It’s Not That Romney’s Out of Touch, He Is CLUELESS

Willard Romney is a rich, white, and Mormon. None of these characteristics, by themselves, should disqualify him to be the President of the United States.IT IS THE FACT THAT HE IS CLUELESS!  It’s not that he doesn’t know the Texas Two Step,

it’s that he doesn’t know there is any way to dance except the waltz.

When Willard tied his dog’s carrier to the top of the family car for a 12 hour ride at speeds of greater than 60 miles per hour it proved that he was out of touch with the sheer panic and fear of Seamus, his Irish Setter.  However Romney proved he was clueless when Seamus was so utterly petrified that he had diarrhea all over himself, and Willard’s response was to wash him off, and return him to the top of the car, instead of letting the pathetic creature  inside the car.

Romney might demonstrate he’s out of touch by thinking that all Americans would go to a breeder to buy a full-blooded Irish Setter for their family pet. But he is clueless that there are many Americans who can’t afford to buy dog food.  The fact that Ann has two Cadillacs might prove that Romney is out of touch. Most Americans, if they could afford the payments on one Cadillac, can’t afford the payments for two, much less the price of gas required to fuel both cars. It is however the installation of a garage for the Cadillac in the vacation home that proves just how clueless Romney is.

The majority of the candidates running for the Republican nomination were white. Being a member of a minority is certainly not a requirement for running for President. Willard may have demonstrated that he was out of touch with minority communities when it was disclosed that he had illegal immigrants working in his yard.  Yet it was the fact that someone had to tell him they were illegal immigrants that demonstrates just how clueless he was.

Almost every Republican associates themself with the NRA. Romney may have proved that he is out of touch by featuring himself as the keynote speaker at the annual NRA Convention. Appearing at this convention, Willard brought into focus the fact that he is not himself a hunter. As Governor of Massachusetts he didn’t “line up”with the NRA when he favored a ban on assault weapons and advocated a waiting period to buy firearms.  However Willard proved he is clueless when he unnecessarily offended Blacks across the country by specifically mentioning the Florida “Stand Your Ground” law which is being invoked by George Zimmerman in the Trayvon Martin shooting. Mitt Romney said:

“We need a president who will stand up for the rights of hunters and sportsmen and those seeking to protect their homes and their families. President Obama has not,…I will.”

It seems Willard didn’t know that George Zimmerman was not protecting his home or his family when he shot the unarmed teenager.  Romney is clueless!

Romney is Mormon. Initially we might have suspected that being Mormon would have prevented Willard from getting the nomination of the Party of the right-wing, conservative, evangelical party. “God” told Bachmann, Cain, Perry, and Santorum to run, but he didn’t speak to Willard. If God spoke to Willard, certainly Mitt was smart enough not to mention that conversation, as it might bring further attention to the differences in his religious beliefs and those of Perry, Bachmann, Cain, and Santorum. However it is not the fact that Romney is a member of a religion that is different than the majority of Americans that demonstrates just how out of touch he is with mainstream thought in America. It is the fact that Mitt Romney holds traditional Mormon beliefs that demonstrates just how clueless he is about the role of the American woman. It is BECAUSE of his Mormon beliefs that Romeny is lagging far behind Obama in his approval ratings with women.

Romney gave a speech years ago that has become famous. He directly affirmed his Mormonism. He said:

“I believe in my Mormon faith and I endeavor to live by it. My faith is the faith of my fathers—I will be true to them and to my beliefs.

Since Romney made reference to his “fathers” plural, we can assume he was making reference to his father, grand-father, and great-grandfather. Parley Pratt was his great-grandfather. He’s the one who moved to Mexico because of the U.S. anti-polygamy laws which would have required him to give up four of his five wives.

“Unfair” you say. Most Mormons today don’t have multiple wives, and certainly Ann is Romney’s only wife. Yet, what does the Mormon faith that Romney “lives by” say about the role of women? Most religions in the United States have begun changing in an attempt to equalize the roles and responsibilities of men and women. Many religions have even embraced women as the leaders of their communities, including rabbis in the Reform Movement of Judaisim, and Ministers in the Methodist Church. Mormonism remains an exception. The Mormon position on women has not changed since the early 1800’s, when the official view was that “woman’s primary place is in the home, where she is to rear children and abide by the righteous counsel of her husband.” Mormonism has been described as having a “legacy of profound sexism” which modern Mormonism has been unable to escape.  Mormonism has created an ingenious system of oppression, in which opposition towards men is tantamount to arguing with God. The Mormon religion makes no distinction between clergy and laity, at least with regard to men (Laake 9). All Mormon men are ordained as members of the “priesthood,” with the absolute authority to preach the gospel, bestow blessings, prophecy, perform healings and baptisms, and generally speak for God.

At age twelve, boys become members of the Aaronic, or lesser priesthood, and at nineteen become eligible for the Melchezedek, or higher priesthood. Members of either priesthood are higher authorities on everything than are non-members. Women are excluded from the priesthood. Thus a woman’s prepubescent son is more qualified to advise her than she is to advise him.

Ann Romney has opted to stay at home to raise her 5 sons. A controversy has recently arisen suggesting that Democrats, and Hilary Rosen in particular, didn’t value the contribution of Ann as a stay-at-home mom.  Ann Romney expressed great indignation in her statement defending her choice to be a stay at home mom.

Unfortunately, Ann demonstrated by her statement that she too is clueless.  She totally missed the point of Hilary Rosen.  Hilary was talking about the absurdity of Mitt suggesting that he was in touch with women’s views of the economy in America because he got input from his unemployed wife.  How could Mitt imagine for a minute that his rich, white, wife who was a stay at home mom could understand the economic struggles of a minority single woman trying to support several children?   While Ann admits that she has not had any financial struggles, she suggests that she has faced struggles in her life. The implication is that she has struggled because she has Multiple Sclerosis. Sorry. She fails to understand the challenges of many who face a disabling disease without the benefit of money. If Ann needs a housekeeper, she has one. If Ann can’t fix dinner because she has MS, she hires a chef. Ann has the best health care money can buy. Many with MS don’t have the money to pay a neurologist to tell them about medications available to treat MS that they can’t afford. Ann isn’t in a wheelchair, and doesn’t even have to use a cane or walker. She is well enough to travel with Mitt on the campaign trail, and stand during speeches she gives in front of thousands. MS doesn’t affect her ability to articulate her words in speeches. She is not like the woman sitting next to me receiving her iv infusion of the medicine she couldn’t afford, but for her husband’s insurance. That patient understood what a real struggle was when she had to choose between living with a husband who advertised his unfaithfulness to her, knowing that she would go completely blind if she divorced him and became unable to pay for the medicine paid for by her husband’s insurer.

It is not the fact that Mitt Romney is white, rich, or Mormon that makes him unattractive as a Presidential candidate. It is the fact that he has been rich, white, and Mormon so long that he has become clueless about what it is like to be an average American.