Romney Reflections

Description: A little bit of both, says Romney.

Question:  Are leaders born or made?

Transcript: Probably a bit of both. Some folks have good genes and have some of the skills that are perhaps inherent; but I think most of us develop skills of leadership through experience.  You probably have to have the opportunity to actually run something to be a leader; and to have been tested time and time again, I think, to develop the kinds of skills you need to lead something as great as the United States of America.

Recorded on: 11/26/07

 

 

 

Description: Romney, on a wide range of inspiring people.

 

Question: Which leaders have taught you the most?

Transcript: Well, as I think about the leaders that I’ve known personally, my dad and my mom have to be at the top of the list.  They were my heroes.  My dad in particular was a business leader and then a political leader, and I watched him very closely and learned a lot from him. In history you look back to some of the great leaders of our country, of course.  And the first Washington, an extraordinary leader.  But also John Adams, Thomas Jefferson to a certain degree.  One of my favorites, Teddy Roosevelt – his bully, bully attitude about America is something which infected the American spirit for a long time with great buoyance and optimism.  Ronald Reagan – as time has gone on he has gotten smarter and smarter, you know that?  His brand of optimism . . . his recognition that to overcome challenges, you fight to strengthen America.  That’s something which I very much have adopted in my own political philosophy.And of course there are great religious leaders who shaped one’s perspective . . . my perspective of leadership.  Certainly the Master is one of those, and Paul, and other great leaders in the early church.  They’ve inspired my own thinking.

Recorded on: 11/26/07

 

 

 

 

Description: Romney believes the surge is working.

 

Question: If you were an Iraqi, how would you view America?

Transcript: I would be grateful and appreciative that American soldiers have surged their support such that the Iraqis themselves are now able to rid themselves of the peril of Al Qaeda.  The last thing I think any society wants is to have Al Qaeda or Taliban type leadership, or Hezbollah ruling the day in their country.  And that’s of course what was happening in Afghanistan.  It is something which has become part of the landscape in Iraq in the most recent few years.  And our effort has helped the Sunnis reject that violence and that extreme.  And if I were an Iraqi citizen, I would be appreciative of that.

Recorded on: 11/26/07

 

 

 

Description: A mixed, but very strong record.

Question:  What will be the legacy of George W. Bush?

Transcript: Well there will be things that are great accomplishments . . .  I think we will recognize that he kept us safe these last few years, and that was not easy to do.  He fought for the Patriot Act.  He made sure that when Al Qaeda was calling, we were listening.  He made sure that terrorists that were caught, we interrogated to find out what they knew so we could protect our country.  He kept us safe.  That’s the first responsibility of a president. Secondly, he went after the guys that went after us.  No more in this world do you say, “Hey, we can go after America and nothing happens.”  He made sure people realize there are consequences for attacking us.  They attacked us at the U.S.S. Cole.  They attacked us in Saudi Arabia.  They attacked us in our . . . in African embassies in Tanzania and Kenya.  And actually they attacked our Marines in Lebanon.  We didn’t respond.  And finally when George Bush was president and they attacked us on 9/11, we did respond in a major and aggressive way, and they know there are consequences for attacking us. His commitment to education and “No Child Left Behind”, I also support. And his effort to help people get prescription drugs I think was a good effort, although I think we should’ve reformed Medicare as part of the process because the Medicare Part D alone, I’m afraid, added a huge new entitlement that I think will not be a positive part of his legacy. There are other elements that were not as successful.  I wish we would have been able to see the reform of entitlements.  That just didn’t happen.  He tried, that was unsuccessful.  And of course the conflict in Iraq was not superbly managed.  Following the collapse of Saddam Hussein, we just did not have the right level of troop strength.  We did not have the rules of engagement or the . . . the plans and preparations in place to . . . to have Iraq become stable in the timeframe it should have become stable.  So there will be pluses and minuses; but overall we’ll know that this is a president who did what he thought was right for America at every turn.

Recorded on: 11/26/07

 

 

Description: Mitt Romney talks about what Mormonism stands for.

Question: What is Mormonism?

Transcript: It’s a religion that was founded in 1820 or 1830, and flows from the Judeo-Christian values that have been part of this country from its founding.  I’m very proud of my faith, and believe that the values that I have are every bit as American as other faiths in our great land.

Question: What is Americans’ biggest misconception about the faith?

Transcript: Well, I’m probably not the one to answer that.  I don’t know.  It’s not terribly well-known as a faith; but I think as people get to know individuals like myself and my faith, they realize, “Okay you’ve got a different religion.” But our values – our beliefs about what’s right for America – flow from the same Judeo-Christian ethics and philosophy.” I think all of the faiths of this country draw us closer to God and make us better people.  And those that flow from the Judeo-Christian ethic like mine teach us that we’re all sons and daughters of God; that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world; that liberty is a gift of God; and that the words of the Bible are holy and uplifting.

Question: Do you think you need to explain yourself, like JFK did?

Transcript: You know, I get the chance to talk about my religion on a regular basis.  You ask questions about it, I’m happy to answer any questions I get as long as they talk about my values and what I do as a political leader.  And maybe someday I’ll give a speech like JFK did; but you know he sort of set the bar pretty high on that, so we’ll have to wait and see.   

Question: What is the role of women in the Mormon Church?

Transcript: The role of women is like that in other faiths.  We consider men and women to be partners.  I consider men and women to be partners; and that’s true not only in my home, but also in my faith; and certainly in my workplace and in the political sphere as well.

Recorded on: 11/26/07

 

 

 

Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney discusses the prevailing misconceptions about Mormonism and whether he will follow the footsteps of John Kennedy and make a speech to the electorate about faith and politics.