 | Mitt Romney Republican Candidate
Massachusetts | Counter-Terrorism/Detention - MR. ROMNEY: "But I do not believe that as a -- a presidential candidate it is wise for us to describe precisely what techniques we will use in interrogating people. I oppose torture. I would not be in favor of torture in any way, shape or form. We -- "
MR. COOPER: "Is waterboarding torture? "
MR. ROMNEY: "And -- as I just said, as a presidential candidate, I don't think it's wise for us to describe specifically which measures we would and would not use. And that is something which I would want to receive the counsel not only of Senator McCain, but of a lot of other people. And there are people who -- who, for many, many years, get the information we need to make sure that we protect our country.
And by the way, I want to make sure these folks are kept at Guantanamo. I don't want the people that are carrying out attacks in this country to be brought into our jail system and to be given legal representation in this country. I want to make sure that -- that what happened to -- to Khalid Sheikh Mohammed happens to other people who are terrorists. He was captured. He was the so- called mastermind of the 9/11 tragedy. And he turned to his captors and he said, 'I'll see you in New York with my lawyers.' I presume ACLU lawyers. But that's not what happened. He went to Guantanamo and he met GIs and CIA interrogators, and that's just exactly how it ought to be." CNN/YouTube Republican Debate, St. Petersburg, FL, 11/28/07
Trade Agreements - "Governor Romney has called for strategic divestment from companies that support the Iranian regime's dangerous actions, using efforts similar to the actions taken against Apartheid South Africa." Policy statement
- "Congress must give the president the authority to move forward... so that we can expand and integrate our existing free-trade agreements in the [Middle East] region." Mitt Romney, "Rising to a New Generation of Global Challenges," Foreign Affairs, Vol. 86 No. 4, July/August 2007, p. 31
- "...we must improve our economic ties. The President has negotiated vital free trade agreements with Latin American neighbors like Peru, Columbia and Panama, but some Democrats in Congress are so beholden to their labor bosses that they have refused to confirm them. It is time to put the interests of humanity and of the nation first." Remarks at the Miami-Dade Lincoln Day Dinner, 3/9/07
International Security and Non-Proliferation - "What we have today in the world is four major, if you will, strategies at play. One, they're the nations with the energy, like Russia. They're trying to use energy as a way to take over the world.
Then there's China, which is saying we're going to use communism, plus sort of a Wild West form of a free enterprise. We're going to give nuclear weapons -- or nuclear technology to the Iranians, we're going to buy oil from the Sudanese. You've got China.
Then you've got al Qaeda, which says we want to bring everybody down.
And then finally there's us, the only major power in the world that says we believe in free enterprise and freedom for the individual. And this great battle is going on right now, and it's essential for us to strengthen other friends like ourselves, and to confront one by one these other strategies and help turn them towards modernity so that the world our kids inherent does not have to know war.
Will there be war? Of course there will always be terrible events in the world. But let's do everything in our power to keep war from occurring. Move these voices of moderation and having such strength in our own military that people never question our ability to respond." CNN/Politico/Los Angeles Times Republican Debate, Reagan Library, 1/30/08
- "Further, I'd promote an international initiative to develop a new body of international law that would make nuclear trafficking a crime against humanity, on a par with genocide and war crimes. And by allowing for universal jurisdiction, charges can be brought up at any court, to help prevent traffickers from hiding in complicit or weak countries. Already, people have been caught trying to smuggle nuclear materials to sell them on the black market. Their acts shouldn't be dismissed with the kind of nonchalance that sometimes accompanies routine violation of the laws." Remarks at Yeshiva University, 4/26/07
- "There is yet another source of Jihadist nuclear danger, beyond Iran. It's the pursuit by Jihadists of acquiring what are commonly known as 'loose nukes.' The Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism, which was launched last year, was a good start, but we need to accelerate and expand it." Remarks at Yeshiva University, 4/26/07
International Institutions/UN Reform - "Clearly, the United Nations has not been able to fulfill its founding purpose of providing collective security against aggression and genocide. Thus, we need to continue to push for reform of the organization." Mitt Romney, "Rising to a New Generation of Global Challenges," Foreign Affairs, Vol. 86 No. 4, July/August 2007, p. 28
Climate Change/ Environment - "And here's what happens. I've lived in the business world. I've lived in the real economy for 25 years of my life. What happens if you do that? You put a big burden on energy in this country as the energy-intensive industries say, "We're going to move our new facilities from America to China, where they don't have those agreements." And you end up polluting and putting just as much CO-2 in the air because the big energy users go there. That's why these ideas make sense, but only on a global basis.
They don't call it "America warming." They call it "global warming." That's why you've got to have a president that understands the real economy." CNN/Politico/Los Angeles Times Republican Debate, Reagan Library, 1/30/08
Human Rights - [on Vladimir Putin] "And he has -- the evidence of that, of course, is his elimination of the free press, his terrorizing and imprisoning political prisoners, and unexplained murders that are occurring. It's a -- it's another repressive regime, which he is overseeing. And the question is what do you in a circumstance like that and what it portends for the future of the world." CNN/Politico/Los Angeles Times Republican Debate, Reagan Library, 1/30/08
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