Romney

[myboynoah]

What is relevant to some clearly isn't relevant to others and vice versa. I liken it to the person in the office March Madness pool that picks HER teams based on which uniform or mascot she likes the best. And then she goes out and does fairly well in the office pool. Her bracket counts as much as the stat geek that fills out 5 different brackets after careful consideration and thoughtful analysis, yet still finishes in fifth place in the pool, even though her methods were lacking.

I read here about whether a candidates religious beliefs are relevant to ones ability to serve. Yet I would ask why that should be the distinction. People vote for all sorts of reasons, often not at all related to issues. And there are plenty of people that think Mos are weirdos with weird beliefs. That is why i dont see how or why these questions arent good questions. Right now, people want to know all of these things about Mitt because Mitt is the public face of Mormonism. Once the public gets more comfy with Mos, we will see these questions subside. The reasons Catholic candidates don't get asked about transsubstantiation is because everyone knows a Catholic and while they may disagree with the doctrine, they are comfortable with them as a collective faith. In a very real way, Mitt is having to answer for all of us that might not be speaking out enough regarding our own beliefs. I'm guilty of that and can do better about sharing the church with No Mos that I know.

I agree there is naturally heightened interest in what Mormons believe and don't see a problem with questions, but think those types of issues will not be addressed directly to Romney (unless there is some kind of policy implication). I think journalists would have what they would deem to be more important issues to raise (foreign policy, economic policy, unemployement, etc.). But I suppose more detailed religious questions might come up depending on the environment, such as if Romney sat down with one or more religion editors. But I think in the normal setting when others are asking about weightier topics, questions about Kolob or Children of Israel in America would be out of place. Aren't those issues already being addressed elsewhere without need for input from Romney?

I do agree with you that I see Romney's candidacy as another good opportunity for exposure for all of us, even the wacky stuff. I thought his first run four years ago was helpful. This time I expect he will have more traction and it will go longer. Mitt is carrying the water for a lot of us right now. To do my part I'm going to try to work Kolob into a conversation with a non-Mormon colleague this week.

[LA Ute]

Some very insightful commentary here. Borderline genius:

http://www.article6blog.com/2011/10/...ittle-clearer/

[myboynoah]

Some very insightful commentary here. Borderline genius:

http://www.article6blog.com/2011/10/...ittle-clearer/

That made me laugh.

[myboynoah]

The conservative case for Mitt Romney

Romney’s main political vulnerability is a serious one. Running for Massachusetts’ governor in 2002, he was a pro-choice, economically centrist, culturally liberal, business-oriented Republican. Running for president in 2008, he was a thoroughly pro-life, orthodox supply-side, culturally conservative, Fox News Republican. Romney’s shape-shifting 2008 campaign only reinforced the impression of a consultant-driven candidate.

But conservatives — unsurprised by human frailty — know that great republics are constructed out of flawed materials. Some of Romney’s transformation is explainable as the result of ideological regionalism. It would be a rare candidate who could run and win in Massachusetts with the same message offered to Republican caucus-goers in Iowa. The ideological gap between Beacon Hill and Osceola is among the widest in American politics, and making the stretch is difficult to accomplish in a dignified fashion. But the problem is not unique to Romney. Rick Perry won in Texas with an approach to immigration that is hard to translate in South Carolina. Ronald Reagan, as California’s governor, approved the liberalization of abortion and divorce laws. For a governor seeking the presidency, such tensions often arise.

. . . . . .

So are Romney’s current views his most authentic ones? On some issues — say, health care policy — it is difficult for an outsider to tell. In a different political environment, I suspect that Romney would be proud of his Massachusetts health reform instead of struggling to minimize it. But in the current presidential cycle, Romney has an advantage. The main issues of this campaign — economic growth and budget restraint — are in the sweet spot of his convictions. Romney speaks on these matters with ease, authority and evident sincerity. On the largest topics of the day, the charge of inauthenticity doesn’t stick.

Romney also has the potential to allay the fears of many social conservatives. A position change on abortion is always damaging — particularly a relatively recent one. But Romney has converted to a view that seems more consistent with his background. Is it really reasonable to assume that a former Mormon bishop, deep down, is a cultural liberal?

I think it was Ann Coulter who last time around made a similar point, that conservatives should cut Romney some slack for changing some positions. He was running for and became the Governor of Massachusetts afterall. That said, Romney seems to have toned down the firebrand conservative rhetoric this time around. In fact, Perry, Bachman, Cain, Santorum, and even Paul are allowing him to play the reasonable, competent, and even moderate candidate in the field (a position in which I think he is much more comfortable).

