Forgive me while I wax sentimental. I posted this on my first blog www.illinoisansformitt.blogspot.com a year ago this weekend. It's kind of fun to look back at it. Everything still holds true that I said. It's also fun to think about the days when I was excited because I went from 10 hits to 12 hits in a single day. I've helped start www.MyManMitt.com, which gets around 1-2000 hits a day and has been quoted by nearly every conservative online rag along with CNN, Fox News, BBC, NPR, Meet the Press along with several Boston TV stations and newspapers. Don't mean to brag, but it is kind of fun to think about.

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to visit Washington D.C. for the first time. Among the things that impressed me the most was the WWII Memorial situated between the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial. As I sat there reflecting I began to think about how are country has changed since WWII. I particularly thought of my grandfather.

Born in 1915 he was eligible to fight in the war, yet stayed home because his services as an airplane designer were needed at a small airplane manufacturer in California he worked for, Northrop. Throughout the war, he once told me, he would get jeers and comments when he would be out with my grandmother for not being out and fighting for the US. He went on to co-create some of the very planes that would help defeat the Nazis

I will never forget how in the last years of his life, having suffered a stroke that left him without the ability to speak, he would still pull out books of the airplanes that he worked on and proudly showed me the fruits of his labors. He never expected a free ride. As the son of a hard working carpenter in Los Angeles he never considered the idea of passing the personal responsibility to hold a job and provide for his family to someone else. He died leaving a modest savings and a house that was paid off long ago to his descendants- a tribute to the work ethic, sacrifice and frugality of his generation. He was a giver not a taker.

As I sat there thinking of these things, I realized America has strayed little by little from those roots that were once so strong. While we once stood for patriotism, sacrifice, God and personal responsibility, the en vogue principles today are asserting your rights and milking the government. Which is why I decided to become involved with Gov. Mitt Romney's unofficial grassroots organization.

I have started a grassroots organization in Illinois that can be found at http://illinoisans4mitt.blogspot.com. It is part of a larger grassroots organization that promotes Mitt Romney for the 2008 presidential election. Mitt Romney on every issue has stressed the personal responsibility of individuals. He said "welfare without work creates negative incentives that lead to permanent poverty. It robs people of self-esteem." Unlike my grandpa who could leave this world with a feeling of satisfaction resulting from his labors, millions of Americans will will not because government has created a system of dependence. Our government has failed it's citizens in this regard.

Romney believes in states right to decide its own fate through the legislature, not judicial order. He is pro-family, pro-life and pro-values. He has created a medical plan that shifts responsibility from the state to the individual and has shown the State of Massachusetts that fiscal budgets need to be balanced without taxing the people.

As voters become more familiar with Romney those attributes that are so desperately needed in our nations leaders will shine through. He will inspire America to a higher cause as Regan did, and promote government agendas that will reduce government and promote a better sense of self-reliance. He has proven he can bring Democrats along with his agenda as is becoming increasingly necessary, while at the same time promoting conservative ideals and the GOP.

Hopefully Affleck will make his pilgrimage to SLC to apologize. :) Somehow, as a Mormon, I find it comforting to see Affleck call my religion questionable.

The biggest headline from this poll is that Romney increased his total poll numbers by 50% (as noted prviously on this blog) from 10% to 15%. However, I find the favorable/unfavorable trends for the GOP top-three to be the real story . . . and they are good news for Team Mitt!

McCain's "favorables" went DOWN from 39% to 33% and his "unfavorables" went UP from only 20% to 31% while the "undecideds/haven't heard enough" decreased from 41% to 35%.

Giuliani's "favorables" went DOWN from 60% to 53% and his "unfavorables" went UP from only 10% to 18% while the "undecideds/haven't heard enough" stayed pretty stable (decreased from 30% to 28%.)

In contrast Romney's "favorables" went UP from 20% to 28% and his "unfavorables" were fairly stable (slightly up--9% to 11%).

