The Holy Cow! Candidate - © Copyright 2005 The Atlantic Monthly
“Do you wear the temple garments?” I asked uncomfortably, referring to the special undergarments worn by members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. (The underwear has markings denoting the covenants of the Mormon faith, and is meant to serve as a reminder of the high standards Mormons are expected to uphold. The rules governing its wear and disposal seem as complex as those pertaining to, say, the American flag.)He answered, “I’ll just say those sorts of things I’ll keep private.”
For the moment that’s the way Romney and his inner circle have kept his national ambitions: private. “Who knows?” Ann Romney said when I asked her what will happen between 2005 and 2008. Tagg Romney said he thought his father would “consider” running for president. Mitt’s brother Scott said he didn’t know whether Mitt would run—that there were too many factors and variables out of his control. At a press conference in late June, Mitt acknowledged that he was “testing national waters” (he subsequently accused Massachusetts of “hyperventilation” over this acknowledgment).
With me Romney wouldn’t address any issue beyond the Massachusetts state line. Nothing about John Bolton. Nothing about Tom DeLay. Finally I listlessly tossed him the question. “Are you going to run for—” I started. But before I could finish, Romney began to laugh.
“You know the answer to that, of course,” he said. “I’m focused on the job I’ve got. I like the job I’ve got, and it’s too remote both in time and in probability to spend time thinking about at this stage.”
And so for the moment Romney—like the elastic “Mr. Fantastic” he so closely resembles—will continue to stretch himself thin, keeping one leg planted in the home state where he seems to be steadily losing favor and the other in the national Republican base whose esteem for him seems only to be growing. If he can hold on in Massachusetts through the 2006 election (and maybe even if not), his reach, whatever he says or won’t say now, may well turn out to extend to a 2008 presidential nomination and beyond.
July 30th, 2005 at 6:52 pm
I read the article, Gurl, and I agree that it is very good. Questions like those about the garments WILL be asked, and geting them out of the way early, and in a manner which flatters the Governor, are a bonus.
I honestly think that the punditocracy is overestimating the hostility of evangelicals to Mormons. What they want is a moral PERSON, and Romney is that.
Don’t forget, Gore was the Baptist, and Bush is a Methodist. The person is bigger than the denomination.