Mitt Romney, a
former one-term Republican governor of Massachusetts,
officially entered the 2008 presidential race Tuesday,
suggesting that his record of leadership inside and
outside government uniquely positions him to tackle
the country's challenges.
''I don't believe Washington can be transformed
from within by lifetime politicians,'' Romney said in
Dearborn, Mich., seeking to turn a potential
liability, his limited political experience, into an asset.
''There have been too many deals, too many favors, too many
entanglements, and too little real-world experience
managing, guiding, leading.''
''I don't believe Washington can be transformed
by someone who has never tried doing such a thing
before, in any setting, by someone who has never run a
corner store, let alone the largest enterprise in the
world,'' he added.
The comments were veiled swipes at Romney's top
rival for the GOP nomination, four-term senator John
McCain of Arizona. With only four years of elective
office behind him, Romney is not nearly as well-known
nationally as McCain and former two-term New York City mayor
Rudy Giuliani, political celebrities who consistently
lead popularity polls.
A serious contender even though he is little
more than a blip in such surveys, Romney is seeking to
convince Republican primary voters that his record of
success in the private, public, and voluntary sectors proves
he has the know-how to lead a country at a crossroads.
The public, he said, has lost faith in
government. ''It is time for innovation and
transformation in Washington,'' Romney said. ''It is what
our country needs. It is what our people deserve.''
And, he said, he is the candidate who has proved
he can deliver. ''Talk is easy; talk is cheap. It is
the doing that's hard. And it is only in doing that
hopes and dreams can come to life,'' Romney added.
A successful venture capitalist who amassed a
fortune and the savior of the scandal-plagued 2002
Winter Olympic Games, Romney hopes the party's
conservative wing will focus on his deft managerial skills
and set aside any uneasiness it may have about his
credentials on issues it holds dear and his faith. If
elected, Romney will be the nation's first Mormon president.
In what amounts to a made-for-TV coming-out
tour, Romney announced his candidacy in Michigan, the
place of his birth and upbringing as well as an
important stop on the path to the GOP nomination. He then
heads to other states that hold early primaries and
caucuses--Iowa, New Hampshire, and South
Carolina--before returning to Boston for a major
fund-raiser. The three-day swing is intended to
introduce the strikingly handsome candidate to the nation.
As governor of Massachusetts, Romney was
credited with closing a $3 billion budget deficit
without raising taxes and pushing a comprehensive
overhaul of the state health insurance system.
He tried to enter politics in 1994 with a failed
bid to unseat Democratic senator Edward M. Kennedy. It
wasn't until 2002 that he tried again, running as he
did in his first race as a moderate in one of the most
liberal states in the country. Now he's having to answer for
his statements and positions back then as he tries to
campaign as the more conservative candidate to McCain
and Giuliani.
During the Senate race, he wrote a letter
promising a gay Republican group he would be a
stronger advocate for gays and their rights than
Kennedy. Nevertheless, he insists he has been an unflinching
opponent of same-sex marriage.
Also, in the two previous campaigns, he said
that regardless of personal beliefs, abortion should
be safe and legal. Now he describes himself as
pro-life and argues that Roe v. Wade should be
replaced with state abortion regulations. (Liz Sidoti, AP)