The real story here is that AS his previously huge "undecided's/haven't heard enough" figure of 71% went down to a still very large 60% his favorable/unfavorable percentages broke strongly in his favor (8% higher favorable and 2% higher unfavorable----NET PLUS 6% for Romney compared to a NET MINUS 17% for McCain and a NET MINUS 15% for Giuliani . . . Put another way, Romney GAINED 23% in net favorability on McCain and 21% on Giuliani). Assuming that this postive shift for Romney represents the opinions of the new 11% that no longer were "undecided/haven't heard enough" about him, that would mean that 4 out of 5 of these likely Republican voters formed a favorable view of Romney and only 1 out of 5 formed an unfavorable view of him.

Granted, it's probably not the best assumption to think that this shift is all just from the new 11% people now feeling informed about Romney. Why? By comparison, that would have been a statistically impossible way to explain the negative shift in the "undecided/haven't heard enough" numbers for Giuliani and McCain. The only mathmatically possible explanation for the strong negative shift for these candidates is that A SIGNIFICANT PORTION WHO PREVIOUSLY HAD FAVORABLE OPINIONS OF MCCAIN AND GIULIANI FLIP-FLOPPED ON THEIR OPINION OF THEM. Looks like "flip-flops" may be a bigger problem for Rudy and John than for Mitt, eh?

Now, if that's not over-analysis of one little poll, I don't know what is. Still, I thing that these figures play into team Romney's belief and mantra that "those who come to know Romney almost invariably break his way." His strong move in the early states lends credence to this belief. So, is Romney the political embodiment of the phrase "to know him is to love him?"

Jeff Fuller

I post this despite being a huge GM fan:



In case you have never seen this bit of oddball curiosity:

I= I

A= am

C=Chairman

O= Of

C=Chrysler

C=Corporation of

A= America

Hat Tip Elect Romney Blog. Check out their new redesign, looks good! MyManMitt has one in the works too.

Mark Mabry, a professional photographer, was on hand for the Women for Romney kickoff. Here's his take on the event:

One could ramble endlessly about the embraceable grace with which Mrs. Romney carries herself in a crowd, but I've got a unique perspective so I'll talk about that. Today, I photographed a luncheon as part of the Women for Mitt kickoff. The festivities began and there were about 20 guests invited to be photographed with Mrs. Romney. Photographing the same person 20 times next to 20 different people is a lesson in psychology for one willing to learn it. Here's what I mean. I watched Mrs. Romney throughout the session (about 25 minutes). She is not a fake laugher or insincere on any level. I occasionally am lucky enough to photograph people with that extreme level of comfort in the person they are, but rarely does one see it in the political arena. Mrs. Romney is gracious and sympathetic and you could feel a "mom" vibe from her too. Photographically speaking, in a posed setting, she comes across consistently confident and in candid situations her sincerity is more evident. No "deer in the headlights" here. Her confidence shows in her ability to go about business not worried about a camera possibly misrepresenting her, because when you're that real, it can't.

Here's the slideshow he put together. Visit his website and blog.



(ht: Five Brothers)

Labels: Photos

Mitt Romney Makes Stop In Polk County To Tout Key Issues (May 25, 2007 16:47)
"Mitt Romney, presidential contender for the Republican Party, spoke before guests of the Republican..

Governor Mitt Romney On The Iraq War Funding Vote (May 25, 2007 13:53)
On Friday, May 25, Governor Mitt Romney issued the following statement on yesterday's Iraq War fundi..

Romney Speaks To County Republicans At Dinner (May 25, 2007 12:58)
"Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney had his audience clapping and cheering at his jabs at..

The Romney Agenda: 5/25/07 (May 25, 2007 10:25)
On Friday, May 25, Romney for President released the fourth edition of "The Romney Agenda." This wee..

Romney Says Media Must 'Police Itself' (May 24, 2007 14:02)
"Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney made a quick fundraising stop Wednesday in Oklahoma, ..

Research Briefing: "Tested & Proven" In The Bluest Of The Blue States (May 24, 2007 11:00)
This Research Briefing highlights Governor Romney's strong conservative leadership making the toughe..

Romney For President Launches New Television Ad, "Tested, Proven" (May 23, 2007 13:13)
On Wednesday, May 23, Romney for President launched its newest television ad, "Tested, Proven." The ..

