comMITTed to Romney!

As I am sitting here this evening, I am contemplating “No Apology“. If you’re a Mitt Romney supporter you know what “No Apology” is, but for those of you who are new to Mitt Romney it’s Mitt’s latest book about America. I bought this book when I attended one of his early No Apology events shortly after it was released at The Salt Palace in downtown Salt Lake City. I’ll be brutally honest and say though that this afternoon was the first time I’ve actually been able to carve out time to read it. As I stated in my last post I’ve been very apathetic about politics over the last several months, and even though I was so excited to get my hands on a signed copy my excitement waned pretty quickly after that.

I began reading “No Apology” this afternoon and I plan to write about my experience as I read it in it’s entirety. I’ve only read the first 12 pages of a 34 page chapter so far, and it talks about Mitt and his childhood and his memories of his father, and a bit about his history. One thing that stands out is that the senior Romney instilled an incredible work ethic in the junior. It talks of weed pulling and other chores that Mitt was required to do growing up. It also talks about the senior Romney’s helm at AMC, and how when he began the company that it was almost destitute and how he brought it to greatness. He also spoke about the beginnings of Staples, and how it became a success. Sounds like the younger Romney is a chip off the old block. I think it’s important that we have a President who has a strong worth ethic. Because there is certainly going to be plenty of work to do once he comes to Washington.

Until my next installment…

Ann Marie has now left the building!

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ROMNEY IN COUNTY: Mitt Romney, former Massachusetts governor and Republican presidential candidate, will be the keynote speaker for the Lake County Republican Federation’s annual fall dinner Sept. 24 at the Lincolnshire Marriott Resort.

“We are delighted to welcome Gov. Romney to Lake County and to our fall dinner,” said Alexander Stuart of Lake Forest, federation president. “It is an honor to have such a distinguished champion of free enterprise and public service speak to us as we gear up for the critical elections in November.”

Tickets for the dinner range from $100 per person to $1,000 for a table of 10. Seating is limited. For more information, contact federation Executive Director Chelsea Stanley at (847) 680-6680 or e-mail chelsea@lcgop.org .

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[ Editor's Commentary: Kudos to New Orleans Archbishop Gregory Aymond for not dignifying the presence of the most pro abortion President to ever occupy the Oval Office in connection with his scheduled speech at Xavier University. The Archbishop was not invited to Obama's speech at the school and my understanding is that he would not have attended the speech even had he been invited.

We need to maintain a principled resistance to this failed President and his ruinous policies and "being otherwise occupied" when President Frequent Flier blows into town is a good start.

~~John Cronin~~]

FOXNEWS.COM

President Obama will be in New Orleans Saturday to remember the devastation of Hurricane Katrina five years after the storm roared ashore, but the location the White House has picked for his remarks is stirring an old controversy — and it has nothing to do with storm or the rebuilding of the Gulf.

Some Catholics don’t agree with the fact that the president is being allowed to speak at Xavier University, a Catholic institution, because it is giving a platform to someone who is very publically opposed to the teachings of the Catholic church.

They argue that his positions on issues of life — abortion and stem cell research specifically — means that he should not be given the chance to speak so openly at a Catholic university.

It all goes back to a 2004 United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) statement on “Catholics in Political Life.” It reads in part, “The Catholic community and Catholic institutions should not honor those who act in defiance of our fundamental moral principles. They should not be given awards, honors or platforms which would suggest support for their actions.”

The controversy similarly swirled when the pro-choice and pro-stem cell research president was invited to speak at Notre Dame’s commencement address in 2009, where he was also given an honorary degree.

While neither the Notre Dame speech nor the Xavier one were set up to be outright political events, some argue there can always be a political dimension and that in his commencement address the president did bring up both abortion and stem cells.

“The situations are similar in that President Obama is choosing a Catholic environment to provide a platform for his political activity, and the U.S. Bishops have expressed concern about a Catholic institution being used for purposes by individuals who are clearly opposed to Catholic teaching,” said Patrick Reilly, the president of the Cardinal Newman Society a lay Catholic educational group.

