Romney's Stance on China

Mitt Romney’s stance on the economics of bilateral trade between the United States and China is one of the key platforms that defines his republican presidential candidacy. Romney believes that the US should balance its desire to pursue an economically fruitful relationship with China with the need to hold China accountable for its actions whether it be currency manipulation, unwarranted military aggression, or the restriction of human rights for Chinese citizens.

Romney’s campaign website details a policy of economic cooperation with China. Romney states that his administration would do its best to engage China. “Offering Beijing the possibility of participation will give China significant incentives to end its abusive commercial practices. The zone will also knit together the entire region, discourage imbalanced bilateral trade relations between China and its neighbors, limit China’s ability to coerce its neighbors, and ultimately will encourage China to participate in free trade on fair terms.” Romney’s positive outlook on relations with China is tempered by his comments in the presidential debates ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MM8_tKl22WM) which suggest that Romney will take a harsher tone with China then his predecessors. Romney states that he will immediately go after China for its currency manipulation, a position that may bring more direct confrontation between the two world powers that could eventually lead to a “trade war”.

Romney’s campaign site also details his position on how the Chinese Government deals with its own people, “Defend human rights. Any serious policy must confront the fact that China’s Communist regime continues to deny its people basic political freedoms and human rights. A nation that represses its own people cannot be a trusted partner in an international system based on economic and political freedom. A Romney administration will encourage the evolution of China toward a more politically open and democratic order. It will support and engage civil society groups within China that are promoting democratic reform, anti-corruption efforts, religious freedom, and women’s and minority rights. It will look to provide these groups and the Chinese people with greater access to information and communication through a stronger Internet freedom initiative.” In taking this position, Romney finds common ground with many ethnic and religious minorities in the United States that share interests in the survival of their companion minority groups abroad. An example of some of these groups would be the Mislim Uyghurs of South Eastern China or the Falun Gong which exist in nearly 70 countries worldwide (Religion and Politics in America pg 147).

To learn more about Romney's position on China go to http://www.mittromney.com/blogs/mitts-view/2011/10/fact-sheet-mitt-romneys-strategy-ensure-american-century

Romney and Gingrich Spar Over Immigration

Republican presidential candidates Newt Gingrich and Mitt Romney have recently been sparring over immigration reform. Gingrich made a daring political move within the past two weeks to re-center the republican debate along the lines of immigration reform, a wedge issue that could have a serious effect come primary season. Gingrich takes the position that immigrants that "if you've been here 25 years and you got three kids and two grandkids, you've been paying taxes and obeying the law, you belong to a local church, I don't think we're going to separate you from your family, uproot you forcefully and kick you out." In other words, Gingrich believes that amnesty is justified in special situations.

Within the past week, Romney has taken this opportunity to strengthen his political image with the republican base by requiring illegal immigrants to follow the same process as other legal immigrants, “12 million or so that are here illegally, should be able to sign up for permanent residency or citizenship, but they should not be given a special pathway, a special guarantee that all of them get to stay here for the rest of their lives merely by virtue of having come here illegally, and that, I think, is the great flaw in the final bill that came forward from the Senate."

This battle has extremely important implications for both Romney and Gingrich who are both in the process of courting voters as primary season approaches. Romney’s position will certainly give him an edge when it comes to reassuring the conservative base of his credentials. In a race where Romney has often been seen as the mainstream alternative to more right wing opponents, being able to place yourself right of the human incarnation of conservatism, former speaker Newt Gingrich, will do wonders for his credibility with the republican base. Gingrich on the other hand may be able to court the 40 million Latinos in the United States legally (Religion, Race and the American Presidency, pg 239), while garnering favor from the 12 million Latino illegal immigrants.

