Attacks on Evan McMullin escalate

After Evan McMullin’s sudden surge in Utah, the Trump campaign is taking him seriously and attacks are mounting. The situation in the deep red state was serious enough that Mike Pence made a late-in-the-campaign visit to Beehive State in an attempt to shore up hemorrhaging support in the wake of three disastrous debates and Trump’s sexual harassment scandal.

The first attack came from Lou Dobbs who tweeted that McMullin was “nothing but a Globalist, Romney and Mormon Mafia Tool.” McMullin responded on CNN a few days later saying, “A hallmark of Donald Trump's campaign has been to attack people based on their race and religion and all of this and so it's not a surprise to me at all.” McMullin supporters on Twitter started a tweetstorm of jokes about the bizarre insult.

The attacks continued over the weekend when Trump lashed out at McMullin and Bill Kristol in an interview on Fox News. “I love the people of Utah. I have great relationships in Utah," Trump said. "But you have a guy named Bill Kristol who's called it wrong for two years. He's a loser. He's called me wrong. He's called everything wrong. He's called the wars wrong. Everything he does is wrong. He gets his puppet to go and run in Utah.”

Trump continued, “The guy [McMullin] takes votes away from me. You know, we're going to win Utah. But he takes votes away from me, this man who I never heard of....   Now, if for some reason we lose Utah that could have a very devastating impact on the overall.” Utah has six electoral votes.

McMullin responded in Trumpian fashion: With a tweet. The independent candidate posted, “@realDonaldTrump, Yes you’ve never heard of me because while you were harassing women at beauty pageants, I was fighting terrorists abroad.” McMullin is a 10-year veteran of the CIA where he served as a clandestine agent in the Middle East. Donald Trump received student and medical deferments that exempted him from the draft, but told Howard Stern that not contracting a sexually transmitted disease was his “personal Vietnam” and made him feel like a “great and very brave soldier.”

McMullin added another tweet attacking Trump on substance. “@realDonaldTrump, you're an authoritarian, life-long liberal who disrespects life, liberty, & equality. We can't trust you on justices.” The Trump campaign did not respond to the tweet.

Then things got really nasty. Over Halloween weekend, McMullin was the target of robocalls in the new battleground state of Utah. Salt Lake City’s KUTV describes the call by William Johnson, a self-described “white nationalist” which attacks McMullin’s mother, a lesbian who is married to another woman, and alleges that McMullin, who is single, is a “closeted homosexual.”

Spoiler alert: Evan McMullin is not gay. Louise Mensch of Heat Street wrote of her earlier conversation with McMullin prior to an August interview. McMullin told her that “his greatest aspiration is to be a husband and a father.” Part of the reason that he left the CIA was his desire to one day be married and have a family, something that would be difficult for a CIA operative.

As to his mother, McMullin talked about her in an interview with the Salt Lake Tribune on Oct. 26. “I believe in the sanctity of traditional marriage. It is an important part of my faith,” McMullin said. “My mother has a different view. That is OK. I love her very much.”

McMullin told CNN that the robocall was not a surprise. “This is exactly the narrative, the approach the Donald Trump campaign has had. So it didn't even surprise when I heard news of the robocall, I just thought of course this is more of the same.”

The Trump campaign had quickly denied involvement in the robocall. Sean Spicer, the RNC communications director, said, “The call was disgusting. It's reprehensible and it was appropriately denounced by the campaign.” Spicer continued, “But for him to then turn it back on them is almost as reprehensible. We live in a country of over 300-plus million people. Not everybody who supports Donald Trump, not everyone who supports Hilary Clinton, are exactly the kind of people that you want as supporters.” Spicer was denounced in turn for calling McMullin’s response to the insults “reprehensible.”

Then a remarkable thing happened. William Johnson, who is a Trump delegate, did something that Donald Trump hasn’t done. He issued a heartfelt apology and stopped the calls. “I am truly sorry,” he told the LA Times. “I am sorry for the mean-spirited message and I humbly retract its contents.”

