Governor Romney spoke today before an NAACP gathering; something akin to Barack Obama addressing a roomful of NRA members. Let’s face it: Romney probably didn’t change many minds in that room and Obama is still going win the majority of the black vote, just as he did in 2008. Anyone who thinks otherwise is kidding themself. Romney’s performance today was admirable but less than noteworthy. It won’t change anything come November.
The governor received a mixed reaction during the address and was booed vehemently after noting that he would work to get rid of unnecessary government programs – including Obama Care. To his credit, Romney did not back down – noting that business owners will be opposed to new hires if the law is allowed to stand in 2013 and beyond. The media is frothing over Romney being booed, but is anyone outside of the press really that surprised? Romney went into the lion’s den. He’s probably fortunate he didn’t lose a limb.
Regardless, the greater point to be made is this. Romney does not need to pander to any voting block, let alone blacks. His message should be the same irrespective of who he’s addressing. The message needs to be about conservatism and small government principles; about promoting pro-growth policies that allow businesses to thrive and individuals to keep more of the money they earn instead of handing it over to the IRS. But that’s not all. The gloves need to come off and he needs to differentiate himself from Obama.
Hi, I’m Mitt Romney and I am the antithesis of Barack Obama. Let me tell you who he is:
-A student of Saul Alinsky and Karl Marx.
-A glorified community organizer who believes in Chicago thug tactics, falsehoods, and misrepresentations to implement his agenda.
-A proponent of big bloated government that encroaches upon individual sovereignty.
-A believer that you, the voter, are too stupid to make your own decisions on a day-to-day basis, therefore government needs to make those decisions for you.
-Responsible for the biggest tax hike in the history of the world: Obama Care.
-Bailed out his union friends and left taxpayers on the hook.
What Governor Romney should have asked the gathered crowd was, “What has Barack Obama done for you?”
What has Obama done for the black community? Black unemployment is up. Black youth unemployment is through the roof. And by the way, why is Obama not speaking to the NAACP this year? Instead, he’s sending out the hapless Joe Biden to address the Association.
The answer is simple. His policies have failed everyone, including the black community. What more is there to say other than “I’m the first black president: vote for me again in November”?
Liberals are the ones who work so hard to divide people into groups; marginalizing and exploiting them. We don’t need to pander to different groups. We hold true to principle. Period. Take it or leave it. President Barack Carter is the biggest disaster this country has ever faced and the governor should be telling that to anyone and everyone who will listen; no matter the audience.
I think Mitt made a great choice in speaking to the NAACP. The booing certainly made the crowd seemed closed-minded. By contrast, the fact that Mitt showed up at all made him seem like a bridge builder. The majority of Americans want to be united, not divided (which is why a lot oppose Obama’s “class warfare”). So, Romney can now try to seize that mantle if he so chooses. It gives him more options and more mass appeal – and maybe gives the GOP a way out of its impending demographic crisis.
Oh, and comments like Eric Holder’s still make the NAACP’s speeches worth watching – there’s certainly some entertainment value in this one: http://dynamopolitics.com/2012/07/11/audience-must-show-photo-id-to-hear-eric-holder-attack-voter-id-laws/