[jay santos]

Some very insightful commentary here. Borderline genius:

http://www.article6blog.com/2011/10/...ittle-clearer/

Good job, LA. But too bad you had to lie about this.

It’s growing rapidly but neither the faith nor its practitioners are familiar to many Americans.

[TripletDaddy]

Some very insightful commentary here. Borderline genius:

http://www.article6blog.com/2011/10/...ittle-clearer/

Plagiarizing my posts, I see.

[YOhio]

Good job, LA. But too bad you had to lie about this.

It's established practice that when another internet user brings something to your attention you offer a h/t as a sign of acknowledgement. LAU's failure to do so in his blog post is just another in a long line of misdeeds.

[Donuthole]

Some very insightful commentary here. Borderline genius:

http://www.article6blog.com/2011/10/...ittle-clearer/

Typo (or subject verb disagreement, but I'll give the author the benefit of the doubt):

That’s why, when Jessica Ravitz approaches the Romney campaign about her story, she got this response:

[LA Ute]

It's established practice that when another internet user brings something to your attention you offer a h/t as a sign of acknowledgement. LAU's failure to do so in his blog post is just another in a long line of misdeeds.

I often write my blog posts in the early a.m., then they auto-publish at 3:00 p.m. But great minds do think alike.

Typo (or subject verb disagreement, but I'll give the author the benefit of the doubt):

Sigh. That's blogging, I guess. I'm sure you didn't let that get in the way of the content.

[YOhio]

I often write my blog posts in the early a.m., then they auto-publish at 3:00 p.m.

I'm sure that's what happened yesterday.

[LA Ute]

I'm sure that's what happened yesterday.

It did. Google alerts, you know. But just to make you feel better I've tipped my hat your way on the blog. Please refer all further communications on this matter to SeattleUte, my legal counsel in hurt feelings cases.

[UtahDan]

By the way doesn't all the talk about Mitt's Mormonism play into Democrat's hands? Mitt is only going to win if people are pissed off at Obama and view him as a safe, centrist, alternative. I don't care how mad they are, they are not going to re-elect George Walker Perry. But Mormonism is seen is being a very conservative movement, as conservative as the Evangelicals (at least I think so, maybe people are ignorant). So maybe the whole "weird" thing never sticks but the "really conservative" thing does.

[LA Ute]

By the way doesn't all the talk about Mitt's Mormonism play into Democrat's hands? Mitt is only going to win if people are pissed off at Obama and view him as a safe, centrist, alternative. I don't care how mad they are, they are not going to re-elect George Walker Perry. But Mormonism is seen is being a very conservative movement, as conservative as the Evangelicals (at least I think so, maybe people are ignorant). So maybe the whole "weird" thing never sticks but the "really conservative" thing does.

I don't doubt the left will exploit the "Mormons are weird" meme to the fullest extent possible. With Harry Reid in the picture I'm not sure if the "Mormons are all conservatives" meme will work. Mormon weirdness is easier to establish anyway.

It will be interesting to see how all this plays with independents. Maybe people to whom weirdness or conservative-ness are really important are libs or conservatives who have have already made up their minds. I'm not sure. Besides, if independents are not persuaded by the guilt by association tactic, they're not going to see Mitt as terribly conservative or weird. Whatever else might be said about him, in those regards he stands up well under scrutiny.

Besides, this Atlantic writer thinks we Mormons tend to be moderate politically:

http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/...litics/247106/

[UtahDan]

I don't doubt the left will exploit the "Mormons are weird" meme to the fullest extent possible. With Harry Reid in the picture I'm not sure if the "Mormons are all conservatives" meme will work. Mormon weirdness is easier to establish anyway.

It will be interesting to see how all this plays with independents. Maybe people to whom weirdness or conservative-ness are really important are libs or conservatives who have have already made up their minds. I'm not sure. Besides, if independents are not persuaded by the guilt by association tactic, they're not going to see Mitt as terribly conservative or weird. Whatever else might be said about him, in those regards he stands up well under scrutiny.

Besides, this Atlantic writer thinks we Mormons tend to be moderate politically:

http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/...litics/247106/

I don't think he could be any more wrong. Is what he is saying ring true to you? Unless we are counting the inactive....

[pellegrino]

I don't think he could be any more wrong. Is what he is saying ring true to you? Unless we are counting the inactive....

"Don't you dare say we aren't Mormons!"