Reilly also mentioned there’s the possibility of becoming political and argued it’s a bigger issue that Xavier is not taking a stand, “[The] Greater concern about Catholic institutions trying to simply be a neutral platform, when they ought to be actively promoting Christian values,” he said.

The USCCB is the organization that issued that 2004 statement, however in matters like these, as with the Notre Dame case, the group doesn’t take a stand on specific matters, and leaves that to the local archdiocese.The issue delves into a bit of church hierarchy, but ultimately the USCCB, a national group, defers to the local jurisdiction and wouldn’t supercede their views. That allows for the local church officials to interpret the 2004 USCCB statement’s meaning.

New Orleans Archbishop Gregory Aymond will not be attending Obama’s speech at Xavier and has no plans to meet with the president.

“He was not in any way consulted, invited — nor will he attend the event with President Obama at Xavier,” said Sarah McDonald, Director of Communications for Archdiocese of New Orleans.

As far as invitations go, university officials say, all questions regarding invitation process go to the White House.

The archbishop will be taking part in other services that day that were already planned.

Read more: http://politics.blogs.foxnews.com/2010/08/26/obama-violating-catholic-bishops-position-katrina-speech-location#ixzz0xiQ1fCxh

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NEW ORLEANS — Mitt Romney won the straw poll at the Southern Republican Leadership conference here Saturday in a victory that will be taken as a sign of the former Massachusetts governor’s strength as a 2012 presidential candidate.

That’s because the 2008 GOP presidential hopeful elected to skip the conference to continue his book tour, unlike many of his rivals.

Romney triumphed by a single vote over Ron Paul, who took second place, 439 votes to 438. Sarah Palin and Newt Gingrich tied for third with 18 percent of the vote each.

1,806 ballots were cast by the conservative activists who attended the conference. No other candidate got more than four percent of the vote.

On the straw poll ballot, conference attendees were asked who they would vote for if the Republican presidential primary were today. They were asked for a first and second choice from among nine candidates: Newt Gingrich, Mike Huckabee, Gary Johnson, Palin, Paul, Tim Pawlenty, Mike Pence, Romney and Rick Santorum. (See the ballot here.)

Huckabee, Pawlenty and Romney did not appear at the conference, though Pawlenty sent in a video address. Some rumored 2012 candidates, including Rick Perry, Haley Barbour and Bobby Jindal asked to be taken off the ballot, Hotline’s Reid Wilson reported.

Supporters of both Romney and Paul spent money in an effort to win the straw poll, with a group called “Evangelicals for Mitt” paying for 200 tickets for supporters and Paul’s Campaign for Liberty offering more than 600 discounted tickets for Paul backers, according to Washington Post’s David Weigel.

Paul’s mostly-college age supporters stood out form the rest of the conference-goers and cheered their preferred candidate loudly when he spoke. Many other attendees remained silent or offered only polite applause during Paul’s speech. Paul won the Conservative Political Action Conference in February on the strength of his passionate if limited following.

“Evangelicals for MItt” gave away books, buttons and piggy banks to conference attendees and urged them to cast ballots. Organizers claimed they did not coordinate with Romney’s Political Action Committee or staff, though one attendee speculated that they found her via Romney’s e-mail list and offered a free ticket.

Straw polls offer a signal about the level of support for various candidates, though detractors are quick to note they are easily manipulated and that the pool of respondents do not necessarily represent the party overall. The winner in 2006 was former Tennessee Sen. Bill Frist, who won when the conference was held in his home state of Memphis.

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Palm Beach Daily News

By MICHELE DARGAN
Daily News Staff Writer

Saturday, February 27, 2010

The Palm Beach Republican Club will host former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney March 7.

The 2008 Republican presidential candidate will appear at a reception, lecture and book signing at 5 p.m. at the Marriott West Palm Beach, 1001 Okeechobee Blvd.

Romney will sign copies of his book No Apology: The Case for American Greatness.

The event is open to the public at $95 per person. The price includes the reception and photographs, one beverage ticket, lecture and one book.