Ann Romney: Mitt Has Always Been Pro-Life (May 23, 2007 12:48)
"'It's a match made in heaven between Mitt and Ann,' says Fraser Bullock, who was one of the seven p..

Labels: news

Any doubts former Sen. Fred Thompson isn't getting into the race have probably flown out the window based on the news this morning that Rep. Marsha Blackburn has jumped off the Mitt Romney Bandwagon and endorsed Thompson. Given that Blackburn is friends with Thompson and from the same state, the endorsement isn't a surprise. But the timing is. Thompson isn't announced yet. This leads us to believe that Blackburn must know something other folks don't. Otherwise, why so publicly go out on a limb and embarrass the Romney camp? According to Romney insiders, Blackburn was slated to help run the "Women for Romney" operation and was in line to be a key national surrogate for the campaign down south. This isn't a huge blow to that campaign by any stretch. But it is an interesting little twist to a race that is getting more interesting by the hour. Link

According to a very strong source in the campaign, "She was getting a lot of state party pressure...She wants to run on a state-wide basis some day" I guess there is a lot of pressure and a lot of people to please in these sorts of things.

Marsha Blackburn was not really the most prominent member of the campaign, but prominent none the less. It's good get for Thompson, but her role should be one Team Mitt can replace without a problem. Best of Luck to Marsha, no doubt you are on a good team!

From RS:

Today, the Senate voted on an amendment to eliminate sanctuary cities for illegal immigrants.

The amendment failed by one vote.

Sam Brownback did not vote.

Does anyone know why?

(Before anyone jumps down his throat or mine, I'm sure there's a reason.)

Apparently he also missed another crucial vote earlier in the week

Labels: brownback

Governor Romney Outlines Three Priorities On Immigration Reform.

GOVERNOR ROMNEY: "We're going to have to secure our border first. Two, put in place an employment verification system to make sure we're giving jobs only to those people who come legally. And number three, for the 12 million, we can't allow them to have a special privilege of being able to stay here indefinitely." MIKE GALLAGHER: "Well, I tell you that's music to my ears and to the ears of millions of Americans…" ("Mike Gallagher Show," 5/21/07)

Governor Romney: Border Security Is Number One. GOVERNOR ROMNEY: "[T]he people I speak with as I go to Republican events agree with me that there are three key rules that we have to follow. One is, we have to secure the border. Two is, we have to have an employment verification system to know who's here legally and who's not here legally. That's only fair to the employers to know who is who. And then, finally, for those people that are here illegally today, while it may be fine for them to apply for citizenship and to apply for permanent residency, that they should do so in line with everyone else and they should be given no advantage, no special privilege by having come here illegally." (Fox News' "Your World," 5/24/07)

Watch Governor Romney Here.

Governor Romney: "I believe it's important to end illegal immigration so we can maintain and encourage legal immigration. Immigration is good for this country; it's helped us over our history. We need immigration to provide some of the skills that we may miss, migrant workers, cultural advantages. It's a great source of vitality for America to have legal immigration, but illegal immigration – that we need to bring an end to." (KCMO's "Morning Show With Chris Stigall," 5/22/07)

Labels: Immigration

Elder Hart (circa 1992) on my mission in Poland. The two gentleman are not Mormon converts (or prospects for that matter). They are, shall we say, not thirsty. Note: this picture was taken at 1:00PM in the afternoon

Wow! A non-hit piece from a leftist rag about Mitt Romney and Mormonism. Will wonders never cease!

Noam Scheiber in The New Republic has an excellent piece entitled: "How missionary work trains Mormons to stump for Mitt" (subscription req'd) comparing the canvassing approach of modern politics to the experience that many Mormons get on a mission (full disclosure here, I'm a member of the LDS Church).

I was holding my breath reading the article waiting for some asinine line about Mormon underwear and authoritarian rule from the secret room in the Salt Lake City Temple... happily it never came.

Here are some key graphs:

There's no question that the enthusiasm of affluent Mormons is a huge boost for Romney. The former Massachusetts governor could not have solidified his first-tier status without his impressive fund-raising haul, and the haul would not have happened without his Mormon base. But, then, as the Romney campaign never hesitates to point out, this kind of advantage is hardly unheard of in presidential politics. Michael Dukakis tapped the wallets of affluent Greek-Americans in 1988; Joe Lieberman benefited from outsize Jewish donations in 2004.