To view a press conference where Romney articulates his position on immigration go to:

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-57330570-503544/gingrich-romney-take-shots-at-each-other-on-immigration-policy/

Romney's Foreign Policy

Although Mitt Romney’s past experience as Governor of Massachusetts lacks any instance of involvement in foreign policy issues, his campaign website hosts a detailed 44 page description of his positions on a wide variety of issues from withdrawing troops from Afghanistan to offering more economic opportunity to Latin American neighbors. The details of Romney’s policy are far too extensive to get involved with on a blog, but it is the principles that define his strategy that will be our focus. Romney illustrates that the foundation of his foreign policy is based upon the belief that the world is a better, safer place with America in charge, “when America is strong, the world is safer. It is only American power—conceived in the broadest terms—that can provide the foundation for an international system that ensures the security and prosperity of the United States and our friends and allies.” In other words, Romney’s foreign policy echoes the related theories of civil religion and American exceptionalism. America was endowed with unique characteristics such as faith in freedom, liberty, and justice that it must do its best to share with the world.

Romney’s platform is based on the principles that American should strive to support global stability and predictability, “advance an international system that is congenial to the institutions of open markets, representative government, and respect for human rights,” use both hard and soft power in order to discourage global violence and instability, work to accomplish goals through multilateral relationships while reserving the right to act in her best interests alone if necessary.

More intriguing is the fact that when stating the importance of “restoring the sinews of American power” he specifically refers to the need for strong values, “Some believe America is declining and no longer possesses the resources or the moral authority to play a leadership role in the world. They do not see an international system undergirded by American values of economic and political freedom as necessarily superior to a world system organized by multilateral organizations like the United Nations. Mitt Romney rejects the philosophy of decline in all of its variants. He believes that a strong America is the best guarantor of peace and the best patron of liberty the world has ever known. The “last best hope of earth” was what Abraham Lincoln called our country. Mitt Romney believes in fulfilling the promise of Lincoln’s words and will defend America abroad in word and in deed.” Clearly civil religion is present in multiple areas throughout Romney’s foreign policy agenda.

check our Romney's positions in more detail on his website: http://www.mittromney.com/blogs/mitts-view/2011/10/fact-sheet-mitt-romneys-strategy-ensure-american-century

Romney Centrist Republican Platform

Mitt Romney has maintained his image as a moderate republican thanks to his various positions on issues such as the environment. Though Romney’s fiscal agenda is defined by uniquely conservative values, his stance on the environment drift to the left. For example, as governor of Massachusetts, Romney, “hired Douglas Foy, one of the state's most prominent environmental activists, and put him in charge of supervising four state agencies.” As a result, Romney’s administration was responsible for “a regional climate-change initiative and helped draft regulations to put emissions caps in place for coal-fired power plants.” Romney’s justification for these unusually liberal policies was, "I will not create jobs or hold jobs that kill people, and that plant, that plant kills people."

Unfortunately for Romney, despite the fact that these comments and positions were taken more than 8 years ago, his political opponents have been sure to remind the conservative voting base of their existence. For example, presidential candidate Rick Perry has compared Romney’s stance on environmental issues as comparable to that of Barak Obama. In response, the Romney camp released a statement accusing Perry of using “distortions and fabrications,” mixing policies implemented by his predecessors and successors with his own. Perry shot back by highlighting the fact that, "Massachusetts was one of the first states to implement its own cap and trade program, which included limits on carbon emissions from power plants. “

Unfortunately for Romney, republican primary season is characterized by candidates pushing as far to the right as possible, so as to gain the collective support of the conservative base in order to win the party nomination. Because Romney hails from the more liberal northeast, it will be much tougher for him to highlight his conservative colors when compared with candidates from red blooded states such as Texas, Georgia, and Utah.

However, Romney is able to survive the onslaught of conservative brinksmanship during the primary season, his relatively moderate record may give him the edge he needs to capture the mainstream electorate and the Whitehouse.

For all quotes see the Wall Street Journal article entitled Romney Environment Push Is Fresh Target for His Rivals @http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203388804576613293746516756.html