Mitt Romney’s biggest problem could be that he is too smooth, if comments from my limited unofficial survey is any indication. Press stories have noted this potential problem before. He hit all the issues with the right message, and had the best reception of any of the candidates, but the super banker who gets everything together just right may not feel right as the leader of the country. Newsweek tries to flesh out Romney’s story this week.
With that as background, Romney said we’re at an inflection point in American history, a time when things can change dramatically but nobody’s quite sure how. He emphasized the importance of economic strength to support military strength; called for a zero percent tax rate on interest, dividends, and capital gains;and did a little verbal jujutsu on the standard tropes of fair trade and a level playing field by focusing on the tax burden American companies face. Romney also complained that Hillary Clinton’s $5,000 bond for children is offered without regard to whether the parents are married or the fact that the $5,000 will be borrowed from the child.
Dallas Woodhouse proved his value again with a terrific introduction of Reagan budget director Jim Miller. Dallas recounted the story of Reagan’s 1976 victory in North Carolina among the gifts North Carolina has given the country.
Miller commented on how much of Reagan’s words really were his words, written in journals or on legal pads in his own hand. Working for Reagan was easy, he said, because he always knew exactly what the president wanted and felt perfectly comfortable letting agency heads go to Reagan because they would get the same answer Miller had given. Before closing with Reagan’s powerful journal entry after being shot, Miller shared the great communicator’s tip on the last thing to do before giving a speech.*
Dinesh D’Souza was brilliant in explaining how Reagan was able to subvert the traditional assumptions of the smartest people in the room. He spoke of how Reagan flipped the Kennedy-inspired belief that public service is what young idealistic people should do into a belief that risk taking and entrepreneurship were valuable services to the country and humanity. Politically, Reagan knew that history would vindicate his economic policy if voters did not vindicate them at the polls in 2004.
*check your fly
