A social-conservative group is using Mitt Romney’s Mormon beliefs and his record as Massachusetts governor to urge GOP convention delegates to “Dump Romney.”
A memo being circulated by the “Dump Romney” group argues that, given the weak U.S. economy, Romney ought to be leading Democratic incumbent Barack Obama in the polls, instead of trailing by as many as nine points, as the most recent Fox News poll has the race right now.
The group says Republican convention delegates are not bound by convention rules to vote for Romney, and that first-ballot abstentions could lead to the selection of a stronger national ticket in later convention rounds.
A key to the “Dump Romney” effort is anti-Mormon in nature. A press release from the group brings up issues with the Mormon religion including its “exotic beliefs” that the Garden of Eden was in Missouri and that Jesus is Satan’s brother to paint the picture that independent and Republican voters in swing states in the Bible belt like Virginia and North Carolina will desert the GOP in droves.
The press release also calls Romney “America’s Founding Father of Gay Marriage” for the same-sex weddings that were authorized by Massachusetts courts during his time as governor.
The memo, titled “Dump Romney: Why Tampa’s Republican Delegates must Dump Romney to Defeat Obama,” is available on Amazon.com and DumpRomney.org. It was produced by a group called Jews and Christians Together, and edited by Sara and David Bethel.
The aim of the “Dump Romney” movement is to “provide thoughtful, responsible and dutiful Republican delegates with a pathway out of their and our nation’s very serious problem, that the Republican Party is on the brink of nominating a sure loser,” said Steve Baldwin, a contributor and former executive director of the Council for National Policy, a Washington, D.C.,-based conservative think tank.
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Chris Graham