Finally, Pax Dickinson, founder and CTO of Wesearchr, a pro-Trump website tweeted, “America hasn’t boasted a popular movement favoring genocide of Mormons for well over a century but @EvanMcMullin is working to change that.” Another tweet threatened a “Mormoncaust” if McMullin “succeeds and throws the election to Hillary.”

As another Twitter user replied, “This does not strike me as the argument that will finally win over Mormons for Trump.”

The disdain for McMullin and Mormons shown by Trump and his supporters has undoubtedly helped fuel the McMullin campaign. When Trump complained about “this character that's running all over the state … going from coffee shop to coffee shop,” McMullin’s reply shed light on Trump’s problem.

“The funny thing is a lot of people in Utah are Mormons,” McMullin said on Politico, “they don't drink coffee. So, we've done zero campaigning in coffee shops. If Donald Trump were truly interested in the state and in the voters, he might know a thing or two about that.”

Originally published on The Resurgent

Glenn Beck says rejecting Trump is 'moral, ethical choice'

In a shocking post to Facebook, conservative author and radio host Glenn Beck said that not voting for Hillary is a “moral, ethical choice” for Republicans. Beck stopped short of calling on Republicans to vote for Clinton, but did call on Trump to step down in the post dated October 8.

“It is not acceptable to ask a moral, dignified man to cast his vote to help elect an immoral man who is absent decency or dignity,” Beck wrote. “If the consequence of standing against Trump and for principles is indeed the election of Hillary Clinton, so be it. At least it is a moral, ethical choice.”

Beck pointed out that, if Hillary becomes president, her agenda and her nominees can be blocked if the Republican Party retains control of the Senate and House of Representatives. In contrast, many of Donald Trump’s possible actions, such as torpedoing NAFTA and not honoring NATO defense commitments, could not be blocked by Congress. The Constitution gives the president control of the military and the president traditionally sets the tone on foreign policy.

“The alternative,” a Trump presidency, “does not offer a moral person the same opportunity,” Beck continues. “If one helps to elect an immoral man to the highest office, then one is merely validating his immorality, lewdness, and depravity.”

Glenn Beck is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Members of the Mormon Church have led the Republican revolt against Donald Trump. Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah) and other members of the Utah Republican delegation were among the first to repudiate Trump after release of the lewd video on Friday.

Beck did not endorse Hillary Clinton in the Facebook post. He also did not say who he plans to vote for or if he plans to vote at all. It is possible that Beck will support Utah independent conservative Evan McMullin. McMullin was previously endorsed by fellow talk show host, Erick Erickson.

“Trump stepping down does not guarantee a Clinton win,” Beck said, “but it does guarantee that the Republican party still stands for something, still allows its members to maintain their [sic] own self-respect and that it still has a future.”

Originally published on  The Resurgent

Why do Christians (still) rally around Trump?

As Donald Trump plummets in the polls like a brick dropped from the Trump Tower, I have to wonder why Christians are rallying to his defense while Mormons are willing to stand up to him. After the release of Trump’s sex tape last Friday, Utah’s Republican delegation to Congress was quick to denounce the party nominee and withdraw their endorsements. As a Southern Baptist, I expected many evangelical Christians to follow suit. I was wrong.

According to Christianity Today, only one Christian leader repudiated Trump. Instead, many evangelicals have rallied to defend Trump. Dr. James Dobson denounced Trump’s comments and then quickly pivoted to attack Hillary Clinton on abortion and religious liberty, as did Ralph Reed. Franklin Graham said that Trump’s comments “cannot be defended” and does not endorse any candidate, but said that “the most important issue of this election is the Supreme Court.” Sam Rodriguez, head of the National Hispanic Leadership Conference said that God uses “broken people to accomplish great things.”

