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Willard Mitt Romney was sworn in as the 70th Governor of Massachusetts on January 2, 2003, along with Lieutenant Governor Kerry Healey. His term ended on January 4, 2007. He filed the papers establishing his exploratory presidential committee the day before leaving office.
Romney's swearing in used the same Bible that his father George Romney had used as the Governor of Michigan.[1] In his 15-minute inauguration speech in the Massachusetts House of Representatives, he avoided policy specifics but said that he intended to bring about a "lighter, more agile bureaucracy."[1] The overall inauguration festivities took place over three days and emphasized themes around common citizens.[1]
Upon taking office, Romney faced a state legislature in which Democrats held 85 percent of the seats.[2] Indeed, the state Republican Party had fielded no candidate for 62 percent of the seats during the 2002 state elections.[2]
From the outset Romney sought to show himself as the state's first 'CEO governor'.[3] His choices for the executive cabinet included well-known figures such as Democrat Robert Pozen, former vice chairman of Fidelity Investments, and Douglas Foy, who had served as president of the Conservation Law Foundation,[3] and they and other cabinet members and advisors were picked more on managerial abilities than on partisan affiliation.[4] Romney gave them broad authority over new what he called "super-secretariats".[3]
Romney and Healey both pledged to forego their official salaries for the length of their terms.[1]
Romney refused to sign an anti-tax pledge put forth by Grover Norquist's Americans for Tax Reform while campaigning for office.[5] In 2002, Romney presented a plan to balance the budget without raising taxes.[2][6][7] Romney also favored gambling as a way to help balance the Massachusetts deficit.[8]
Upon entering office, Romney faced a $3 billion deficit. Facing an immediate fiscal shortfall, the governor asked the state legislature for emergency powers to make "9C" cuts to the fiscal year 2003 budget. Romney cut spending and restructured state government.[9] Romney, in concert with the legislature, created new fees, doubled fees for court filings, professional regulations, marriage licenses, and firearm licenses, and increased fees for many state licenses and services. In all 33 new fees were created, and 57 fees were increased, some that had not been adjusted in over a decade. Some of these fees included were service fees, such as charging businesses more to put up signs. Opponents said the reliance on fees sometimes imposed a hardship on those who could least afford them.[10] The state of Massachusetts raised $501 million in new income in the first year of the fee increase program, more than any other state in the nation that year (New York was second with $367 million. Nine other states raised fees and fines by more than $100 million).[11][12] Romney increased the state gasoline delivery fee by two cents per gallon, generating about $60 million per year in additional revenue; raises the state gas tax to a total of 23 cents, compared with the national average of 28.6 cents per gallon.[3]
Romney also implemented a "New Market Tax Credit"[13] and extended the "Investment Tax Credit" during 2003.[14]
A windfall in capital gains tax revenue caused by a previously enacted capital gains tax increase reduced the deficit by $1.3 billion. Romney approved $128 million in tax changes such as sales tax from purchases on the Internet[15] and raised another $181 million in additional business taxes in the next two years; businesses called these changes tax increases, but Romney defended them as the elimination of "loopholes".[3][16][17] Over his full term, over $300 million of such loopholes were closed.[3][17] The loophole actions, fueled by Romney's sense of rectitude and in the face of conservative and corporate critics, initially won plaudits from legislators as an example of political courage, before Romney backed away from further closings towards the end of his term.[17] The state also cut spending by $1.6 billion, including $700 million in reductions in state aid to cities and towns.[18] In response, cities and towns became more reliant on local revenue to pay for municipal services and schools. This had the effect of causing property taxes to rise by five percent, their highest level in 25 years in Massachusetts.[19] In 2005, Romney signed legislation allowing local commercial property taxes to be raised, which resulted in $100 million more in property taxes from local business owners.[20]
In 2002, the state passed a capital gains tax increase that was scheduled to take effect on May 1 of that year.[21] A taxpayers' group challenged the law in court, arguing that a tax increase must take effect at the beginning or end of a year, and in 2005 the Supreme Judicial Court ruled in their favor.[21] The court held that the tax increase was effective beginning January 1, 2002, which effectively imposed an additional $200 million in "retroactive" state taxes on gains realized during the first four months of 2002.[21] In response, the state legislature passed a bill moving the effective date of the tax increase to January 1, 2003.[21] Romney signed the legislation and praised the legislature for its actions.[21]
Massachusetts finished 2004 with a $700 million surplus and 2005 with a $500 million surplus.[22][23] Romney would state, "We have successfully closed the largest deficit in our state's history without raising taxes," although others disputed the claim on the grounds that usage fees had gone up.