The club also is organizing another gathering after the public event: dinner with Romney at a private home in Palm Beach. That ticket is $500 each, which includes all of the above plus dinner in a small setting. There is a limited number of tickets available for the dinner.

R.S.V.P. by Wednesday. Send a check payable to The Palm Beach Republican Club, P.O. Box 2622, Palm Beach, FL 33480.

Call 655-5545 or 644-4229.

http://www.palmbeachdailynews.com/news/content/news/2010/02/27/briefromney022710.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=7

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PUBLIC POLICY POLLING

Mitt Romney is the early preference, by a small margin, among Republican voters in both Texas and New Mexico to be their 2012 nominee for President.

In Texas he gets 32% with Mike Huckabee right behind at 29%, and Sarah Palin further back at 23%. In New Mexico he receives 33% to 32% for Palin and 18% for Huckabee.

The internals of these polls suggests a path to the nomination for Romney: stay competitive among conservative voters while holding a large lead with moderates. In Texas the three are bunched up among conservatives with Huckabee leading at 32% to 30% for Romney and 27% for Palin. But Romney’s blowing the other two out of the water with moderates, getting 40% to 22% for Huckabee and 13% for Palin.

It’s a similar story in New Mexico. Palin leads Romney 34-31 with conservatives, but Romney has the overall advantage thanks to a 37-29 advantage with moderates.

In each state Romney is particularly strong with senior citizens, who tend to comprise a large portion of the Republican primary electorate. He has an 11 point lead over Huckabee with them in Texas and 13 point lead over Palin with them in New Mexico.

One of the more interesting things about Palin’s numbers is that she performs worse with women than men in both states. In New Mexico she gets 33% from men and 31% from women, while in Texas she gets 26% from men and 21% from women. It doesn’t appear she’d be able to count on a boost from Republican women in a hypothetical White House bid.

Obviously it’s incredibly early and things will change a lot between now and 2012, but it’s a good sign for Romney to have even this small early advantage in a couple of states that are a long way from home.

http://publicpolicypolling.blogspot.com/2010/02/good-numbers-for-romney.html

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I am thrilled to share some exciting news. The Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association Political Action Committee today announced its endorsement of my campaign for Governor.

The Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association is among the most respected and effective public policy organizations fighting for hardworking Californians. The association is the state’s largest grassroots taxpayer organization with more than 200,000 members. There is no organization that better understands the relationship between low taxes and individual prosperity.

I am honored and grateful to receive the endorsement.

“High taxes and out-of-control spending have pushed state government to the brink of bankruptcy, and we need strong leadership to put California back on track,” Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association President Jon Coupal said. “Meg Whitman is the only fiscal conservative in the race, and her commitment to cutting spending and eliminating waste, fraud and abuse is the way to restore prosperity to the Golden State.”

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[Here's an excerpt from an email I received from Carly Fiorina's campaign.}

Last week, America turned to Washington to tune in to the President’s State of the Union address and his budget proposal. We were promised hope for a path through these difficult economic times; we wanted change from Washington’s status quo. Unfortunately, we got neither.

As I was talking to Californians this week, I heard people say again and again how tired they are of Washington’s rhetoric and lack of real action. Barbara Boxer and her colleagues say they will fight for you and me, but they waved the white flag a long time ago when it comes to saying no to the special interests.

We don’t need another career politician in Washington. We need common-sense problem solvers who will put the needs of Californians first. As a U.S. Senator, I will stand up for California and remind Washington who is really in charge: you.

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Today, Feb.4, 2010 at 5PM Eastern, newly elected Massachusetts Republican Senator Scott Brown will take his seat in the U.S. Senate.

He originally had planned to take his seat Feb.11, but a series of votes is on the Senate calendar and Sen. Brown decided he couldn’t take the chance on missing an important vote. In my opinion, given this Congress’ shameful record of passing major legislation on weekends and slipping in toxic 300 page amendments in the dead of night, Sen. Brown has made a wise choice. If we have learned anything over the course of the last year, it is that this collection of tax and power hungry politicians can not be trusted with anything that is not welded to the floor.

