Romney Campaign’s Race-Baiting Strategy Could Have Dire Consequences for America

Romney Campaign’s Race-Baiting Strategy Could Have Dire Consequences for America July 24, 2012

The Romney campaign got the memo: Race-baiting and xenophobia work — at least among the segment of the electorate former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney hopes to capture in his quest for the presidency.

Over the course of the last two weeks, Romney’s strategy has incorporated racial and cultural cues, both subtle and blatant, as a means of deflection from the Obama campaign’s relentless offensive based on questions about Romney’s tenure at Bain Capital, from which Romney claims to have been retired during a period of time, 1999-2002, in which his name is listed on documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission as the sole owner and chief executive officer of the firm.

Add those questions — what was Bain doing at that time, and why does Romney want deniability for those actions? — to Romney’s refusal to release more than his last two years of tax returns, and you’ve got a pretty shady-looking candidate.

Furthermore, Romney, an elite member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, has suffered difficulties from the start among elements of the Republican base, especially right-wing Christian evangelicals, who view Mormonism as a cult and doubt Romney’s conservative bona fides, especially on abortion, given the fact that he was, at one time, pro-choice.
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