Изучение и описание предвыборного дискурса

And so as proud as I am of what we've already accomplished, I am that much more determined to make sure that over the next five years we complete the task that we set out, which was to create a government that is responsive to not just people who are hurting now, but also responsive to future generations; that we're able to reduce our deficit in a responsible way, in a balanced way; that we're able to make sure our school system is working for every child and not just some children; that we implement health care reform so that we start reducing costs for families and for businesses and for the federal government, but also improve quality and make sure that nobody out there is going bankrupt just because somebody in their family is getting sick.

We've got to still implement immigration reform -- a big, unfinished piece of business -- because we're a nation of laws and a nation of immigrants, and we should be able to reconcile those two imperatives and make sure that we've got a system that works to grow our economy and improve our economy, and doesn't leave people in a second-class status in this United States of America.

We still don't have an energy policy that is suitable for the needs of the future. And although we've made enormous progress, I think people forget, for example, that we doubled fuel efficiency standards on cars and trucks just in the last year, which if it had been in legislative form would have probably been the most significant piece of environmental legislation in the last 30 years. A lot of people don't know it. And despite some of those gains we still are way too dependent on imported oil, and we still haven't done everything we can to transition to a clean energy economy.

In foreign policy, we're ending the war in Iraq and we're transitioning out of Afghanistan. But I didn't run for office only to end a war or only to make sure that we got bin Laden. We also want to make sure that we're creating opportunity all around the world; that we have a positive, proactive agenda that is helping alleviate poverty and helping to provide education, and helping to make sure that the Arab Spring is one that turns positive and that gives more people opportunity.

So across the board we've just got a lot more work to do. And the only way we're going to be able to accomplish it is if we've got folks like you as energized, as enthusiastic, as committed as so many of you were in 2008. Because what's holding us back right now are not technical questions. I mean, there are some big technical issues surrounding how do you spur on clean energy, how do we make sure that our manufacturing base is strong here in the United States, and we are at the cutting edge of those technologies that are going to help us win the race for the future.

But those are solvable problems. The challenge we have right now is fixing our politics and making sure that we've got the kind of politics and governance here in Washington which is responsive to the needs of people, not the needs of special interests; that brings out the best in us and not the worst in us.

And that is probably the biggest piece of business that remains unfinished. That's probably the area where we've been most stymied over the last three years. My legislative record, our administration record I'll put up against any President in their first term. But in terms of changing the culture in Washington, the fever has not broken yet. Not everybody has gotten the word yet -- (laughter) -- that this is not how the American people want their government to operate.

They want common sense. They want responsiveness. They want a focus on the future and the long term. They want compromise where that's appropriate. But they also want to make sure that their leaders stand on principle where needed and are willing to make the tough calls and do the difficult things that will help us ensure that the America that we pass onto our kids and our grandkids is better than the one that we inherited.

And that I think is the biggest challenge. And over the next year we are going to be wrestling with what are two fundamentally different visions of where we need to take the country and where we need to take our politics. And I'm confident that the American people prefer our vision. But we're going to have to communicate that effectively, and to do that I'm going to need you.

So I just -- as I was thinking about riding over here, I was thinking about a group of veterans that I met with today. We made a big announcement about initiatives that are going to help veterans get hired. The unemployment rate for post-9/11 veterans is actually higher than the general population, and that's something that I intend to fix. But it reminded me of something that Michelle and I have both experienced.

The biggest honor of my job is serving as Commander-in-Chief. And I get the chance to interact a lot with people who are based all around the world; Michelle interacts with military families here, throughout the country. The kind of sacrifices they're making on behalf of their country, the kind of commitment and discipline, and putting country ahead of self-interest, is unbelievable.

And for that same spirit to be captured and to be channeled, and to be the animating spirit of Washington -- that should be our goal. Because if we do that, there's no problem we can't solve. There's no challenge we can't meet. I am absolutely convinced of that.

And so I've said before that this campaign probably won't be as sexy as the first one. It'll be tight. It'll be tough. But I also want to remind people who were on the first campaign, there's been a lot of revisionist history that says how perfect that first one was. (Laughter.) It didn't feel like that when we were in the middle of it. (Laughter.) And that's part of our democracy. It's always a little messy, and it's always tough. But it's also worth it when it's done right.

And if you're willing to join me on this journey I think at the end of the day you'll see that we're actually able to deliver the kind of change that you can believe in.

So thank you very much, everybody. Thank you. (Applause.)

Приложение 6

Mitt Romney Remarks in St. Louis, Missouri: "A Champion For Free Enterprise"

June 7, 2012

Thank you. It is great to be here.