Many Christians choose to emphasize God’s forgiveness. What they forget in their rush to forgive Trump is that forgiveness requires repentance (Luke 17:3). Has Donald Trump repented? There is no sign that he has. Last year, Trump was unclear on whether he had ever asked for forgiveness and said that he tried “not to make mistakes where I have to ask for forgiveness” according to the Christian Post. The Bible says that all, including Trump, have sinned (Romans 3:23). When asked about repentance, he said, “I think repenting is terrific.”

I shouldn’t be surprised that Christians are excusing Trump’s behavior. They’ve been doing it for the past year. Most of the discussions about Trump’s sex tape discuss it in a vacuum, as if it is the one blemish on an otherwise spotless record. In reality, I realized long before the revelations of the “Access Hollywood” tape that Trump’s career had been a long history of corruption and lies. He had bragged about cheating on his wife. He had allegedly committed fraud with Trump University. He had boasted in the Republican primary about paying elected officials for favors. Trump was vulgar, insulting and a fountain of false statements. Christians loved him.

Franklin Graham reportedly compared Trump to Moses and David and said that he was better than the alternative. Jerry Falwell, Jr. endorsed Trump over all other Republican candidates last January. Christians compared Trump to the Biblical king, Nebuchadnezzar and pointed out that God used ungodly men to accomplish his will. Eric Metaxas, the author of a biography of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a German Christian martyr who died resisting Hitler, said in Christian Post that “sometimes you have to hold your nose and vote for the person who is going to do the least damage or who is going to pull you back from the brink.”

My neighbor, Carter, had a large “Veterans for Trump” sign in his living room and gushed, “I think we need a successful businessman.” Jay, one of my coworkers and a devout Christian, would watch Trump press conferences and chortle, “I love this guy.”

To be fair, not all Christians loved Trump. There were a few who stood on principle and told the truth about the “truth-teller.” Two Southern Baptists, Russell Moore and Albert Mohler, were among the few who spoke out against Trump early on. The Religion News Service lists more, such as Max Lucado and Erick Erickson. Rep. Reid Ribble (R-Wisc.) penned “the Evangelical Case Against Donald Trump” last February.

In a supremely ironic incident, Mark DeMoss, a board member at Liberty University, was forced to resign after criticizing Donald Trump’s speech there. I had thought that religious liberty and the freedom to speak your mind were major reasons that Christians supported Trump. Those liberties apparently do not extend to opponents of Trump, at least at Liberty University.

Most of my Christian friends who support Trump seem to do so for three reasons. First, is the Supreme Court. Never mind that Trump backed away from the list of conservative jurists that he promised to use to fill court vacancies. Second, is his purported pro-life platform. Never mind that Trump was the only Republican candidate who supported Planned Parenthood throughout most of the primary, only changing his mind last month. Third, is religious liberty. Never mind that Trump refused to support the First Amendment Defense Act and that he seems disagree with Christians on gay rights. Trump’s commitment to religious liberty seems to not extend past allowing churches to be politically active. Fourth, when all other defenses fail, Trump is “not Hillary.”

In fact, Trump is so “not Hillary” that his supporters seem willing to excuse any sin on that basis. I have watched friends and colleagues that I knew and respected reluctantly board “the Trump Train.” Often, when they do, it’s like “Invasion of the Body Snatchers.” Once they commit to Trump, all moral concerns fail. No matter what Trump does, it’s all about defeating Hillary because no one is worse than Hillary.

They quickly fall into the moral equivalence trap. They criticize Hillary’s lies, but never mention Trump’s. The condemn Bill Clinton’s behavior, but make excuses for Trump’s. They argue against Hillary’s liberalism, but dismiss Trump’s. One friend, Martin, dismisses Trump’s outlandish and insulting comments as saying “silly things.” Any criticism of Trump leads to the accusation that I must be a closet Hillary supporter and a liberal. They are no longer the people that I had known and respected, using logical fallacies in an attempt to defend the indefensible.

