Getting To Know And Like Mitt Romney

According to the latest polls, President Obama is far more likeable than Republican candidate Mitt Romney who still hasn't won over the GOP conservative voters. He certainly wasn't my first pick as I dearly would have loved to see Gov. Rick Perry face Obama. There were way too many good candidates in the race to be the GOP nominee but after a brutal process there was only one left and many on the right feel that they'll have to vote for him as reluctantly as they voted for John McCain in 2008. The more I learn about Romney, however, I find that reluctance is turning into strong positive support.

Actually I had briefly met Romney several years ago when he spoke at a closed media event at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Manhattan. I can't remember why he was there or even what he said but my overall impression of him was that he was a good speaker with a great sense of humor. That humorous side was clearly on display in that recent interview with NBC's Brian Williams but I'll bet it didn't get much notice in the mainstream media.

Mr. Williams speculated that Romney was set to pick as his running mate, "a boring white guy." Romney immediately responded, "You told me you were not available," and the look on William's face was priceless. That spontaneous Reaganesque quip was indicative of a quick wit rarely on display on his campaign trail but hopefully will emerge as we get closer to November.

Meanwhile the mainstream media is going after Romney ferociously, twisting his every word and doing whatever it can to tarnish his image. The latest volley is by Newsweek magazine's Michael Tomasky with a cover story shouting, "The Wimp Factor." The article suggests that because Romney is dodging reporters and not releasing his taxes he's insecure about being president. Frankly, it sounds as if he's just too smart to subject himself to the rabid lapdogs of the press spinning all the news that fits their agenda. As for his tax returns, he already submitted 23 years worth to the McCain camp in 2008 so there's nothing "there" there.

Laughably the DNC chairwoman, Rep. Wasserman Schultz, went on Face the Nation to complain that Romney, "lacks the skills to be Commander-in-Chief" while our current Commander in chief is systematically reducing our military might while alienating our strongest allies, like Poland and Israel. Since the majority of veterans and current military personnel are currently organizing to elect Mitt Romney, I think they're in a better position to determine who is best to lead them.

Just about every article that appears in The New York Times about Mitt Romney is negative and defies credulity. Last week, Henry Alford wrote a snarky article on the Romneys' vacation. We're supposed to be appalled that he brings his family along to his property on Lake Winnipesaukee in New Hampshire. Mind you, nowhere in the article does he mention the many, many, many extravagant vacations costing the taxpayers millions that the Obamas have taken in the past three and a half years. I wonder if Mr. Alford checked if the Obamas, who are millionaires as well, paid for the non-family entourage they brought along with them on these jaunts. Probably not-only a journalist with integrity would investigate all pertinent facts without bias.

Attempts to charge that Romney oversaw the outsourcing of jobs by his company Bane even after he left to salvage the Utah Olympics in 1992 has backfired. People are saying that if he saved the Olympics at the same time he was operating as CEO at Bane must mean that he's a can-do guy.

The more Romney is vetted in both the MSM and the alternative media, the more I'm learning about incidents in Romney's past that are actually quite favorable. While serving as a young Mormon missionary in France, he ran out of his apartment barefoot to assist two female missionaries who were being harassed by a group of drunken rugby players. Another missionary had been knocked out and Romney ended up with a badly bruised jaw. Romney a brawler? Hardly, but it's hard not to compare this image of a chivalrous young Romney with the photos we've seen of young Obama smoking that dubious cigarette.

The media onslaught of Romney was in full gear after his overseas trip to England, Israel and Poland. Reporters overlooked the success of his visits to categorize it as gaffe-prone. It was not, but to the MSM truth telling by Republicans is always labeled a gaffe.

Right now we have a candidate who is highly intelligent and graduated cum laude from both Harvard Law and Harvard Business School and all his academic records are unsealed and easily verified.

When he was governor of Massachusetts he took no salary for the entire four years. He also gave his entire inheritance from his father to charity. In 2011, Mitt Romney gave 19% of his income, over $4 million dollars to charity, Obama gave 1% and miserly Joe Biden only gave $300.

Romney's birth certificate, high school, college transcripts and his social security card are available for the public to review. His law degree, draft notice, medical records, are also available and he has already released as I mentioned earlier many years of tax returns.

Although he has a law degree Romney has always been a businessman, a successful entrepreneur, and a man who knows how to generate income. He is a firm believer in capitalism and the free market unlike progressives who do not understand business because they believe that the government has a role in everything we do.

Polls are being manipulated to show that Obama is better liked than Romney but what these idiotic polls really indicate is, "How stupid are we?" What on earth does likeability have to do with electing the most powerful man in the world? Shouldn't the questions be about who is the most qualified individual to have their finger on the fate of the world? I don't care if that person is fun to be with or someone I'd like to share a beer with. Who cares if he's a millionaire? So was JFK and no one cared where his money came from. John Kerry's married to a billionairess and his wealth never was a factor in the 2004 presidential race. I'd much rather vote for a man who earned his money in business than vote for an individual who got rich after years in Congress.

What we need to fix this broken government is a fixer and experience shows that that's exactly who Mitt Romney is. Here's hoping Americans come to the same conclusion.

Alicia Colon resides in New York City and can be reached at aliciav.colon@gmail.com and at www.aliciacolon.com