Mitt Romney's speech

I know -- I don't like it when nobodies write speeches they think will win an election. No speech will win an election -- there has to be more. But if a candidate doesn't establish the beliefs and ideas that move voters from calculation to committment, then there's no deep level support. Below is an approximation of what Romney would have to convey to voters to change this election, IMHO. Ron Paul has said most of this and it just hasn't turned into votes, but Paul is a different character with a different history.

Romney's speech:

To say America is at a crossroads is empty rhetoric, as is the claim we need a small, efficient government, if it ends with the claim. All candidates say these things, election after election -- however, the system grinds on, churning out job-killing regulations and costly programs which push us further to the brink of financial collapse.

I've criticized President Obama harshly, as have the other GOP candidates, and this criticism is deserved in my estimation, but President Obama is a symptom of our problem. Our fundamental problems in America run deep, and interventionist, statist government is one of the major causees of our fundamental problems. Republicans hardly did better from 2000 to 2008. Spending rose, the system was not reformed and government programs added greatly to the national debt. 

9/11 was a tragic occurence, and to second guess the immediate decisions made is unwise, but after a decade of war in the mideast we are far past a reasonable and appropriate military response to that horrible attack on America. Yes, we are at a crossroads, but what will we do to set America on the right course?

We must stop the incessant government interventions in our economy. I'm not proposing that corporations should run roughshod over the American people. A free market is not a license for wealthy individuals in business to rig the economic game and enjoy protections from competition. A free market is not about what benefits are given to business -- a free market is an environment in which free people make economic choices unhampered by government meddlers, as long as what's chosen doesn't violate the rights of other free choosers. One of the first actions I will take as President is to do everything within my power to stop all corporate welfare and unfair protections from competition, whether these protection are in the tax code or regulations. Ending crony capitalism will become a top priority in my administration. I will work to reform the tax code so that everyone understands the taxes they pay and everyone pays what is owed. I will reduce the overall tax burden, not to favor rich campaign contributors, but to allow all American to keep more of the money they make, so they can spend that money as they wish to spend it. Big Brother will become the servant of the people it was designed to be. 

But in order to reduce the overall tax burden, we must first reform our government system which is now set on automatic to spend with very little oversight and rationale. From military spending to the welfare state I will uncover waste, fraud and abuse, and I won't dismiss the savings as too puny to bother with -- I will stop all waste, fraud and abuse. We will begin a national debate on entitlements, looking at every possible solution we can imagine to stop this juggernaut of government spending which will break the bank if we don't act with decisiveness and boldness. All solutions will be considered from private sector solutions to Paul Ryan's plan to Simpson-Bowles until we've found the most reasonable, fair and truly effective solutions. We can not keep pushing the debt to future taxpayers -- we must tackle this problem with courage and do what's necessary. Economic growth is the main solution, because no matter how much we cut or reform, if America does not create new wealth, then no solution is sufficient. 

I also want to develope a foreign policy for the 21st century. After 9/11, it was understandable that our nation wanted a shocking response that properly punished the perpetrators and to build a defense against any future attacks. We've done what we can do in the mideast. As Presdient, I will bring the troops home, and we will reassess every military base in operation around the world. It's past time for countries who can defend themselves to take up that responsibility. I will call for an audit of all military spending, and I will make sure that our spending is enough to gaurantee that no nation in the world will even dream of attacking us, but I will cut the remainder of the spending that's not needed. I will send a message to the world that we want peace, that we desire to trade in peace and that we're open to cultural exchange and all forms of cooperation which are mutually beneficial, but if any country attacks us, we'll severely punish the attackers, and we won't linger to nation build. We will also end all aid to dictators -- no more will America prop up tyrants who oppress and abuse the people of the nations they lord over.

One way to end our dysfuntional relationship with the mideast is to liberate our market to meet our own energy needs. We will inform all countries in the mideast that peace is our goal, and we will not intervene in their affairs as long as they pose no threat to our security. To strengthen our security at home we will begin producing our own energy.

I will do everything within my power to make America the investment magnet of the world. We will work to end all regulations and taxes which prevent businesses at home from succeeding at home and prevent foreign investors from doing business here. We'll search for trading agreements that connect us with other nations in peace, progress and prosperity. We'll be open with the world in all ways positive that lead to human flourishing. The 21st century can be the time when humans advance even further from world war and international conflict, with America transitioning from military management and policing to economic competition and mutually beneficial cooperation.

The internet has connected people from around the world in ways that couldn't be imagined just a short while ago, and we should use the power of communication to promote understanding and the accumulation of knowledge. The world's people get along just fine -- it's the States which create conflict and battle for power. There's enough in the world to go around, if we stop doing all the wrong things which benefit only a few while the many suffer. America is a compassionate and charitable nation, and we'll always be as long as we are productive and prosperous. There's nothing inherently wrong with prosperity -- it's only when States fight to keep others down in order to amass more and more with no greater vision of world peace and economic growth that the myopic pursuits hurt us all. I dream of an America in the forefront of nations who work together toward economic progress, cultural enrichment, happiness, individual rights, lack of hunger and disease and liberty. We've barely tapped the human power in the world. Let's set the example in the 21st century here in America. 

Some will say that these ideas are too general, and that it's the specifics that matter, but we can't agree on specifics until we've agreed on direction. Most Americans want peace -- yes, there are some who love military adventurism and the idea of America as a military giant pushing it's weight around the world, but most Americans want peace. Most Americans want economic growth and prosperity -- yes, there are those who are anticapitalist and wish to slow economic growth and production, but most Americans want growth and prosperity. Most Americans want a clean, healthy environment -- yes, there are those who don't care and would pollute regardless how it affects others, but most Americans want a clean environment. I'm not proposing mindless compromise and maintenance of the status quo. I'm proposing that we first agree on our common goals: equal opportunity, the end of crony capitalism, peaceful, free trade, strong national defense, elimination of waste fraud and abuse, fiscal sanity, a clean environment, protection of individual rights. After we agree on direction and realize we all want basically the same things, then we can work on specifics and find compromise when there's conflict over means.

We should at least agree on the direction in which we want to head as a country. We need vision, a challenge. The era of Big Government, as Bill Clinton said, is over, but we have yet to begin something new. It's time to get started.