We launched this campaign a little over a year ago. It's been a remarkable journey. I've traveled across this great country and had the privilege to visit with Americans from every walk of life. As those of the traveling press corps can attest, we've brought our campaign to every kind of business imaginable, from factory floors to lumber yards to warehouses of every shape and size.

But whatever the business, everywhere I go, I hear frustration and disappointment in the lack of economic progress of the past three and a half years. Americans are tired of being tired. They're tired of working harder for less and now for the first time, more Americans are starting to think our future might not be as bright as our past. That lack of faith in the future is a bridge to despair that we cannot cross.

An America that does not believe that tomorrow and tomorrow's tomorrow will be better is not the America we know and love.

I've spoken often of the President's failures of policy. From the stimulus bill that gave us Solyndra but left us with record unemployment, to the job-crushing over-regulation of the EPA, to the smothering economic effects of Obamacare, this President's misguided policies have been muddled, confused and simply ineffective. When you look around at America's economy, three and half years into this presidency, it's painfully obvious that this inexperienced President was simply not up to the task of solving a great economic crisis.

But today I want to speak to the road ahead and why I believe the disappointments of the past years have been a breach of faith with the American people.

America is rightly heralded as the greatest experiment in self-governance in world history. We are all here today because of a startling conviction that free individuals could join together to decide their fate and that more freedom made us all stronger.

Our example - and commitment - to freedom has changed the world. But along with the genius of our Declaration of Independence, our Constitution, and our Bill of Rights, is the equal genius of our economic system. Our Founding Fathers endeavored to create a moral and just society like no other in history, and out of that grew a moral and just economic system the likes of which the world had never seen. Our freedom, what it means to be an American, has been defined and sustained by the liberating power of the free enterprise system.

That same system has helped lift more people out of poverty across the globe than any government program or competing economic system. The success of America's free enterprise system has been a bright beacon of freedom for the world. It has signaled to oppressed people to rise up against their oppressors, and given hope to the once hopeless.

It is called the Free Enterprise System because we are both free to engage in enterprises and through those enterprises we ensure our freedom.

But sadly, it has become clear that this President simply doesn't understand or appreciate these fundamental truths of our system. Over the last three and a half years, record numbers of Americans have lost their jobs or simply disappeared from the work force. Record numbers of Americans are living in poverty today - over 46 million of our fellow Americans are living below the poverty line.

This is not just a failure of policy; it is a moral failure of tragic proportions. Our government has an absolute moral commitment to help every American help themselves and today, that fundamental commitment has been broken.

I do not believe this has been done with evil intent or ill will. But for a family watching their house being sold at foreclosure, or the family that is forced to spend their kid's college savings just to make ends meet, the results are just as devastating.

These are not statistics, these are our fellow Americans. As your President, starting on Day One, I will do everything in my power to end these days of drift and disappointment. There is something fundamentally wrong when there are over 23 million Americans who are unemployed, underemployed, or have stopped looking for work, and yet the President tells us he's doing a great job.

I will not be that President of deception and doubt. I will lead us to a better place.

For three and a half years, President Obama has expanded government instead of empowering the American people. He's put us deeper into debt. He's slowed the recovery and harmed our economy. And he has attacked the cornerstone of American prosperity: our economic freedom.

Today, government at all levels consumes 37 percent of the total economy or G.D.P. If Obamacare is allowed to stand, government will reach half of the American economy. And through the increasing controls government has imposed on industries like energy, financial services and automobiles, it will soon effectively control the majority of our economic activity.

One must ask whether we will still be a free enterprise nation and whether we will still have economic freedom. America is on the cusp of having a government-run economy. President Obama is transforming America into something very different than the land of the free and the land of opportunity.

We know where that transformation leads. There are other nations that have chosen that path. It leads to chronic high unemployment, crushing debt, and stagnant wages.

I don't want to transform America; I want to restore the values of economic freedom.

So for every government-spending proposal, I will ask the following question: "Is this program so important that it is worth borrowing more money from China to pay for it?" With our nation facing 16 trillion dollars in debt, most times the answer will be an easy and unqualified "no." We've seen how fast our debt can grow. It's time to see how fast our economy can grow, and the first step is spending discipline.

Instead of throwing more borrowed money at bad ideas, I will lower tax rates, simplify the tax code, and get the American economy running at full strength.

Under President Obama, a single, massive law has spread so much uncertainty across the economy, especially to the small companies that employ about half of America's workers and create most of our new jobs. They have no idea how many more taxes and regulations are coming. And they sense from Washington an outright hostility toward what they do and what they hope to achieve.