But I still wonder why Mormons, who share many moral beliefs with Christians, are much more outspoken against Donald Trump. It may be because Trump poisoned the well against Mormons during the primary. The socially conservative sect is at odds with Trump’s crude, profane, materialistic lifestyle. As Religion News Service points out, most Mormons are also not anti-immigrant, their forebears having been forced to flee other parts of the country for their religious beliefs. When Trump proposed his Muslim ban, the politically neutral LDS Church responded with a statement on religious freedom. Trump also has made statements that Mormons consider insulting.

While Trump was alienating Mormons, he was pandering to Christians. Early on, he made the promise that people could say “Merry Christmas” instead of “Happy Holidays” if he was elected. But haven’t we always? Buzzfeed revealed in August that Trump needed prepping from his handlers to know how to answer questions about Christianity and social conservatism. An early tipoff of his insincerity was his “Two Corinthians” flub. Trump blamed Family Research Council Tony Perkins for his gaffe according to CNN.

If Donald Trump is biblically illiterate so are most Americans. That is another reason Christians have been slow to offer opposition. A recent survey by Lifeway found that most Americans believe the Bible, they just don’t know what it says. The survey found that, as a whole, evangelical Christians actually knew less about Christian beliefs than Americans at large.

If Christians were reading their Bibles, they might know that Paul commanded them “not to associate with sexually immoral people” (1 Corinthians 5:9) and that “bad company corrupts good character” (1 Corinthians 15:33). As Donald Trump bellowed, “I alone can fix it” at the Republican National Convention, they might have thought about Jesus’ warning that “false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect” (Matthew 24:24).

One bright spot is that evangelical women seem to be waking up. The Christian Post reports that author Beth Moore and Chelsen Vicari, Evangelical Action Director at the Institute of Religion, have both condemned Trump’s lewd remarks.

In another Christian Post piece, Julie Roys, a host for the Moody Radio Network, says, “I honestly don't know what makes me more sick. Listening to Trump brag about groping women or listening to my fellow evangelicals defend him.” She also calls the prospect of Hillary Clinton “a disaster of historic proportions.”

“Donald Trump may do less damage to the country than Hillary,” Roys wrote, “but he's done far worse damage to the evangelical church than anyone in recent history. And let's remember, the church — not politics — is the only real hope of reforming the character of this nation and saving it from destruction. That's why the witness of the church is simply not worth trading for a political victory.”

Roys is right. Trump has revealed many Christians to be moral hypocrites. This has hurt their standing in their communities. On a business trip to Atlantic City last spring, my friend Rob, who is an atheist, gleefully snapped pictures of the Trump Taj Mahal. He said that he wanted to use the photos to show Christians who they were campaigning for. The character of many Christians will remain tarnished long after the election is over.

Roys acknowledges the difference between a reluctant vote for Trump and actively making excuses for him. “If you feel you must vote for him to prevent a Clinton presidency, then go ahead, plug your nose and vote,” she writes. “But please, don't argue like Ralph Reed of the Faith and Freedom Coalition that ‘a 10-year-old tape of a private conversation’ should ‘rank low’ on our "hierarchy of concerns.”

After the election, when the smoke clears and the Trump supporters wake up to the hangover of four years of Hillary Clinton, elected because of their unfaltering support for an extremely flawed, dishonest candidate, maybe Christian Trumpers will realize what they have wrought. Their defense of Trump’s immoral behavior has degraded the whole culture and done serious damage to American Christianity. The church has become hot for politics and “lukewarm” on Jesus and morality. It may be time for a rebuke.

