Since the Boston Globe put most of its content behind a paid firewall, I'm not sure how many folks saw Joan Vennochi's terrific piece in today's issue: Romney's Real Problem with Women. Joan provides a concise history of how Romney lied to win over women in the Bay State and why they will never trust him.
Mitt's problem with women began back in 1994 when he unsuccessfully tried to unseat Ted Kennedy:
When Romney decided to run against Ted Kennedy in 1994, Republican Janet Jeghelian, a former talk radio host, was in the race. Once Romney jumped in, he and the state GOP kept her off the primary ballot. Jeghelian wasn’t a strong candidate, but she was a prescient one. After she was forced out, she predicted he would waffle on abortion rights. It took awhile, but he did.
Seven years later Mitt promised Republican Governor Jane Swift that he wouldn't run against her. He lied, of course. Mitt jumped into the race without so much as a courtesy call to the governor:
Realizing the delicacy of kicking aside the Bay State’s first female chief executive, Romney recruited another woman, Kerry Healey, to run as his lieutenant governor and vouch for his pro-choice credentials. Once elected, he relegated Healey to back channel roles.
Of course, to win the state house in Massachusetts candidate Romney had to swear up and down that he would champion a woman's right ot chose. But once elected, Etch a Sketch Mitt had a change of heart:
His switch to abortion foe allegedly occurred during the Massachusetts debate over stem-cell research. It also coincided with his decision to make his first run for president. No longer worried about winning Massachusetts votes, Romney was free to flip. Is he there to stay? Abortion opponents should question his fealty; the other side already knows he is not trustworthy.
And his signature achievement as governor - namely "Romneycare"?
As Shannon O’Brien, the Democrat he defeated in 2002, points out, “The choice issue is just one glaring reason why women can’t trust Mr. Romney. The broader, more profound issue is about what he will do to protect and preserve family health care across the country. Where he had such promise as governor, setting the stage for using Massachusetts as a national model, now he’s saying he didn’t mean it, never said it, doesn’t want it. That’s the biggest flip-flop-flip that women should be concerned about.’’
Ask the women of Massachusetts. Romney will lie every time to gain power.
Now, as the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, Romney pledges to repeal national health care reform. Which Romney do you trust: the one who wanted to prevent health insurance companies from denying coverage to Massachusetts citizens with pre-existing conditions, or the Romney who wants to repeal the law that accomplishes that for all Americans?