So, as president, I will begin with an equally big dose of certainty across our economy: By granting waivers to all fifty states, I will start the process of repealing Obamacare on Day One.

In a free-enterprise system, we don't measure our success in equal outcomes, but instead in how well we preserve and promote the equality of opportunity. And this system has resulted in unrivaled prosperity and made America the greatest nation in history.

President Obama's vision is very different - and deeply flawed. There is nothing fair about a government that favors political connections over honest competition and takes away your right to earn your own success. And there is nothing morally right about trying to turn government dependence into a substitute for the dignity of work.

Where my vision believes in the ingenuity of the American people, his vision trusts the wisdom of political appointees and boards, commissions and czars. It's one in which ordinary Americans must get permission from people in Washington before they can buy, build, invest or hire.

It's a world of federal mandates and waivers, tax credits and subsidies, federal grants and loan guarantees. It's an economy where a company's lobbyists will be more important than its engineers, and federal compliance lawyers will outnumber patent lawyers.

Business models based on building a better mousetrap will give way to those that seek the right mix of government subsidies, waivers and loan guarantees. And Chief Government Officers will join the ranks of Chief Financial Officers and Chief Operating Officers in corporate America's executive ranks.

President Obama trusts in the wisdom of government. I put my trust in the ingenuity and creativity and commitment to hard work of the American people.

Looking at the sorry economic record of this administration, it's easy to lose heart, and even to give up - as so many have in their search for a job. The President and his team would like us to believe that somehow it's the fault of the free market that things haven't gone right. That's just another way of saying that it's your fault, and not theirs, that the real recovery hasn't yet arrived.

We have waited, and waited, and waited for recovery. And enough time has passed to pronounce judgment on the economic policies of this administration. They have not worked. And you, the entrepreneurs and workers of America, have not failed these past three and a half years - your government has failed you.

Never before has federal policy run so contrary to the needs, ideals, and aspirations of the American entrepreneur. And with all that we've been through these past few years, the challenges can seem awfully big. Some might wonder if we have lost our confidence. But confidence is not what is missing - all that's lacking is direction and leadership.

This President believes in an America of limits, where it is more important to focus on allocating the rewards of success than helping everyone succeed. That is an America of diminished opportunity and increased disappointment, of long unemployment lines and small dreams.

I believe in a very different America. If we embrace the future with leadership that does everything possible to unlock the potential of our economic might, we can enter a new era of prosperity the likes of which we have never seen. We cannot shy away from greatness for fear that some might succeed more than others. Just as every American who can't find work makes our light shine a little less bright, success breeds success. It's not just our economy that is hurting -- it is our American spirit.

It doesn't have to be this way. These have been years of disappointment and decline, and soon we can put them behind us. We can prosper again, with the powerful recovery we have all been waiting for, the good jobs that so many still need, and, above all, the opportunities we owe to our children and grandchildren.

All of this can be more than our hope - it can be our future. It can begin this year, in the choice you make, so I ask for your help, your support, and your vote on the sixth of November.

Thank you all, and God bless America.

NOTE: As prepared for delivery.

Citation: Mitt Romney: "Remarks in St. Louis, Missouri: "A Champion For Free Enterprise"," June 7, 2012. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project.

Приложение 7

Mitt Romney Wisconsin, United States, April 3, 2012

Thank you, Wisconsin! And Maryland! And Washington, DC!

We have won a great victory tonight in our campaign to restore the promise of America. You won't find Americans with bigger hearts than those here in our heartland. But as I've travelled across this beautiful state, I've visited with far too many whose hearts are filled with anxiety about the future. So many good and decent people seem to be running harder just to stay in place and, for many, no matter how hard they run, every day puts them just a little bit further behind. It's that way across so much of America. Under this President's watch, more Americans have lost their jobs than during any other period since the Depression. Millions have lost their homes, and a record number of Americans are living in poverty. And the most vulnerable have been hurt the most - over 30% of single moms are struggling in poverty. New business startups are at the lowest level in 30 years, and our national debt is at a record high. And when you drive home tonight and stop at a gas station, just take a look at the prices and ask yourself, "Four more years?" And that's why it is important to understand one astonishing fact about this election: President Obama thinks he's doing a good job. No, I'm not kidding. He actually thinks he's doing a great job. An historically great job. According to the President, only Lincoln, FDR and Lyndon Johnson have accomplished more. And no, he didn't say that on Saturday Night Live. It's enough to make you think that years of flying around on Air Force One, surrounded by an adoring staff of True Believers telling you what a great job you are doing, well, that might be enough to make you a little out of touch. This campaign will deal with many complicated issues but there is a basic choice before us: The President has pledged to “transform America,” and he has spent the last four years laying the foundation for a new Government-Centered Society. I will spend the next four years rebuilding the foundation of our Opportunity Society, led by free people and free enterprises. Our different visions for America are the product of our values and our life experiences. Barack Obama once said that his work as a community organizer motivated him to help “communities that had been ravaged by plant closings.” His desire to help others could not be more admirable but it's clear that he saw free enterprise as the villain and not the solution. He never seemed to grasp the basic point that a plant closes when a business loses money. So today when the President attacks business and when his policies make it more difficult for businesses to grow and prosper, he is also attacking the very communities he wanted to help. That's how it worksin America. Or at least that's how it works when America is working.

