On October 3, 2007 Mitt Romney’s son Ben visited the Athens area for a campaign stop. The "Rally for Romney" was held at the Varsity on Milledge Avenue. The organizer, Brandon Phillips, a student at Georgia State University, said Mr. Romney was serious about winning Georgia and was showing it by sending the Mitt Mobile, an RV emblazoned with Romney logos, across the states. In fact, Mr. Romney’s campaign was the first to dispatch a representative to Athens. Georgia’s primary is not one of the first, but it is part of the Super Tuesday sweep on February 5, and a September poll showed Mr. Romney lagging among Georgia Republicans. I sat down with Ben Romney after his speech at the Varsity.
Greg Wilson: I really appreciate you taking time to do an interview today. We know a lot about your dad, but tell us more about yourself.
Ben Romney: I’m twenty-nine years old and am going to Medical School at Tufts University. I am in my fourth year, though currently I am taking a year off to do research on cardiac MRI. After that I will be returning to medical school and will graduate a year late, but it is well worth it. I’ve been married to Andelyne for about three years. We are enjoying our time here; the most fun part is getting out and meeting people. Seeing all these interesting people all over the place and the food has been fun.
GW: With being a medical student, which is very time-consuming, how did you decide to get involved in your father’s campaign?
BR: It’s something that I feel strongly about. I feel that my dad is a fantastic candidate for the presidency. I think that he has the right vision for America, the right direction. He has the skills, he has the know-how. I think he is going to get to get it done. The direction he is going to lead America is the right direction. It’s really not much of a sacrifice for me to be out here. I feel it is something important to do. I also had a couple of weeks off from school.
GW: With the Iowa caucus being ninety-three days away, how do you think the campaign is doing gaining support and attracting voters?
BR: It has been doing really well. Every state that has gotten to know my dad has gotten to like my dad. That includes Iowa. He already won the straw poll there. He had the largest margin of victory in the Iowa straw poll in the history of the Iowa straw poll. We’re hoping that he does that well in the caucus. We’ll see what happens. He is doing well in Iowa, New Hampshire, and many of the other key early primary states. We are picking up momentum. He is not as easily recognized to as many people as, say, Giuliani, McCain, and Fred Thompson, who are more of household names, but as people to get know him, they get to like him because they see what he stands for and they see that he has character, has values, and has the right vision for America.
GW: What role do you think your father’s religion should play in his decision making process. A lot of people don’t know a lot about the Mormon faith.
BR: It’s an interesting question because every president of the United States has had a religion. Every one of them has been Christian up to this point. My father is also a Christian, and the prior Presidents of the United States have let their own values guide their decision-making to some extent and also obviously the input of the American people. I think my dad is very similar in that regard in that he has values that have been taught to him that he lives by, and they’re not unfamiliar values. They are very familiar values to most Americans and very much in line with what most of America values as well. In that regard he will let his values play into his decision making-process. In that regard his faith is important to him. As far as the actual denomination or church he goes to, that isn’t important in this race. GW: If you father received the nomination, do you think that your father could beat Hillary Clinton? There is a lot of talk about Hillary getting the nomination and which Republican can beat her.
BR: Right, at this point she is leading most of the polls and if she were to win the nomination, you never know. Things can change and somebody else might get it. I think my dad would have a very good chance of defeating her in November. I think he has a good chance of beating anybody.
GW: If there was one thing that readers don’t know about you father, what would that be?
BR: When I think of my dad I think of boundless energy, more energy than any human being I have ever met, including my little brother, who is off the wall — incredible energy, and he applies that energy to good things. He is a hard worker, and he also happens to be the smartest man I have ever met, so he applies that energy to solving problems and applies that energy to solving difficult problems. My dad is a fantastic problem solver and an amazing leader. I think that part is what makes him an amazing leader and an amazing executive.
GW: If you could convince our readers in a few sentences why to vote for your dad what would that be?
BR: I think he has character and values. He has a vision for America. He has the know-how and ability and the track record. He showed that he can turn things around. He can take a business that is in the red and put in the black. He can take a scandal-marred Olympics and turn it into the most successful Olympics this country has ever seen. He can take a state that is three billion dollars in debt and turn it into a state with a surplus without raising taxes. He can do the same thing for Washington. Washington is a big mess right now, and he can’t wait to get his hands on it.
GW: I appreciate you taking time to talk with me today about you and your father. Good luck with the rest of your campaign tour.
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