Originally published on The Resurgent

The GOP’s Mormon question

(Salt Lake City, Ut.) A mostly unspoken reason for Mitt Romney’s failure to break away from the pack in the Republican presidential primary may be his Mormon faith. Beyond the famous Mormon Tabernacle choir, the fact that Mormons once practiced polygamy, and the internet picture of a voluptuous model wearing a shirt bearing the words “I can’t, I’m Mormon,” most voters in Georgia and around the country are probably unfamiliar with the Mormon religion. According to the Association of Religious Data Archives, only about five percent of Georgians are Mormon. The Pew Religious Landscape Survey indicates that nationally the percentage of Mormons is even lower at less than two percent.

Briefly, the official name of the Mormon Church is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The church got its start in New York around 1820 when Joseph Smith said that God told him that all religions were wrong. As he recounted in his testimony, Smith tells of heavenly visions and visits by angels over the next few years. Smith said that in 1823 a resurrected prophet named Moroni directed him to a collection of buried golden plates that contained the writings of early American writings of Jesus. Smith recovered and translated the writings on the golden plates and published them in 1830 as “the Book of Mormon,” named for one of the prophets who compiled the writings.

Mormons believe that the Book of Mormon contains descriptions of an ancient Israelite immigration to America and Jesus Christ’s visit there. In addition to the Bible and the Book of Mormon, the LDS Church has two other sacred texts. The Doctrine and Covenants is a collection of Joseph Smith’s prophetic writings and the Pearl of Great Price contains Joseph Smith’s recreations of lost Biblical texts and a record of Abraham’s life in Egypt, which Smith allegedly translated from an ancient papyrus.

Smith started the church in Ohio, and eventually moved his followers to Missouri and then to Illinois. According to HistoryofMormonism.com, Smith was killed by a mob in Carthage, Il. in 1844. After Smith’s death, Brigham Young led the Mormons to Utah where they established a theocratic settlement.

Because of Mormonism’s unique history, many mainstream Christians do not consider Mormons to be Christian and some even call it a cult. Unlike the Bible, much of which is supported by archaeological finds, the Book of Mormon’s history is vastly different from archaeological evidence. There is no physical evidence that supports the idea of ancient Israelites in the Americas and, because Smith returned them to Moroni after he had translated them, the golden plates cannot be examined. Further, the LDS Church believes in “open canon.”

As History of Mormonism.com puts it, “Church leaders called General Authorities are also considered to speak the word of God in their callings. All these sacred words are considered to be scripture as well, and are treated as such.” At various times, this has allowed leaders of the church to reverse traditional church doctrines in short order such as the declaration in 1890 that prohibited polygamy and a more recent declaration in 1978 that permitted “all worthy male members of the Church may be ordained to the priesthood without regard for race or color.” Previously, the church had taught that one of the Israelite tribes that immigrated to America was punished with a “skin of blackness” for their disobedience (2 Nephi 5:21). Open canon is sharply different from the evangelical doctrine of Biblical inerrancy.

There are other important theological differences as well. The LDS Church teaches that believers will be made “equal in power, might and dominion” to Jesus and God, essentially becoming gods themselves, in the afterlife. With respect to the virgin birth, the official Mormon position is that Mary’s conception of Jesus was supernatural, but critics point to writings by Mormon leaders that say that Jesus was conceived naturally. Where mainstream Christians believe that hell is a place of everlasting torment, Mormons believe that, for most people, hell is a temporary “spirit prison” where they will have a second chance to repent. Along these lines, Mormons believe that the dead can be baptized vicariously, while mainstream Christians reject this doctrine. The Southern Baptist Convention created a video, “the Mormon Puzzle,” that addresses many of the differences between the LDS and other Christian churches. Many Mormons believe that this video portrays them unfairly.

Conversely, Mormons do share many values with mainstream Christians. These include patriotism, a strong sense of morality, and a belief in the importance of families. Like most Christians, Mormons tend to oppose abortion and same-sex marriage. This often places Mormons in the Republican camp with other religious conservatives. Utah is a reliably Republican state.