But under Barack Obama, America hasn't been working. The ironic tragedy is that the community organizer who wanted to help those hurt by a plant closing became the President on whose watch more jobs have been lost than any time since the Great Depression.

In Barack Obama's Government-Centered Society, the government must do more because the economy is doomed to do less. When you attack business and vilify success, you will have less business and less success. And then, of course, the debate becomes about how much to extend unemployment insurance because you have guaranteed there will be millions more unemployed.

In Barack Obama's Government-Centered Society, tax increases become not only a necessity, but also a desired tool for social justice. In that world of shrinking means, there's a finite amount of money, and as someone once famously said, you need taxes to spread the wealth around.

In Barack Obama's Government-Centered Society, government spending will always increase because…there's no reason to stop it. There's always someone who is entitled to something more, and who will vote for anyone who will give them something more.

We know where that transformation leads. There are other nations that have chosen that path. It leads to chronic high unemployment, crushing debt, and stagnant wages. Sound familiar? I don't want to transform America; I want to restore the values of economic freedom and opportunity and limited government that have made this nation the leader it is.

It is opportunity that has always driven America and defined us as Americans! I'm not naive enough to believe that free enterprise is the solution to all of our problem - nor am I naive enough to doubt that it is one of the greatest forces of good this world has ever known.

Free enterprise has done more to lift people out of poverty, to help build a strong middle class, to help educate our kids, and to make our lives better, than all of the government programs put together.

If we become one of those societies that attack success, one outcome is certain - there will be a lot less success.

That's not who we are. The promise of America has always been that if you worked hard, and took some risks, that there was the opportunity to build a better life for your family and for the next generation. This means that government must be smaller and have strict limits placed on its power. Obamacare violates both principles. I will repeal it. Taxes should be as low as possible, in line with those of competing nations, and designed to foster innovation and growth. That's why I will cut marginal tax rates across the board.

Regulations are necessary, but they must be continuously updated, streamlined, and modernized. Regulators should see part of their job as protecting economic freedom, promoting enterprise, and fostering job creation.

Workers should have the right to form unions, but unions should not be forced upon them. And unions should not have the power to take money out of their members' paychecks to buy the support of politicians favored by the union bosses.

Out-of-touch liberals like Barack Obama say they want a strong economy, but they really don't like businesses very much. But the economy is simply the product of all the nation's businesses added together. So it's like saying you love omelets but don't like eggs.

To build a strong economy that provides good jobs and rising wages and that reduces poverty, we need to build successful businesses of every kind imaginable. And President Obama has been attacking successful businesses of every kind imaginable. We have always been the country where dreamers build dreams and where one dream helps launch another. And if those dreamers are rewarded with prosperity, we view that as a reason others would be encouraged to dream big as well.

These last few years have been difficult, made worse by mistakes and failures of leadership. But if the hill before us is a little steeper we have always been a nation of big steppers.

In this last year, I have been all over this country, from student union cafeterias to kitchen tables, from factory break rooms to boardrooms, and I've heard frustration and anger but rarely hopelessness. Many Americans have given up on this President but they haven't ever thought about giving up. Not on themselves. Not on each other. And not on America. We have a sacred duty to restore the promise of America. And we will do it. We will do it because we believe in America.

Tonight, I'm asking the good people of Connecticut, Delaware, New York, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island to join me. Join me in the next step toward that destination of November 6th, when across America we can give a sigh of relief and know that the Promise of America has been kept. The dreamers can dream a little bigger, the help wanted signs can be dusted off, and we can start again. And this time we'll get it right. We'll stop the days of apologizing for success at home and never again apologize for America abroad. Together we'll build the greatest America we have ever known, where prosperity is grown and shared, not limited and divided, an America that guarantees that ours is the door that innovation and greatness always knocks on first. There was a time - not so long ago - when each of us could walk a little taller and stand a little straighter because we had a gift that no one else in the world shared. We were Americans. That meant something different to each of us, but it meant something special to all of us. We knew it without question. And so did the world.

