Political Platforms of the Two Presidential Candidates

Mitt Romney

The 2012 Republican presidential primary took off on January 3, 2012 when Republicans voted in the Iowa presidential caucuses. One week later, New Hampshire held its primary election. Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney took both states. Although Romney suffered several upsets in contests over the next few months—including a loss in South Carolina to former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich and an upset in Colorado and Minnesota after an unexpected sweep by former Senator Rick Santorum (Pennsylvania)—pundits continually predicted that Romney would edge out fellow candidates and secure the nomination. Both business and politics run in Mitt Romney's family; his father, George Romney (R), was governor of Michigan from 1963 until 1969 and also served as president of the car company American Motors Corporation in the 1950s. Mitt Romney, meanwhile, completed his college education at Brigham Young University in Salt Lake City, Utah, in 1971 and went on to earn an MBA from Harvard Business School and a law degree from Harvard Law School, completing his studies in 1975. He spent the next two years at the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), where he served as a management consultant. In 1977, Bain & Company lured him away (Powell, pp. 1).

Romney's Emergence

Over the next few months, Romney emerged as the clear frontrunner with the most delegates. In early April, Romney swept primary contests in Washington, D.C., Wisconsin and Maryland, adding to his lead over his closest Republican challenger, Santorum, who had defeated Romney in several prominent contests the previous month. In his victory speech, Romney looked past the Republican field, directing his attacks toward incumbent President Barack Obama (D). In return, Obama attacked Romney's support for a federal budget plan proposed by Representative Paul Ryan (R, Wisconsin), which he argued unfairly favored the wealthy over the poor and elderly. Political pundits received the traded barbs as the first direct exchange of criticism between Romney and Obama and the mark of the start of general election season.

As in his 2008 presidential bid, Romney has based his 2012 campaign largely on his record in the private sector rather than his one term as governor. Whether he succeeds in claiming the presidency will depend largely on whether the American public accepts his framing of the issue. Indeed, many critics have argued that business experience does not necessarily qualify a candidate for the presidency, and may in fact be indicative that a candidate is ill-equipped for the nation's highest office. Does private-sector achievement prepare one for public office, specifically for the presidency? Do private equity firms like Bain Capital help create or destroy jobs? Critics contend that historically, strong business credentials translate into poor presidencies. Businesses operate much differently from governments, they argue; thus the lessons that work in one sphere may not be applicable—and could even be counterproductive—to the other. Rather than promoting job growth in business endeavors, they claim, business leaders such as Romney function as "vulture capitalists," earning vast profits for themselves and their ...