Romney: Faith Won't Sway Me, Nor Should It Voters

Mitt Romney addressed the issue of his Mormon faith today in a highly anticipated speech given at the George H.W. Bush Presidential Library in College Station, Texas.

Religion's role in politics has grown since the Reagan era. Evangelical Christians have largely supported Republican candidates, and Romney needs to convince them and voters in general that his faith won't influence his decision-making in the White House.

Romney is not the first Mormon to run for president. In fact, his father, George Wilcken Romney, ran in 1968 against Richard M. Nixon. The Vietnam War proved to be the important issue of the day, not religion. George Romney hurt his candidacy after flip-flopping on the war and using a poor choice of words about how he had been "brainwashed" into supporting the war. The Manchurian Candidate overtones created a controversy that lead to his withdrawal from the race.

Mitt Romney has chosen not to make the same mistake. He has strongly supported U.S. involvement in Iraq and began his speech by highlighting the need to continue fighting "radical violent Islam."

Many pundits, including influential conservative columnist Robert Novak, have suggested Romney needed a "JFK moment" to answer questions on his faith. In 1960, President John F. Kennedy -- also from Massachusetts -- famously downplayed his Catholic faith. Romney echoed these sentiments:

"Almost 50 years ago, another candidate from Massachusetts explained that he was an American running for president, not a Catholic running for president. Like him, I am an American running for president."

Romney continued on to answer a more important question, saying, "I do not define my candidacy by my religion. A person should not be elected because of his faith, nor should he be rejected because of his faith." He pledged to Americans that the role of his church leaders ends with church matters and does not encroach upon matters of the state.