Those days are coming back. That's our destiny. Join me. And take another step every day until November 6th. We believe in America. We believe in ourselves. Our greatest days are still ahead. We are, after all, Americans!

God bless you, and God bless the United States of America.

Приложение 8

Mitt Romney remarks in Manchester, New Hampshire. April 24, 2012

Thank you Pennsylvania, Delaware, Rhode Island, Connecticut and New York! And tonight I can say thank you, America. After 43 primaries and caucuses, many long days and more than a few long nights, I can say with confidence - and gratitude - that you have given me a great honor and solemn responsibility. And, together, we will win on November 6th! We launched this campaign not far from here on a beautiful June day. It has been an extraordinarily journey.

Americans have always been eternal optimists. But over the last three and a half years, we have seen hopes and dreams diminished by false promises and weak leadership. Everywhere I go, Americans are tired of being tired, and many of those who are fortunate enough to have a job are working harder for less. For every single mom who feels heartbroken when she has to explain to her kids that she needs to take a second job … for grandparents who can't afford the gas to visit their grandchildren … for the mom and dad who never thought they'd be on food stamps … for the small business owner desperately cutting back just to keep the doors open one more month - to all of the thousands of good and decent Americans I've met who want nothing more than a better chance, a fighting chance, to all of you, I have a simple message: Hold on a little longer. A better America begins tonight.

Tonight is the start of a new campaign to unite every American who knows in their heart that we can do better! The last few years have been the best that Barack Obama can do, but it's not the best America can do! Tonight is the beginning of the end of the disappointments of the Obama years and the start of a new and better chapter that we will write together. This has already been a long campaign, but many Americans are just now beginning to focus on the choice before the country. In the days ahead, I look

forward to spending time with many of you personally. I want to hear what's on your mind, hear about your concerns, and learn about your families. I want to know what you think we can do to make this country better…and what you expect from your next President.

And I'll tell you a little bit about myself. I'll probably start out talking about my wonderful wife Ann - I usually do - and I'll probably bore you with stories about our kids and grandkids. I'll tell you about how much I love this country, where someone like my dad, who grew up poor and never graduated from college, could pursue his dreams and work his way up to running a great car company. Only in America could a man like my dad become governor of the state in which he once sold paint from the trunk of his car. I'd say that you might have heard that I was successful in business. And that rumor is true. But you might not have heard that I became successful by helping start a business that grew from 10 people to hundreds of people. You might not have heard that our business helped start other businesses, like Staples and Sports Authority and a new steel mill and a learning center called Bright Horizons. And I'd tell you that not every business made it and there were good days and bad days, but every day was a lesson. And after 25 years, I know how to lead us out of this stagnant Obama economy and into a job-creating recovery!

Four years ago Barack Obama dazzled us in front of Greek columns with sweeping promises of hope and change. But after we came down to earth, after the celebration and parades, what do we have to show for three and a half years of President Obama?

Is it easier to make ends meet? Is it easier to sell your home or buy a new one? Have you saved what you needed for retirement? Are you making more in your job? Do you have a better chance to get a better job? Do you pay less at the pump? If the answer were “yes” to those questions, then President Obama would be running for re-election based on his achievements…and rightly so. But because he has failed, he will run a campaign of diversions, distractions, and distortions. That kind of campaign may have worked at another place and in a different time. But not here and not now. It's still about the economy …and we're not stupid.

People are hurting in America. And we know that something is wrong, terribly wrong with the direction of the country. We know that this election is about the kind of America we will live in and the kind of America we will leave to future generations. When it comes to the character of America, President Obama and I have very different visions. Government is at the center of his vision. It dispenses the benefits, borrows what it cannot take, and consumes a greater and greater share of the economy. With Obamacare fully installed, government will come to control half the economy, and we will have effectively ceased to be a free enterprise society. This President is putting us on a path where our lives will be ruled by bureaucrats and boards, commissions and czars. He's asking us to accept that Washington knows best - and can provide all. We've already seen where this path leads. It erodes freedom. It deadens the entrepreneurial spirit. And it hurts the very people it's supposed to help.

