Romney’s veer to the center of the spectrum during the first presidential debate marks a completely different persona than the one that he faked being to win the Republican nomination during the primary season. Now he is trying to return to his old Moderate Mitt days as governor of Massachusetts when he was decidedly pro-choice. Now he made comments that conflict with his running mate’s position, and a position he held before. Plus, these comments come on the same day as the Vice Presidential debate, where Paul Ryan, an ultra-conservative, will have to explain how he can support Romney when the man keeps changing his position to appeal to voters.
Which way did he go, which way will he go?
Ryan is famous for his efforts to oppose women’s reproductive rights, and has sponsored numerous bills to limit access to contraceptives and abortion. Women are terrified of him and his positions, and tonight if Biden can get him into a corner, he will have a hard time appearing sympathetic as he tries to claim that he knows what’s best for a woman. If Biden can link him to Todd Akin, the disgraced politician from Missouri, it will be hard for Ryan to recover.
Romney’s shift to the center is welcomed. He has always been moderate, and a Moderate Mitt can enable some real conversation about the direction of the economy. If Romney would just return to who he really is, we could rest easy knowing that people in America will have health care (under a system he is originally responsible for), guns would be controlled, and women would have access to the contraceptives and family planning services that they need. We could actually have a meaningful discussion about the role of government in society, of the tax structure, and of the ways to improve the economy.
But Romney’s hand is held back by the conservative wing of the country that keeps him saying ridiculous things like “As President, I will defund Planned Parenthood.” We need to get over this childishness, this religiosity, this ignorance and intolerance that limits our national discourse. We need to ditch hardliners like Paul Ryan, and work together for common solutions to problems we can fix, not use antiquated ideas to impose our will upon others.
Please, Moderate Mitt, come back to us, rebuff the far right, free yourself from the chains of ignorance and intolerance, stop trying to be what you are not, and be your original self. You might lose some enthusiasm from the wrong wing, but you will gain a lot of supporters from the center, and maybe even win the election.