WASHINGTON — There are some campaign advisors who would counsel
former governor Mitt Romney to jog on the campaign trail
tirelessly, probably in short pants and with a catchy T-shirt
emblazoned with some memorable phrase, say, “Fred Fna Ate Here,”
à la Al Gore and Bill Clinton. Jimmy Carter started the
presidential candidates’ jogging craze, and since him there have
been a horde of presidential joggers, all wearing little boys’
outfits, the notable exception being Ronald Reagan — possibly
because, as he campaigned from 1976 on, he was considered too old
to be president. On the other hand, the old cowboy had a sense of
dignity that all other would-be presidents in recent years have
lacked. Perhaps Romney should be photographed windsurfing as John
Kerry was in 2004 and downing shots of firewater as Hillary did in
2008. Or he could filch a page from President-elect Vladimir Putin,
and campaign shirtless. Adopt the he-man look, Mitt!
Alas, Romney is a normal middle-aged American. He is the kind of
man we would all like to have live next door. Facts are facts —
all the aforesaid candidates save Reagan and now Romney are weird!
Americans do not mind having them wearing funny hats and eating
ethnic food on the campaign trail, but almost no American would
want them as neighbors. Not so Romney. He would be welcome in our
neighborhoods, and maybe even trusted with a key to the house.
Romney is NORMAL.
That is one fundamental reason why, as this campaign season
draws to an end, I am glad he will get the nomination. Think about
it. Practically everyone who has run for the presidency over the
last few decades is odd. You would not want them in your
neighborhood. Why would you want one of them in the White House?
Rick Santorum ran a fine, if improbable, race, emphasizing values
many of us share. Dr. Ron Paul reminded us of our constitutional
principles that set Americans apart from the citizenry of other
nations. Yet Newt Gingrich was the standard-issue candidate of
recent decades. He was as bizarre as Bill Clinton and lacks Bill’s
charm — if that is the word for it.
Romney is normal. That is what the press corps really means when
they say things like he fails to inspire or he commits gaffes.
Compared to whom, to Joe Biden? The other day Joe addressed the
perfectly nice female president of Scott Community College, a Dr.
Theresa Paper, as “Dr. Pepper.” Joe’s list of gaffes is
encyclopedic. Moreover, Romney is campaigning for things most
Americans believe in, and, in fact, many consider exigent.
He will repeal Obamacare and give Medicaid block grants to the
state. It costs less for Medicaid in Idaho than in New York City.
He says he will take seriously an alternative healthcare proposal
involving Premium Support, after the healthcare proposal of
Congressman Paul Ryan. He has promised to cut taxes: a 20 percent
across-the-board cut in marginal rates, eliminate the Death Tax,
eliminate taxes on capital gains, interest, and qualified dividends
on those with an Adjusted Gross Income of $200,000 or less, plus
cut the corporate tax rate to 25 percent. What is more, he will
repeal Dodd-Frank, amend Sarbanes-Oxley, and initiate a review of
all of Obama’s Nanny State regulations. That ought to get the
economy revved up!
In foreign policy, he has promised in his first 100 days to
reverse Obama’s cuts in missile defense, modernize our Navy, and
reverse the decline in the aging inventories of the Air Force,
Army, and Marines. He would pressure Iran to stop building nuclear
weapons and improve our relations in the Middle East, starting with
Israel. He has promised to open America’s energy reserves for
development and prevent the overregulation of shale gas and
extraction, helping to make America energy independent. He has
promised to amend the Clean Air Act, excluding carbon dioxide from
its jurisdiction. These are policies that all conservatives can
applaud and independents too.
So why is there any doubt that Romney is a conservative? He has
already won broad segments of the conservative vote and the Tea
Party movement. Soon he will win over large numbers of
independents. America is facing a crisis in spending and overreach.
I think Romney can meet the crisis and restore America to Happy
Days.