Those who promise to spread the wealth around only ever succeed in spreading poverty. Other nations have chosen that path. It leads to chronic high unemployment, crushing debt, and stagnant wages. I have a very different vision for America, and of our future. It is an America driven by freedom, where free people, pursuing happiness in their own unique ways, create free enterprises that employ more and more Americans. Because there are so many enterprises that are succeeding, the competition for hard-working, educated and skilled employees is intense, and so wages and salaries rise. I see an America with a growing middle class, with rising standards of living. I see children even more successful than their parents - some successful even beyond their wildest dreams - and others congratulating them for their achievement, not attacking them for it. This America is fundamentally fair. We will stop the unfairness of urban children being denied access to the good schools of their choice; we will stop the unfairness of politicians giving taxpayer money to their friends' businesses; we will stop the unfairness of requiring union workers to contribute to politicians not of their choosing; we will stop the unfairness of government workers getting better pay and benefits than the taxpayers they serve; and

we will stop the unfairness of one generation passing larger and larger debts on to the next. In the America I see, character and choices matter. And education, hard work, and living within our means are valued and rewarded. And poverty will be defeated, not with a government check, but with respect and achievement that is taught by parents, learned in school, and practiced in the workplace.

This is the America that was won for us by the nation's Founders, and earned for us by the Greatest Generation. It is the America that has produced the most innovative, most productive, and the most powerful economy in the world. As I look around at the millions of Americans without work, the graduates who can't get a job, the soldiers who return home to an unemployment line, it breaks my heart. This does not have to be. It is the result of failed leadership and of a faulty vision. We will restore the promise of America only if we restore the principles of freedom and opportunity that made America the greatest nation on earth.

Today, the hill before us is a little steep but we have always been a nation of big steppers. Many Americans have given up on this President but they haven't ever thought about giving up. Not on themselves. Not on each other. And not on America.

In the days ahead, join me in the next step toward that destination of November 6th, when across America we can give a sigh of relief and know that the Promise of America has been kept. The dreamers can dream a little bigger, the help wanted signs can be dusted off, and we can start again. And this time we'll get it right. We'll stop the days of apologizing for success at home and never again apologize for America abroad. There was a time - not so long ago - when each of us could walk a little taller and stand a little straighter because we had a gift that no one else in the world shared. We were Americans. That meant something different to each of us but it meant something special to all of us. We knew it without question. And so did the world.

Those days are coming back. That's our destiny. We believe in America. We believe in ourselves. Our greatest days are still ahead. We are, after all, Americans!

God bless you, and God bless the United States of America.

Приложение 9

Mitt Romney remarks to the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials in Orlando, FL. June 21, 2012

Thank you for inviting me to your annual conference. It's an honor to be here among so many dedicated elected leaders.

I come to you today as a candidate for President of the United States of America. I will govern from the principle that while this is a land of extraordinary diversity, there is much more that unites us than divides us. Though each of us walks a different path in life, we are united by one great, overwhelming passion: We love America. We believe in America. We are one nation, under God. Today, we are united not only by our faith in America. We are united also by our concern for America. This country we love is in peril. That is why I am running for President.

Almost four years ago, Americans did something that was very much the sort of thing Americans like to do: We gave someone new a chance to lead; someone we hadn't known for very long, who didn't have much of a record but promised to lead us to a better place. At the time, we didn't know what sort of a President he would make. It was a moment of crisis for our economy, and when Barack Obama came to office, America wished him well and hoped for the best. Three and a half years later, over 23 million Americans are out of work, underemployed or have just quit looking for work. At a time when we should be gaining momentum, we're losing it. Job growth has slowed and this week, we learned that the number of job openings has fallen again. Hispanics have been hit disproportionately hard. While national unemployment is still above 8%, Hispanic unemployment is at 11%. The middle class has been crushed under President Obama. More Americans are living in poverty today than at any point in history. Over two million more Hispanics are living in poverty today than the day President Obama took office. Home values have plunged, our national debt is at record levels and families are buried under higher prices for food and gasoline. And yet our President says the private sector is doing fine. This is more than a policy failure; it is a moral failure.

Now, I know the President will say that he inherited an economic crisis. But we shouldn't allow the challenges he faced four years ago to divert our attention from another important fact: The President pursued policies that have made this the slowest recovery since the Great Depression. And he broke promises many were counting on to build a brighter future. It did not have to be this way.

Just compare this President's record with Ronald Reagan's first term. President Reagan also faced an economic crisis. In fact, in 1982, the unemployment rate peaked at nearly 11 percent. But in the two years that followed, he delivered a true recovery - economic growth and job creation were three times higher than in the Obama Economy. If President Obama had delivered a real recovery - a Reagan recovery - we would have five million more jobs today. The unemployment rate would be about six percent. And our economy would be at least one trillion dollars larger.