While there are definite theological differences, the question is how much they will (or should) matter in the presidential race. Article VI of the Constitution prohibits a religious test for any public office so Romney’s (or Jon Huntsman’s) religion cannot officially be considered. Unofficially, Americans have the right to vote for whoever they want for whatever reasons they choose. Polls by ChristianPost.com and the Salt Lake Tribune indicate that a strong majority of Americans (and a slight majority of Democrats) prefer a Christian president. Almost half of the respondents in the Tribune poll either did not believe or were unsure that Mormons were Christian. On the other hand, one in five respondents to the Christian Post poll still believe that President Obama is a Muslim.

Voters in the Republican primary will have to weigh Romney’s Mormon religion against a number of other factors. Romney has consistently performed better against Obama than the other GOP candidates in polls showing prospective matchups for the general election. Further, Romney’s platform, which includes promises to repeal Obamacare and keep taxes low, is more in line with the beliefs of most Republicans and Americans than that of President Obama.

Even though he is a Christian, President Obama’s policies have often angered Christians. There have been attacks on the freedom of religion and freedom of conscience, support for abortion and same-sex marriage, and a general insensitivity to religious believers such as omitting “by their Creator” when quoting the Declaration of Independence and not mentioning God in his Thanksgiving address.

In a close election, even a few votes swayed or not cast by Romney’s religion could return President Obama to the White House. Voters concerned about his Mormonism will have to decide whether to support a conservative Mormon or a nominal Christian whose administration is largely secular and far to the left of the American mainstream.

This article was first published on Examiner.com:

http://www.examiner.com/elections-2012-in-atlanta/the-gop-s-mormon-question

Meet the candidates: Mitt Romney

Romney (Jessica Rinaldi/Wikimedia Commons)

Voters who followed the 2008 presidential election will probably be familiar with Mitt Romney.  Romney is a conservative businessman who ran a three-way race with Mike Huckabee and John McCain for the Republican nomination before finally being defeated by John McCain.  Many voters probably remember Romney best for the controversy over his Mormon religion.

Willard Mitt Romney was born in Detroit on March 12, 1947.  His father was a CEO of American Motors and a three-term governor of Michigan.  His father ran unsuccessfully against Richard Nixon for the GOP nomination for president in 1968.  Mitt graduated from an elite private school and then attended Stanford University in the midst of the turbulent ‘60s.  At Stanford he was known as a clean cut student and at one point was part of a counter-protest to a sit-in against the draft.  After a year at Stanford, he became a Mormon missionary to France for two and a half years.

When Romney returned to the U.S., he enrolled in Brigham Young and married Anne Davis, who he had begun dating before he moved to France.  He graduated from Brigham Young with a B.A. in English in 1971.  He also earned a joint Juris Doctor/MBA from Harvard in 1975.  While in college and the mission field, Romney received deferments from the draft.  When he graduated, he was not drafted due to a high number.

Romney’s first job was with Boston Consulting Group as a management consultant.  He later became a highly successful management consultant for Bain and Company.  Romney became Bain’s vice president in 1978.  In 1983, Romney headed up Bain Capital, a new venture capital firm.  Bain Capital later focused on buyouts of other companies, which would then be rehabilitated using Bain’s management consulting methods.  Romney earned a reputation for being frugal, cautious and moral.  He once opted out of a deal involving a movie studio because they produced R-rated films.  In 1990, he returned to Bain and Company, the consulting firm, to save the company from bankruptcy.  He drew a salary of one dollar while restructuring the company over the next year. 

In 1994, Romney challenged the re-election of Democratic Senator Ted Kennedy.  Romney won the Republican nomination in a landslide, but lost to Kennedy by 58-41 percent.  This was partly due to Kennedy’s ads that questioned Romney’s flip-flops on issues and treatment of workers at companies that Bain owned. 

Romney is well known for managing the 2002 Olympic Games in Salt Lake City.  When he took the helm of the organizing committee, there was a $379 million deficit.  Under Romney, the games turned a profit and were widely considered to be one of the most successful Olympics in U.S. history.

