Analysis: Republican Response to the State of the Union

Representing the Republican minority, Governor Mitt Romney (R-MA) straddled a line of party strength and reaching over party lines. Romney promised to keep conservative values on the forefront, highlighting free choice, personal responsibility and private medicine. While President Barak Obama wants to increase spending in hopes of cutting future costs and stimulating the economy, Romney opposes more federal spending. Instead Romney resides in his conservative ideals and remains optimistic that limiting government will give the American people the chance to resurrect the economy. 

As a member of the minority party, Romney must promote the value of his ideas over the other party but dually recognize the strength in numbers of the Democrats. Brandishing a letter signed by every Republican senator pledging to stall all legislation require a super majority, Romney told Democrats that his party would not be steamrolled.

He goes on to say, “Deomcrats on the Finance Committee have been cooperative; Environment and Public Works Committee have not. So either the left hand doesn’t know what the far left hand is doing or there is a concerted effort to stymie opposition.” These dynamics will likely shape subsequent hearings.

Ironically Romney’s politics should make it harder to cooperative with a finance committee that supports government spending and non-privatized health care. Republicans and Democrats both seem to want to come together on environmental issues. Romney ranks energy independence as a top priority and supports the current proposal before the Environment and Public Works Committee. Despite Romney’s strong stance, he leaves room for bipartisanship.

Romney points to his 2003 health care plan, which includes government spending and involvement, even though he strongly supports limited government. He states, “Even though the final bill in Massachusetts and its implementation aren’t exactly the way I wanted, the plan is a good model.” Moving forward, Republicans will likely face tensions with the Democratic majority on traditional issues like government spending, health care policies and abortion laws. If Romney can follow his own advice and use his plan as a model of compromise and bi-partisanship, Romney and the Republicans should be able to win some political battles as long as they are willing to compromise on others.