We have witnessed history in the making over the course of the last several weeks and some of us have actually participated in that history. Scott Brown’s “Brigade” was a group of grassroots activists in MA. and from around the country who rose up spontaneously, much like the Tea Party movement. It has been the best civics lesson that I have ever had, to be a part of a group of free Americans, exercising our Constitutionally guaranteed rights to help steer the country back from the edge of the cliff, a cliff that Obama and his hard left enablers in Congress were trying to push us over.

Of course, none of this would have happened without the courage and vision of two men. Mitt Romney and Scott Brown.

Mitt Romney, because of his foresight and dedication. Scott Brown because of his courage and willingness to buck the MA. Democratic machine.

Gov. Romney endorsed Scott Brown in October of 2009, when Scott had the proverbial snowball’s chance in a hot place to beat Martha “Landslide” Coakley and her armies of union and out-of-state campaign workers. That move was the essence of political leadership. Romney came out for Scott Brown before he became the hottest commodity in Washington or anyplace else for that matter.

No one on the national scene had ever heard of Sen. Brown at that point, but Gov. Romney used his unique knowledge of Massachusetts politics to pluck Scott from the state Senate and encourage him to run for the “Kennedy seat,” or as Scott famously put it, the “people’s seat.”

Gov. Romney then used his vaunted fund raising ability to help provide the seed money for Scott’s campaign and a group of Romney political operatives then swung into action to advise Scott on tactics and branding. They did a masterful job of that, winning convincingly in a state that has an Independent registration of 50% of the electorate and a 3 to 1 Democrat advantage.

In the process of helping to elect Scott Brown to the U.S. Senate, Mitt Romney did more than any one person I can think of, with the possible exception of Scott Brown himself, to spare this country from the tender mercies of Obamacare. The significance of what happened in this special election may not have dawned on many people yet. We have seen the emergence of a strong, disciplined and a very effective opposition to the hard Left in this country.

I think it is highly ironic that the same people who tried in vain to label Mitt Romney a “flip-flopper” on abortion are strangely quiet these days. Where were you folks when the MA. election was coming down to the wire? You had plenty to say in 2007-2008 when Gov. Romney was running in the primaries and you were constantly informing the rest of us that Mitt was a johnny-come-lately to the pro-life camp. It’s unfortunate that you didn’t use some of that lung power to make calls from home to help Brown get elected and stop Obamacare from permanently funding abortion with your tax dollars.

So, the man who was derided as not having pro-life bona fides, who had allegedly taken the position only to court the Right Wing of the Republican Party, is the man who helped stop Obamacare dead in it’s tracks. In the process of achieving this historic win, Gov. Romney has worked to ensure that everyone in the medical profession who believes that abortion is morally wrong can continue to work in the field that they love. He has ensured that the monstrous taxes contained within this bill will not be implemented in an already weak economy.

As we move toward the 2010 elections, Gov. Romney will continue his role in rebuilding the Party and in the process, staking his richly deserved claim to the Republican Presidential nomination!

~~John Cronin~~

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As a small businesswoman, I can appreciate why so many small businesses in California are suffering.

My husband and I opened Cielito Lindo, a Mexican restaurant in South El Monte, in 1986. We provide jobs for more than 60 people and contribute our fair share to federal, state and local tax authorities. But like so many small businesses in California, we’ve been forced to lay off employees, trim paychecks and cut overhead just to stay afloat.

For California’s economy to rebound, we must encourage growth among the state’s small businesses.

That’s why I am supporting Republican Meg Whitman to be California’s next governor. Meg has the right kind of leadership experience and bold vision to help small businesses grow our economy, and she will make certain California stays friendly to small business owners.

As governor, Meg will cut taxes, reduce regulations and modify workplace rules to give small businesses like mine greater incentive to invest, expand and hire more workers as well as keep California competitive with other states.

Meg Whitman is the only candidate in this race with common sense solutions to stimulate our economy. And return California again to a place where small businesses can prosper.

Teresa Hernandez
South El Monte

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Somethin’ Special. A victory for Republican Sen.-elect Scott Brown’s campaign was also a victory for Mitt Romney’s team, and the consulting group’s stock has risen as a result.