This is accurate. Just as Rudy Giuliani will draw from Italians, Obama from African Americans and John McCain from traderous RINOs (j/k)...

Romney's Mormonism does, however, confer at least one truly unprecedented advantage--one that could be decisive in a closely contested primary. It derives from an aspect of the Mormon community that the press has largely underplayed: the vast grassroots organizing potential of thousands of highly-disciplined young missionaries.

OK... just so Erik Erickson doesn't get plastered by Hugh again... let me make this absolutely clear. Noam is not saying that Mormon missionaries will be canvassing for Mitt but that the experience they gain on a mission is akin to political grassroots activities and that return-missionaries (RMs as Mormons call them sometimes) will make great ground troops for Mitt.

Once more for emphasis: NO MORMON MISSIONARY WILL BE HITTING THE PAVEMENT FOR MITT. If fact, I suspect that the LDS Church will give explicit instructions to missionaries to avoid discussion altogether about the subject.

Back to TNR:

The Mormon Church is somewhat vague with the details of missions, so I've relied on two Mormon sources to get a sense of how the process works. (Some of the particulars may have changed since they served in the 1990s, but the broad thrust should be the same.) The typical mission begins with a three-week training course at the aptly named Mission Training Center in Provo, Utah. There, the Mormons receive a crash course on the missionary lifestyle and the rudiments of spreading the good word.

Arguably the most important skill they acquire in this regard is how to get in the door, and the trainees hone this skill through extensive role-playing. For example, they are taught to search for common ground with potential converts--everything from their taste in cars or pets to their religious worldview. "Take the belief in Jesus Christ," says one of the former missionaries. "We might have different beliefs about Him, but most people do believe in some sort of Supreme Being, they have ideas about that. You build on that, go from there." It's not so different from the way a canvasser might seek a connection with a voter over, say, a shared interest in the environment.

There are roughly 100 regional missions in the United States (out of about 340 worldwide), each of which is divided into several zones of about 20 missionaries, with each zone subdivided into three or four districts. Upon arriving at his or her mission, a young Mormon will meet with the mission president--usually a respected member of the Mormon community called to serve a three-year term--who assigns the missionary to a district. Once there, he or she will be paired with a more experienced partner--called a "companion"--who functions as an on-the-job trainer. Most missionaries work twelve hours a day, six and a half days a week. They live on small stipends, in Spartan quarters--secondhand furniture, no TVs or computers--and dine on such extravagances as cereal and peanut butter. The Church allows them to call home exactly twice a year: on Christmas and Mother's Day. Rejection is overwhelmingly the most common feature of their existence.

Veterans of early primary states like Iowa and New Hampshire often speak in the obscure shorthand of "ones," "twos," and "threes." Ones refer to the voters who are solidly with your candidate. Twos are people who are either leaning that way or are altogether undecided. Threes are people who support your opponent. The job of the organizer is to convert all the twos to ones and to keep the ones from backsliding. The total number of ones at any given time is known as the campaign's "hard count." (Tellingly, Trippi constantly complained that the Dean campaign lacked a meaningful hard count.)

It turns out that Mormon proselytizing is remarkably similar to corralling voters in this respect. In effect, the missionary's universe also consists of ones (the people firmly on track to be baptized as Mormons, known as the "baptizing pool"), twos (people open to converting but who haven't entirely made up their minds, called the "teaching pool"), and threes (people who slam doors in their faces--i.e., the vast majority). As in politics, the twos receive the most attention. The Mormon technique for winning over metaphysical undecideds involves asking a person to make a series of gradually escalating commitments. After the first encounter, the missionary might ask them to read a passage in the Book of Mormon and pray about it. Over time, the missionary will petition the prospect to abstain from cigarettes, alcohol, and out-of-wedlock sex. (The canvasser, by contrast, will usually settle for convincing someone to display a yard

Really good stuff and altogether accurate. Of course if you read Hugh Hewitt's book this would be old hat.

More on this soon...

Labels: Mormon, mormonism