Mitt Romney has gone out with a bang.
The former Massachusetts governor, flexing his Republican muscles once again since announcing his run for president, acknowledged he has only been a member of the National Rifle Association since August 2006, according to a Feb. 19 Boston Globe article.
But when he ran for Senate in 1994, Romney supported gun control that was opposed by the NRA.
The now-lifetime NRA member has said, “I think [the NRA is] doing good things, and I believe in supporting the right to bear arms” on ABC’s “This Week with George Stephanopoulos” on Feb. 18.
Republicans have every right to question the Michigan native’s sincerity.
Romney’s most recent attempt at proving his conservatism and appealing to the right is yet another stark contrast to his political record.
The strong right-wing stances Romney has recently made seem to be strategic maneuvers rather than representative of the former governor’s beliefs.
In the same 1994 senatorial campaign in which Romney touted gun limitations, he declared he was pro-choice, after his brother-in-law’s sister died during an illegal abortion procedure, according to a Feb. 7 Associated Press article.
But in his interview with Stephanopoulos, Romney said, “I am in favor of life and in favor of choosing life.”
Romney has also supported gay rights in the past, and Massachusetts legalized same-sex marriage while he held the corner office.
Yet, early on the campaign trail in South Carolina, Romney preached, “The family is under attack in our society — it needs to be protected and strengthened,” according to a Feb. 14 AP article.
How can this candidate change his opinions on several major issues so abruptly if he claims they are his true convictions? Clearly, Romney simply alters his words to what he thinks meets the demands of voters. It is impossible to know what Romney actually believes.
The issue to watch out for is Romney’s support of stem cell research on excess embryos. Conservatives believe these embryos are still a life form, and they may attack Romney’s support of experimentation on them. If he changes his position on this topic, voters can be sure politics is no more than a game for the former governor.
But the presidential hopeful can’t even be sure that promoting staunch Republican ideals will land him in the Oval Office. Many voters are fed up with the current administration, and championing its positions seems to be an ineffective strategy.
Even if enough ballot casters support Romney’s strong conservative and so-called beliefs, the 180-degree-flip his ideologies took doesn’t bode well for his chances. John Kerry learned that the hard way in 2004.