The group of Massachusetts operatives from The Shawmut Group who guided the former Massachusetts governor’s bid for president in 2008 were also behind Brown’s come-from-behind special election victory this week. Romney is also considered a likely White House contender in 2012.

The Shawmut Group was responsible for general consulting and media for Brown’s campaign, while survey giant Neil Newhouse of Public Opinion Strategies performed polling on behalf of the campaign and the National Republican Senatorial Committee.

“In a very short period of time, the Brown campaign shifted from a sleepy Massachusetts campaign to a national campaign and did it with relative ease due in large part to the circle of folks around him,” said Joe Wall, a fellow former Romney aide. “A marathon presidential campaign prepares you for just about everything and their pedigree was a tremendous asset to a candidate that was largely unknown outside of Wrenthem, Mass., a mere couple weeks ago.”

The GOP consulting group includes former Romney campaign manager and gubernatorial chief of staff Beth Myers, Romney communications director Eric Fehrnstrom and former Romney deputy campaign Peter Flaherty. All three principals at the firm continue to work with Romney at his Free and Strong America Political Action Committee.

In an online post about the Brown victory, Newhouse also hailed the consulting team and the NRSC’s efforts.

“For a state so bereft of GOP officeholders, it’s a gold mine of political talent,” Newhouse wrote. “It was a seamless and selfless effort made possible by the NRSC and Mitt Romney’s on-the-ground team that made the difference here.”

In addition to Brown, The Shawmut Group also advises George Demos’ (R) bid in New York’s 1st District against Democratic Rep. Timothy H. Bishop, state House Minority Whip Rep. Rick Lazio’s (R) bid for governor in New York. The group used to work with Connecticut businessman Tom Foley(R) on his bid for Senate until November, when the Republican shifted races to run for governor instead.

The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee used Mark Mellman of The Mellman Group for polling and Saul Shorr for media.

State Attorney General Martha Coakley (D), who was expected to win the seat in a landslide until the last few weeks, used 4C Partners for national fundraising, GMMB for media and Celinda Lake to do her polling for the race.

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Here’s a blast from the past. I remember how furious I was at Huckabee when he refused (like all tax and spenders) to answer a simple question with a simple answer. Mitt Romney asked him if he raised taxes in Arkansas and it was like root canal trying to pull the truth out of him. After three or four tries Pastor Mike finally ‘fessed up about the confiscatory tax rates he had always believed in as Gov. of Arkansas.

As Romney likes to say: “Facts are stubborn things” and the fact is that Pastor Mike raised taxes in Arkansas and he will raise them nation wide if we are naive enough to give him the opportunity.

~~John Cronin~~

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‘No Apology’ looks at nation’s standing in world

WASHINGTON - Later this winter, Mitt Romney will strike out on a national book tour, but unlike his party’s most successful recent author he does not expect to make headlines with bits of fresh gossip from the 2008 campaign, see his fans camp overnight outside bookstores, or chat with Oprah Winfrey about his family.

“Inevitably there are going to be comparisons with the Sarah Palin book,’’ said Eric Fehrnstrom, a Romney spokesman. “We’re not going to match her crowd size or sales. These are two different people with different ways of expressing themselves.’’

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2010/01/03/romney_will_hit_key_primary_states_on_book_tour/

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Gov. Romney continues to stay in the public eye as he prepares, in the opinion of many pundits and party leaders, to lay the ground work for another Presidential run.

~~John Cronin~~

http://www.bakersfieldnow.com/news/local/79762447.html

By Eyewitness News staff

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – Bakersfield Business Conference organizers announced today that four additional speakers will join the October 9, 2010 speaker lineup: Newt Gingrich, Jane Seymour, Tony Plana, and Joe Clark.

Next year’s conference will feature 24 speakers in a format that will allow attendees to choose between some of the best platform speakers in America based their interests and preferences.

Conference organizers previously announced several speakers confirmed for the 2010 conference that includes 2008 Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, Vice President Dick Cheney and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani.

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