Tomorrow, President Obama will speak here, for the first time since his last campaign. He may admit that he hasn't kept every promise. And he'll probably say that, even though you aren't better off today than you were four years ago, things could be worse. He'll imply that you really don't have an alternative. He's taking your vote for granted. I've come here today with a simple message: You do have an alternative. Your vote should be respected. And your voice is more important now than ever before.

This November, we'll make a choice. We can continue along the path we're on - or we can choose a better way. Instead of continuing with the policies of the last three and a half years, we can revitalize our free-enterprise economy. We can lead the world in what we invent and build and create. And let me make this very clear - this is the only way we can strengthen the middle class. And this is the only way we can create sustained prosperity. Raising taxes to grow government does not grow the middle class.

Today, I am asking you to join me because, while we may not agree on everything, we share the same goal, the same vision, and the same belief in American greatness that draws so many to our shores. Liberty's torch can burn just as brightly for future generations of immigrants as it has burned for immigrants past.

We know our businesses can't succeed, grow, and hire more workers without a more competitive tax code. That's why I will lower our corporate tax rate, and reduce individual marginal rates by 20 percent, across the board. We also know that our businesses and families need affordable and reliable energy. Producing more of our energy resources will create jobs in America and generate greater revenues for America. It will also help bring manufacturing back to our shores. We know our economy can't grow if we're mortgaging our future to pay for the big government programs of today. As President, I will rein in spending and balance the budget. And I will repeal Obamacare. We cannot afford another $2 trillion entitlement. Obamacare depresses job growth. In one study, 73 percent of business owners said that Obamacare has made it harder for them to hire people. Repealing Obamacare and replacing it will give businesses the certainty they need to hire, expand, and grow. We can also jumpstart our economy by expanding trade in our hemisphere. Yet, the President has not completed a single new trade agreement with Latin America. And he's failed to crack down on countries like China that don't follow the rules. We know our kids can't succeed if they're trapped in failing schools. That's why, as President, I will give the parents of every low-income and special-needs student the chance to choose where their child goes to school. When it comes to education, a choice for every parent means a chance for every child.

An effective immigration system can also strengthen our economy, as it has since the nation's founding. Unfortunately, despite his promises, President Obama has failed to address immigration reform. For two years, this President had huge majorities in the House and Senate - he was free to pursue any policy he pleased. But he did nothing to

advance a permanent fix for our broken immigration system. Instead, he failed to act until facing a tough re-election and trying to secure your vote. Last week, the President finally offered a temporary measure that he seems to think will be just enough to get him through the election. After three and a half years of putting every issue from loan guarantees for his donors to Cash For Clunkers before immigration, now the President has been seized by an overwhelming need to do what he could have done on Day One. I think you deserve better. Some people have asked if I will let stand the President's executive action. The answer is that I will put in place my own long-term solution that will replace and supersede the President's temporary measure.

As President, I won't settle for a stop-gap measure. I will work with Republicans and Democrats to find a long-term solution. I will prioritize measures that strengthen legal immigration and make it easier. And I will address the problem of illegal immigration in a civil but resolute manner. We may not always agree, but when I make a promise to you, I will keep it. Let me speak to a few principles that will guide me. As I have said many times, it is critical that we redouble our efforts to secure the borders. That means both preventing illegal border crossings and making it harder to illegally overstay a visa. We should field enough border patrol agents, complete a high-tech fence, and implement an improved exit verification system. Our immigration system should help promote strong families, not keep them apart. Our nation benefits when moms and dads and their kids are all living together under the same roof. But, today, too many families are caught in a broken system that costs them time and money and entangles them in red tape. For those seeking to come to America the right way, that kind of bureaucratic nightmare has to end. And we can do this with just a few common-sense reforms.

As President, I will reallocate Green Cards to those seeking to keep their families under one roof. We will exempt from caps the spouses and minor children of legal permanent residents. And we will eliminate other forms of bureaucratic red tape that keep families from being together. Immigration reform is not just a moral imperative, but an economic necessity as well. Immigrants with advanced degrees start companies, create jobs, and drive innovation at a high rate. Immigrants founded or cofounded nearly half of our 50 top venture-backed companies. They are nearly 30 percent more likely to start a business. And that kind of risk taking is something we need more than ever because new business starts are now at a 30-year low. I will work with states and employers to update our temporary worker visa program so that it meets our economic needs. And if you get an advanced degree here, we want you to stay here - so we will staple a green card to your diploma. We want the best and brightest to enrich the nation through the jobs and technologies they will help create. We also have a strong tradition in this country of honoring immigrants who join our military and put their lives on the line to keep this country safe. Since September 11, 2001, the United States has naturalized almost 75,000 members of the Armed Forces. Too many of these patriots died on distant battlefields for our freedom before receiving full citizenship here in the country they called “home.”

