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Romney: This Time It's Personal
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ShareJanuary 11, 2008 3:04 PM
ABC News' Matt Stuart Reports: Mitt Romney is refocusing his campaign on his Michigan roots now that he has staked his campaign on a strong showing here on Tuesday.
With just five days left before the primary, the former Massachusetts governor released a new television ad which reiterates he "grew up in Michigan when Michigan was the pride of America."
Speaking before a crowd of 100 Michiganders (as Romney likes to be called) in Warren on Friday, Romney said three times that Michigan was "personal to (him)."
"Met my girlfriend here," Romney said in reference to his wife Ann, "We're still going steady. My mom and dad are buried here. My dad served as governor here. I care very deeply about the state of Michigan."
Romney, who officially announced his presidential campaign at the Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan last year, was born and raised in Michigan before working in Boston during his adult life.
"Have you ever noticed that the trees are just the right height, the people speak with no accent at all, and that most of the cars on the street are made in American?" Romney asked Friday.
But much of Romney's 12-minute speech focused not on roots but the "one state recession" in Michigan and, of course, blasting Republican nomination rival John McCain.
"Even Senator McCain the other day said, speaking with straight talk, he said, you know some jobs are gone that are never coming back. I'm not willing to accept defeat like that," said Romney, later adding, "Now everybody's interested of course because they're running for president. But what'd they do when they were in the Senate or the House for 20 years?"
Romney claims he's solely focusing on Michigan, insisting, "Well, some people might say, 'Gosh, that's awfully Michigan centric. Is this the only state you care about?' Of course not. But Michigan is in some respects like the canary in the mine shaft. . . It's not just gonna be confined to Michigan. I think some politicians think, 'Oh, too bad for Michigan.' But recognize what happens in Michigan will happen to the rest of this country."
Romney was careful not to alienate any Michigan voters in any part of the state.
When an audience member shouted "Go Blue," Romney replied, "I gotta be go blue and go green," referencing the colors of the University of Michigan and Michigan State.
January 11, 2008 in Hunter, Duncan, Palin, Sarah, Thompson, Fred | Permalink | User Comments (7)
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Mitt, they are gone. Sen. McCain is right; the next president needs to work on creating new jobs for America in the 21st century, not the 1950s.
Posted by: Chuck | Jan 11, 2008 3:58:31 PM
Speaking of going green, at least one of the reasons MI is in the situation it's in has to be the decision of the car companies that everyone wants a big honkin' SUV (pun only slightly intended) and no one would be interested in something more energy efficient
Posted by: phillygirl64 | Jan 11, 2008 4:24:01 PM
Mitt Romney is an incredible business man. He has saved many companies, the Olympics, a state and hopefully a nation.
As far as Michigan is concerned. Romney is the only candidate that can credibly say he can help and most likely will.
Romney created quite a successful global company out of a small stationary store. I am pretty sure stationary is an older industry than cars. And, if he can do that for them; I am sure he can aid in bringing our "1950's" style industries into the now with the prospect of great success
Posted by: ron | Jan 11, 2008 6:24:09 PM
Romney's promises are about as good as his views on abortion or gay marriage. When it's convenient, he'll change his views again. This is not which Michigan or the entire country needs in a president. His attack ads are full of half truths and misrepresentations. I am sorry he is from Michigan. We can do better than this.
Posted by: don | Jan 11, 2008 7:46:23 PM
Mitt Romney is so much more experienced and wise than Old Grumpy McCain. McCain will need to take 3 naps a day when he's president, as aged as he is.
You can't deny that no other candidate has been as successful as Romney has been in anything they have ever tried. The man is quality executive material.
Posted by: Roger | Jan 11, 2008 9:38:12 PM
I read where Huckabee is considered a one-issue candidate. I think the writer was too generous. I cannot discern the existence of even one big issue. In truth, Huckabee is attractive merely to a single-minded group of voters. Surely people in Michigan are more comprehensive in their thinking patterns. For instance, what is Huckabee's real-world business experience other than living off either the government payroll or the donations of his flock?
Posted by: John E. Enslen | Jan 12, 2008 4:48:41 PM
Mitt Romney cannot only think about his home state of Michigan, he has to think about the nation as a whole. The people of Michigan got themselves into a recession, you notice it is the only state in a recession, our next president has bigger fish to fry in worrying about the war on two fronts. Romney is not the best choice for president. He trys his best to suck up to all the voters, when John McCain and Ron Paul tell them like it is. We need to have more presidents like that.
Posted by: lawyer2B | Jan 12, 2008 6:31:28 PM
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