It is not too early to begin thinking about the next presidential election. Indeed, by most accounts Barack Obama has already launched his campaign for reelection. But since he has started making speeches aimed at laying the groundwork for the coming battle, it is time for potential Republican aspirants to ramp up their efforts too.
One of those who has been making candidate-like sounds is Mitt Romney. As a finalist in the 2008 Republican primaries, he is being touted as a front-runner this time around as well. Nonetheless, he is often described as having an albatross around his neck. And that albatross has been dubbed “Romneycare.”
While governor of Massachusetts, Romney sponsored a comprehensive health care system for his state. At the time, he was proud of this accomplishment, but given the sweeping dimensions of president Obama’s own health care legislation, Romney has sought to distance himself from “Obamacare.”
Clearly Romney has an interest in not being perceived as in favor of bankrupting the nation or in facilitating a federal take-over of medical treatment. Unfortunately, so far the governor’s efforts to achieve this end have not been very persuasive. Most people find his arguments too confusing to draw a sharp distinction.
I therefore offer a modest proposal. Instead of insisting that what he sponsored was significantly different from nationalized health care, Romney should boldly proclaim that he made a mistake. He should admit that the costs were greater than calculated and the administrative intrusion more disruptive.
Needless to say, politicians are loath to admit errors. (Obama certainly is.) Those who run for office know that mistakes are usually perceived as evidence of incompetence and thus must be avoided like the plague. So how can Romney get around this dilemma? This is tricky, but I think doable.
What the ex-governor ought to say is a corollary of something he has previously asserted. He can argue that the states should, in fact, be the laboratories of political experimentation. They ought to be where new ideas are tried out before going national. Then if they don’t work, the country as a whole can be spared the consequent pain.
On these grounds Romneycare can be written off as a failed trial of an idea that looked good on paper. Then he can represent himself as a man who learns from experience. Whereas his Democratic rival refuses to admit his stimulus plan did not work and thus continues to promote destructive over-spending, he, Romney, benefits from experience. As a former businessman, he, unlike Obama, is flexible enough to modify his strategies so that he—and the nation—do not go bankrupt.
But there is something more that Romney must do. He has to offer a specific alternative to Obamacare; one that does not have the faintest odor of an arrogant government takeover. Rather, it must be based on market principles and allow people to make choices the president’s plan does not. –And oh, it cannot increase the national debt.
Romney must do this because if he does not, people will suspect that he might backslide. As a result, he needs to draw a firm line in the sand. He cannot afford to be wishy-washy or open to interpretation lest he seem a clone of the man he is attempting to unseat.
This said, I am not endorsing Romney for president. While I believe that he is a strong candidate and would do an infinitely better job than the incumbent, the Republican party boasts other viable possibilities (Mitch Daniels and Tim Pawlenty immediately spring to mind), it would be regrettable if he were discounted because an earlier effort at leadership misfired. Stalwart leaders are hard to come by; hence those who have otherwise done well should not be excluded because they are human.
And besides, I believe in honesty. As a consequence, if Romney displays this quality, he will have me as a friend. But more than this, if he can demonstrate candor in the face of potential adversity, he will have provided the nation with a lesson not unlike one provided two centuries ago by George Washington.
Is that too much to hope for?
Melvyn L. Fein. Ph.D.
Professor of Sociology
Kennesaw State University
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