that went wrong.

However, during his Governorship of Massachusetts, he officially changed his mind. As Governor he was looking into stem-cell research, and he saw first-hand the disregard many doctors had toward human life. This change of position wasn't sudden, however. This issue had been troubling him for a long time. Over the last 12 years that Mitt has been in politics, we all can see how society has shifted to accept more and more radical (some say immoral) lifestyles. I don't think it's Mitt, so much, changing position, as it is Mitt adjusting to a changing world. As the world disregards the sanctity of life more and more, there comes a time when we must begin pulling back the other way. Mitt reached that point as Governor, and since then we can see by the things he did as Governor of Massachusetts that he is solidly Pro-Life. In today's world, he believes the Government now needs to take a strong role in restricting what he believed to be morally wrong the whole time.

Given, I personally think he was wrong to think Government shouldn't have a say about abortion. I think he should have been actively Pro-Life the whole time. But I believe he's now quite solid on this issue. In addition, his point of view has always been a result of living by principle and not by popular pressure.

Gay Rights

The media many times has tried to say that before Mitt Romney was "Pro Gay-Rights", and now has "flip-flopped", since now he's in support of outlawing same-sex marriage. But this representation is very misleading. This position is NOT A FLIP-FLOP, because in reality, on this subject Mitt has essentially NOT CHANGED. Before, he believed that people who are gay should not be denied any rights as a citizen, and he still believes this. Before, he believed that marriage was to be a sacred institution between a man and a woman. He still believes that today. Please note that these positions are not contradictory points of view. Think about it.

Given, you many notice that years past when gay marriage wasn't as much of an issue, yes, he did have a slightly softer position. Again, as with abortion, we can see his attempt to pull harder back to the correct principles as the mainline society gets more liberal.

My own opinion is as follows: Why the argument? Gay people have just as much right to marry someone of the opposite gender as any other person!

Gun Control

I'm a little unclear on Mitt's point of view in this subject, but from what I understand, he used to go against the NRA over the issue of Assault Weapons. He believed then, and still believes now that Assault weapons should be outlawed, while still believing in people's right to own guns in general. Yes, it's true he was against the NRA and now has joined it, but the fact is, he still differs with the NRA over the same issue as before. So, really not much has changed except for his membership in the organization.

People like to bring up the fact that he had said he owned a gun and liked to hunt, but then it was later found out that it was really his son's gun which he had just used and kind of considered his own, and that it was only small game (like rabbits) that he hunted. I think on this issue, he simply misspoke, and it was an unfortunate situation I'm sure he regrets, since he's later re-clarified what he had meant.

So, Why Mitt?

Streamline the Government, Save Government money

And then there's the Additional talents and skills and abilities that he has!! If anyone's going to streamline the government, help it use money more efficiently and effectively, and do this while keeping taxes low, it's Mitt Romney. I'm sure you've heard how he brought the 2002 Salt Lake Olympics from debt to surplus, and he did essentially the same thing as Governor of Massachusetts. There have been arguments over how exactly he did this, but no matter how you look at it his abilities in this area are phenomenal. We really need that in Washington.

America's Moral Health

Also, his morality, his family life. How many other candidates have only had one wife, and never divorced? Not many. How badly do we need a President who understands both the temporal problems of America, as well as the spiritual problems!!! I personally think this is a really important characteristic in a president. Consider the following quote by Abraham Lincoln:

"At what point shall we expect the approach of danger? By what means shall we fortify against it?-- Shall we expect some transatlantic military giant, to step the Ocean, and crush us at a blow? Never! ... If it ever reach us, it must spring up amongst us. It cannot come from abroad. If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen, we must live through all time, or die by suicide."

Foresee the Unforeseeable

Another thing I really admire in Mitt Romney is his ability to bring up problems and solutions in areas that others haven't even seen or considered. He seems to be able to see the big picture, when other's can't see it. Have you ever heard of the demographic problem of the Arab world? Did you know over half of their population is under the age of 22? Have we considered the future implications of this? Another problem he sees involves reorganizing the interaction and chain-of-command of our civilian organizations to operate more effectively. Currently, after the military completes an operation and the civilian organizations move in, bottlenecks pop up everywhere and cause a lot of problems. (Mitt talks about this in the article below, if you're not sure what I mean). Mitt brings many solutions to the table when most other candidates don't even mention the problem.

All these things lead me to believe that Mitt Romney is the best choice for President of the United States.

If you'd like to learn more about Mitt Romney, to understand his vision and point of view, I suggest you read the following article, written by himself:

http://www.foreignaffairs.org/20070701faessay86402/mitt-romney/rising-to-a-new-generation-of-global-challenges.html
Or go to his web site, www.mittromney.com
Or here's one more really good one: www.evangelicalsformitt.com