Post by laurenno116 on Dec 4, 2012 23:54:09 GMT -5
It is often said that some are leaders, while others are followers. In The Crucible, Reverend Parris was looking to gain power within the town of Salem by adopting the rhetoric of consensus at the time. While at first he did not believe witchcraft could be in his own home, once he saw how it could benefit himself, he easily joined the consensus. Parris, although moving more to the middle of the consensus, never gained any true power. Similarly, Mitt Romney was faced with the obstacle of conforming to two completely different consensuses in order to first win the primary and then the presidency. Like Parris, Romney was never able to gain the power of the presidency because rather than standing firm on his own ideals, he adopted the rhetoric of consensus at the time, hoping to gain power.
Romney first adopted the rhetoric of the GOP, in order to win the primaries. The GOP has recently taken on extremely conservative core values, and Romney needed to agree with these strict ideals in order to become their presidential candidate. As Governor of Massachusetts, Romney had no experience in foreign policy – no record to back his own positions – making it even more crucial that he take on the GOP foreign policy ideals. Throughout the primary election, Romney talked about Iraq and Afghanistan, establishing the rhetoric of the GOP as his own position as well. He spoke as a proponent of the Iraq war and criticized the Afghanistan withdrawal date set by President Obama. Not only did he support the war like so many other hard-line conservatives, but he also adopted their hate-filled rhetoric against Obama. Furthermore, concerning one of the most controversial issues in the election, abortion, Romney easily took on the GOP’s far right view of pro-life. He vowed to challenge the ruling of Roe v. Wade, which is something that conservatives have been attempting for awhile. In making a promise like this, Romney was fully adopting the GOP rhetoric, in order to gain their support as presidential candidate, which allowed him to move closer towards the power of the presidency.
Once the GOP had nominated Romney as their presidential candidate he was forced to change his rhetoric, in order to fit the new consensus. The country as a whole is more left than Romney’s stances in the primaries, so he needed to take on more moderate positions to appeal to more people. No longer was it only the hardnosed conservatives voting for him; he needed to appeal to more moderate people to gain the popular vote. Romney’s position on Iraq and Afghanistan took on a more moderate opinion. He criticized the war in Iraq, saying that it could have been avoided. Furthermore, he provided a withdrawal date for the troops in Afghanistan. He continued to soften his positions when it came to the issue of abortion; he took on the belief that in cases of rape, incest, and health of the mother, abortion should be legal. In sharing these new views, Romney attempted to take on the rhetoric of the entire country.
Flip-flop and chameleon were among the words used to refer to Romney during the general election. He received backlash for switching his views. Romney was caught trying to fit in with the consensus and it was ultimately decided that he was not fit to be our leader. A leader is supposed to use the ideals of all to find ways to benefit the whole of the country, not give in to the loudest voice to benefit themselves.
Word Count: 590
Works Consulted:
Davis, Molly. "Conservatives Push Bills that Challenge Roe v. Wade Ruling." Tuscaloosa News. TuscaloosaNews.com, 5 June 2011. Web. 4 Dec. 2012. <http://www.tuscaloosanews.com/article/20110605/news/110609847?tc=ar>.
Morris, Kate. "11 Differences between Primary and General Election Romney." Independent Voter Network. Foundation for Independent Voter Education, 27 Oct. 2012. Web. 4 Dec. 2012. <http://ivn.us/2012/10/27/11-differences-between-primary-and-general-election-mitt-romney/>.
Romney first adopted the rhetoric of the GOP, in order to win the primaries. The GOP has recently taken on extremely conservative core values, and Romney needed to agree with these strict ideals in order to become their presidential candidate. As Governor of Massachusetts, Romney had no experience in foreign policy – no record to back his own positions – making it even more crucial that he take on the GOP foreign policy ideals. Throughout the primary election, Romney talked about Iraq and Afghanistan, establishing the rhetoric of the GOP as his own position as well. He spoke as a proponent of the Iraq war and criticized the Afghanistan withdrawal date set by President Obama. Not only did he support the war like so many other hard-line conservatives, but he also adopted their hate-filled rhetoric against Obama. Furthermore, concerning one of the most controversial issues in the election, abortion, Romney easily took on the GOP’s far right view of pro-life. He vowed to challenge the ruling of Roe v. Wade, which is something that conservatives have been attempting for awhile. In making a promise like this, Romney was fully adopting the GOP rhetoric, in order to gain their support as presidential candidate, which allowed him to move closer towards the power of the presidency.
Once the GOP had nominated Romney as their presidential candidate he was forced to change his rhetoric, in order to fit the new consensus. The country as a whole is more left than Romney’s stances in the primaries, so he needed to take on more moderate positions to appeal to more people. No longer was it only the hardnosed conservatives voting for him; he needed to appeal to more moderate people to gain the popular vote. Romney’s position on Iraq and Afghanistan took on a more moderate opinion. He criticized the war in Iraq, saying that it could have been avoided. Furthermore, he provided a withdrawal date for the troops in Afghanistan. He continued to soften his positions when it came to the issue of abortion; he took on the belief that in cases of rape, incest, and health of the mother, abortion should be legal. In sharing these new views, Romney attempted to take on the rhetoric of the entire country.
Flip-flop and chameleon were among the words used to refer to Romney during the general election. He received backlash for switching his views. Romney was caught trying to fit in with the consensus and it was ultimately decided that he was not fit to be our leader. A leader is supposed to use the ideals of all to find ways to benefit the whole of the country, not give in to the loudest voice to benefit themselves.
Word Count: 590
Works Consulted:
Davis, Molly. "Conservatives Push Bills that Challenge Roe v. Wade Ruling." Tuscaloosa News. TuscaloosaNews.com, 5 June 2011. Web. 4 Dec. 2012. <http://www.tuscaloosanews.com/article/20110605/news/110609847?tc=ar>.
Morris, Kate. "11 Differences between Primary and General Election Romney." Independent Voter Network. Foundation for Independent Voter Education, 27 Oct. 2012. Web. 4 Dec. 2012. <http://ivn.us/2012/10/27/11-differences-between-primary-and-general-election-mitt-romney/>.