As President, I will stand for a path to legal status for anyone who is willing to stand up and defend this great nation through military service. Those who have risked their lives in defense of America have earned the right to make their life in America. But improving access to legal immigration is only one part of the equation. We must also make legal immigration more attractive than illegal immigration, so that people are rewarded for waiting patiently in line. That's why my administration will establish a strong employment verification system so that every business can know with confidence that the people it hires are legally eligible for employment. We can find common ground here, and we must. We owe it to ourselves as Americans to ensure that our country remains a land of opportunity - both for those who were born here and for those who share our values, respect our laws, and want to come to our shores. I've spoken often about how proud I am of my father. He was born to American parents living in Mexico. When he was five, they left everything behind, and started over in the United States. His dad - my grandfather - was a builder who went bust more than once. My grandfather didn't make much money. There were times in my dad's life when he lived in poverty. But my grandfather had big hopes for my dad, and tried to help him as best he could.

My Dad didn't finish college. But he believed in a country where the circumstances of one's birth were not a barrier to achievement - and he wasn't afraid of hard work. He held odd jobs - lath and plaster and selling paint. He was lucky enough to live in America, where hard work can turn aspirations into realities. And he became the leader of a great car company and the governor of a great state. This is my father's story - but it could be any American's. Most of you here today are leaders in your community. You are here because you have benefitted from this land of opportunity, and you want to give back to this country, to fight for its people, so that they have the same chance to succeed.

We are truly one America. Everyone here has made this exceptional nation what it is today. This isn't an election about two people. This isn't an election about being a Republican, Democrat, or an independent. This is an election about the future of America. I would ask each of you to look at the last three and a half years, and ask whether we can do better. Is the America of 11% Hispanic unemployment the America of our dreams? I know we can do better. We can prosper again, with the powerful recovery we have all been waiting for, the good jobs that so many still need, and, above all, the opportunities we owe to our children and grandchildren.

Thank you all, and God bless America.

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Mitt Romney prebuttal remarks to President Obama's State of the Union Address in Tampa, Florida. January 24, 2012

Thank you. It's good to be in the Sunshine State. It breaks my heart to visit plants like this one.

In 2008, this plant closed because of the economic downturn. In a normal recovery under strong leadership, it could now be full of workers. Here in Florida, people used to wake up and look forward to a hard day's work and a good, honest wage. The money they earned helped support families and build communities. Today too many factory floors are silent, warehouses are deserted, corporate offices are empty, and real estate endeavors are abandoned. Floridians are struggling to find a job, keep a home, and raise a family.

As I've traveled across America, I've heard similar stories in virtually every corner of this country. High unemployment and record home foreclosures. Debt that's too high and opportunities that are too few. This is the real state of our union. But you won't hear stories like these in President Obama's address tonight. The unemployed don't get invitations to sit with the First Lady. Instead, tonight, the President will do what he does best. He will give a nice speech with a lot of memorable phrases. But he won't give you the hard numbers. Like 9.9 - that's the unemployment rate in this state. Or 25 percent - that's the percentage of foreclosed homes in America that are right here in Florida. Or $15 trillion - that's the size of our national debt.

Instead, tonight, President Obama will make the opening argument in his campaign against a “Do Nothing Congress.” But, we shouldn't forget that for two years, this President had a Congress that could do everything he wanted. With huge Democratic majorities in the House and Senate, President Obama was free to pursue any policy he pleased. Did he fix the economy? Did he tackle the housing crisis? Did he get Americans back to work? No. He spent $787 billion on a stimulus bill and put us on track to borrow and spend $5 trillion in just his first term. He forced through Obamacare - a trillion-dollar entitlement we don't want and can't afford. He took over auto companies and student loans. He stacked the National Labor Relations Board with union yes-men who, in turn, did favors for his campaign contributors and favorite friends. When we needed stability and solvency, he gave us Solyndra. When we needed a climate for private investment, he gave us Cash for Clunkers. When we needed more domestic energy to keep prices low and create jobs, he imposed bans on oil drilling and turned his EPA regulators loose to slow our development of natural gas. He's spearheaded one of the largest expansions of government in American history. And he's paying for it with money borrowed from China.

Three years ago, we measured Candidate Obama by his hopeful promises and slogans.