In 2002, Romney was elected governor of Massachusetts.  Romney cut spending, closed tax loopholes and increased fees to turn a billion dollar deficit into surplus.  He is most remembered, however, for presiding over the enactment of Massachusetts’ universal health care law, known informally as “Romneycare.”  The law is very similar to the Affordable Care Act, “Obamacare,” and contains an individual mandate to buy health insurance and fines for those who do not. 

In 2008, Romney competed in the Republican presidential primaries.  After he failed to win the nomination, he endorsed fellow Republican John McCain and vigorously campaigned for him.  In Georgia, Romney finished third with six percent of the vote.  Mike Huckabee finished first with 34 percent followed by John McCain with 32 percent.  After the election, he founded the Free and Strong America PAC to raise money for Republican candidates.  Romney has also written two books.

One of the largest drawbacks for Romney in the 2012 campaign will undoubtedly be his connection with an Obama-like health care reform law.  The Wall St. Journal reports that already Massachusetts is increasing fines and taxes in a desperate attempt to keep the program solvent as its costs skyrocket.  According to the article, current governor Deval Patrick is considering spending caps as well as excluding coverage for certain services. NPR notes that the large increase in people with health insurance in Massachusetts has led to a doctor shortage where many doctors are not accepting new patients.  Five years after the reform law passed, Massachusetts is still the second most expensive state for health care (just behind Maine) according to the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Council.  An April 2011 poll shows that 49 percent of respondents don’t believe that Romney’s reform is working.

Romney recently attempted to defend his Massachusetts law in a major speech and an op-ed letter to the Wall St. Journal while at the same time attacking President Obama’s version.  An important distinction is that the individual mandate is widely believed to be unconstitutional under the commerce clause of the federal Constitution.  Many state constitutions may permit such a mandate.  Voters, however, may not like such an expansion of government power even if it is legal.  The bottom line is that the reform is not working. His record on health care reform is the biggest problem for Romney to overcome. 

Many voters might also be leery of Romney’s record of flip-flops.  In particular, Romney is known for having reversed his position on abortion.  As a candidate for governor in 2002, Romney said in a televised debate that he would “preserve and protect a woman’s right to choose [abortion].”  By 2007, prior to his presidential campaign, Romney claimed that he had come to see abortion as immoral.  A sister of Romney’s brother-in-law died in an illegal abortion in the 1960s.  Charges of past flip-flops make it difficult for Romney to distance himself from his health care reform record without looking uncertain of himself.

Another Romney scandal is his involvement with Damon Corp., a company that plead guilty to defrauding the government.  Romney sat on the board of directors while the fraud was taking place, but none of the directors have ever been implicated.  Romney claimed to have asked Bain’s lawyers to investigate the illegal activity and helped to correct it, but court records indicate that the fraud continued until after Bain sold Damon according to Deseret News.

More recently, in February 2010, Romney was involved in an air-rage incident with Sky Blu, a rapper with LMFAO.  The two were on a flight from Vancouver to Los Angeles when Romney asked Sky Blu to raise his seat back and a fight resulted.  Sky Blu claimed in a video that Romney grabbed his shoulder and he then tried to punch Romney in self-defense.  The plane returned to Vancouver where Sky Blu was arrested and removed.     

Mitt Romney is currently the frontrunner among the GOP candidates.  A recent Gallup poll (after the departures of Huckabee and Trump) puts him at seventeen percent, two points ahead of Sarah Palin.  If Palin does not run, Romney would move up to nineteen percent.  This would give him a comfortable seven point lead over Newt Gingrich, his nearest rival.  Of course, Romney has been disappointed before.  He was widely considered to be the likely GOP candidate in 2008, only to be confounded by McCain and Huckabee.  

http://www.examiner.com/elections-2012-in-atlanta/meet-the-candidates-mitt-romney">