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LEFT WING LOONS Title: Romney, in Perry Territory, Faults ‘Career Politicians’ (the instant Texan) 12:53 p.m. | Updated Apparently, just setting foot in Texas imbued Mitt Romney with a bit of that Lone Star swagger. Though Mr. Romney has assiduously avoided taking on one rival for the Republican presidential nomination, Gov. Rick Perry of Texas, Mr. Romney took a veiled swipe at Mr. Perry in a speech Tuesday before the Veterans of Foreign Wars national convention in San Antonio. “I have spent most of my life outside of politics, dealing with real problems in the real economy,” Mr. Romney said. “Career politicians got us into this mess, and they simply don’t know how to get us out.” The attack line, which lit up the Twittersphere Tuesday morning when the campaign released some early excerpts, was met with some applause, but it is a point that Mr. Romney makes frequently on the campaign trail. Mr. Romney often argues that he is not a career politician and is one of the few candidates, having spent 25 years in the private sector, with the executive know-how to create jobs. In his speech before the V.F.W., Mr. Romney tried to toe the line between offering an optimistic vision for the nation’s future — he even name-checked former President Ronald Reagan and mentioned “the shining city on a hill” — and painting a grim picture of the country under President Obama’s leadership. “I believe in America,” Mr. Romney said, wearing a blue tie and speaking in a measured, even voice. “We believe in freedom and opportunity. We believe in the inherent dignity of every human being. We have deep and abiding faith in the goodness and the greatness of America.” But he soon began an attack on the current state of the country. “We stand near the threshold of profound economic misery,” he said. “Four more years on the same political path could prove disastrous.” Mr. Romney criticized the administration’s proposal to cut military spending by $400 billion over the next 12 years, warning that the “massive defense cuts were proposed without any reference to the missions that would be foreclosed and to the risks to our men and women in uniform.” “America must lead with clarity of intent, a commitment of purpose and unlimited resolve,” Mr. Romney said. “Unfortunately, when we look around the world today, we see a muddled picture of American policy and our power.” Mr. Romney also criticized the president over “mission muddle” during the revolution in Libya, as well as his drawdown plan for American troops in Afghanistan. “In Afghanistan, the president has chosen to disregard the counsel of the generals on the ground,” Mr. Romney said. “I don’t know of a single military adviser to President Obama who recommended the withdrawal plan that he’s chosen, and that puts the success of our soldiers and our mission at greater risk.” He added: “As America’s veterans, you understand better than anyone that weakness invites aggression and that the best ally peace has ever known is a strong America.” Mr. Romney’s speech came the day after Mr. Perry addressed the convention and presented an overview of his foreign policy views, saying he was opposed to “military adventurism.” But despite all of the early hype about Mr. Romney's attacking Mr. Perry on the governor's home turf, the stark contrast Mr. Romney drew was between himself and Mr. Obama, not with Mr. Perry, who has recently begun leading in some polls. “The American people always rise to the occasion,” Mr. Romney said. “They only ask for a leader who will tell them the truth, who will live with integrity, and who will actually lead them in the direction that will preserve this great nation. We’ve lost a couple of years, but we haven’t lost our way.” Mr. Romney has largely tried to ignore Mr. Perry’s entry into the already crowded Republican field, arguing that Mr. Perry will first have to prove himself as a national candidate before Mr. Romney changes his strategy and engages him directly. But with new polls placing Mr. Perry at the head of the pack, Mr. Romney has found himself fending off questions about his Texas rival and may be rethinking his strategy. In New Hampshire last week, when Mr. Romney was pressed on whether he still viewed himself as the front-runner, he casually dismissed the question, offering that he was “just one of the guys running.”
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