Mitt Romney, a Mormon, looked yesterday to set aside lingering concerns about his religion in a highly publicized speech. Immediately, the speech revived memories of John F. Kennedy’s attempt, during the 1960 campaign, to ease concerns about his Catholicism. We’ve posted both speeches below. The similarities are there. But the differences are more profound. I’ll resist the temptation to point them out. You can watch the clips and draw your own conclusions.
John F. Kennedy — 1960
Mitt Romney — 2007
Great speeches by both of them! Would like to have heard more of Kennedy’s.
Romney’s sounding very presidential. It would be nice to hear him cover other national issues with equal thoughtfulness. I hope to hear more like this from him and the other candidates on other topics. I saw a clip from his Oral Roberts visit where he said that a vote for him doesn’t constitute an endorsement of his religious beliefs–not sure why some have such a hard time understanding that.
‑JG