Just a few reasons I will be supporting Mitt
Romney on the issues -
National Security
"When it comes to protecting our citizens, there is no place for political correctness. We should be doing more in terms of intelligence and counterterrorism in the state to protect ourselves from terrorists. We spend a lot of our resources thinking about response, but response can't protect us. We have to be able to prevent attacks."
-Source: press conference (September 2005)
ANWR (Drilling in Alaska)
“I think we ought to have more oil. We ought to develop more sources of oil so that we can increase our supply. But the last thing I want to do is suck it all dry as quickly as we can. I want use less of it.”
–Source: Interview on Hardball with Chris Matthews (December 2005); *Governor Romney answered “yes” when asked specifically if he supported drilling in ANWR.
Character and Integrity
“I believe people who are in a position of visibility and leadership affect the character of young people and individuals who look to them as leaders. And in some respects just as important as their policies and positions is there character and their substance. What for me makes people like Teddy Roosevelt and Franklin Roosevelt and John Adams and George Washington and Dwight Eisenhower and Ronald Reagan such extraordinary leaders is that they had integrity through and through. What they were on the inside and what they said on the outside was harmonious. There a lot of people like that. I think that if people try to live a very different personal life not consistent with the role they’ve assumed as a governor or senator or president, we lose something as a nation.”
–Source: The Atlantic (September 2005)
Economic Future
"We cannot continue to have an excellence gap with the rest of the world and intend to remain the economic superpower and military superpower of the planet. That's just not going to happen. We're in a position where unless we take action, we'll end up being the France of the 21st century: a lot of talk, but not a lot of strength behind it in terms of economic capability."
–Source: Boston Globe, November 16, 2005 (quoted from a speech to educators)
Education (in-depth)
“If we don’t recognize our best students and provide them with the intellectual tools and support they need to advance, we won’t be able to keep up with other nations that are doing everything they can to promote excellence in education.”
“I believe that our best teachers are underpaid and should be rewarded for the extra effort they bring to the classroom and the results they deliver for our students. Teachers should be compensated according to their ability to produce real results, not solely on the number of years they’ve been on the job. If we want to attract ambitious teachers, we need to treat teaching as a profession."
–Source: Press Release on education reform (January 11, 2006)
“Some kids, particularly certain minority populations, are falling behind. Horace Mann said that education was the great equalizer. But in too many of our schools today, that is not being achieved. I believe that the failure of education in urban schools is the civil rights issue of our generation.”
–Source: 2006 State of the State Address (January 2006)
Gay Marriage
“Throughout our history, when our country needed us, Americans have stepped forward, standing up to every challenge. We step forward by expressing tolerance and respect for all God's children, regardless of their differences and choices. At the same time, because every child deserves a mother and a father, we step forward by recognizing that marriage is between a man and a woman.”
–Source: Republican National Convention speech, September 1, 2004
“The real impact of gay marriage is not something you’re going to recognize in a year or two. The impact is over generations. I believe each child in America has the right to have a mother and a father.”
–Source: Interview with Hugh Hewitt (July 2005)
Illegal Immigration
“I would like to see us, as a nation, bringing in fewer illegal immigrants.”
“I do not like the idea, therefore, of Amnesty because I’m afraid that when you have a regular Amnesty program, of one form or another, you will create a greater incentive for people to come into the country illegally.”
“In my state I’ve said that I will veto any legislation which calls for a drivers license for illegal immigrants.”
-Source: Speech at the Heritage Foundation (September 2005)