With the help of a reviving economy, Romney and the state legislature were able to balance the state budget and replenish the state's "rainy day fund" through government consolidation and reform. As a result of the fiscal turnaround, Romney repeatedly pushed the state legislature to roll back the state income tax from 5.3% to 5.0% (Massachusetts has a flat income tax).[24] He also proposed a "tax-free shopping day",[25] a property tax relief for Seniors,[26] and a manufacturing tax credit.
In 2006, the Massachusetts legislature approved a budget that required spending $450 million from the rainy day fund. Even though the state had collected a record-breaking amount of tax revenue in the fiscal year, the funds were needed to cover the increased spending.[27] Romney vetoed the transfer of funds from the contingency account and used his emergency "9C" cuts to balance the state budget. "One of the primary responsibilities of government is keeping the books balanced," said Romney "The problem here is not revenues; the problem is overspending. The level of spending which we're looking at would put us on the same road to financial crisis and ruin that our commonwealth has been down before."[28] The veto was overturned by the legislature, and all 250 of Romney's 2006 vetoes were overturned by the Massachusetts Legislature.[29][17]
Upon leaving office, Romney argued that he had left the state with a large budget surplus, after he cut hundreds of millions of dollars of programs. However, successor Governor Deval Patrick said there would be a $1 billion deficit if existing service levels are carried over into the next year's budget.[30] It would be Patrick who would propose the spending level of that budget.[31] The combined state and local tax burden in Massachusetts increased during Romney's governorship but still was below the national average..[3] According to an analysis by the Tax Foundation, that per capita burden was 9.8 percent in 2002 (below the national average of 10.3 percent), and 10.5 percent in 2006 (below the national average of 10.8 percent).[32]
Job growth increased at a 1.3 percent rate during Romney's term, ranking Massachusetts 47th out of 50 states in that statistic during that time.[33][17][34] The state's unemployment rate fell during the same period, from 5.6 to 4.7 percent.[33]
Economists generally agree that the power of a governor to affect economic growth and job statistics is much more limited than is the perception.[34]
Romney was at the forefront of a movement to bring near-universal health insurance coverage to the state, after a business executive told him at the start of his term that doing so would be the best way he could help people[35] and after the federal government, due to the rules of Medicaid funding, threatened to cut $385 million in those payments to Massachusetts if the state did not reduce the number of uninsured recipients of health care services.[4][35][36] Despite not having campaigned on the idea of universal health insurance,[37] Romney decided that because people without insurance still received expensive health care, the money spent by the state for such care could be better used to subsidize insurance for the poor.[38] After positing that any measure adopted not raise taxes and not resemble the previous decade's failed "Hillarycare" proposal, Romney formed a team that beginning in late 2004 came up with a set of proposals more innovative than an incremental one from the Massachusetts Senate and more acceptable to him than one from the Massachusetts House of Representatives that incorporated a new payroll tax.[4][35][36] In particular, Romney successfully pushed for incorporating an individual mandate at the state level.[39] U.S. Senator from Massachusetts Edward M. Kennedy, who had made universal heath coverage his life's work, gave Romney's plan a positive reception, which encouraged Democratic legislators to work with it.[35][36] The effort eventually gained the support of all major stakeholders within the state, and Romney helped break a logjam between rival Democratic leaders in the legislature.[35][36]
On April 12, 2006, Romney signed legislation that mandates that nearly all Massachusetts residents buy or obtain health insurance coverage or face a penalty (up to approximately $2000 for 2008 or equal to half of the lowest cost premium offered) in the form of an additional income tax assessment. The bill established a regulatory authority called the Commonwealth Health Insurance Connector Authority to implement the law and establish insurance standards. For residents below certain income thresholds and without adequate employer insurance, state subsidies were established, by using funds previously designated to compensate for the health costs of the uninsured.[40][41][42] Legislation, effective on July 1, 2007, requires health insurance for all state residents, provided a plan is available to the individual that is deemed affordable according to Commonwealth Health Insurance Connector Authority. In Massachusetts, a roughly $800 million fund known as the "uncompensated care pool" was used to partially reimburse hospitals for expenses related to treating uninsured patients. The fund's revenue comes from an annual assessment on employers, insurance providers and hospitals, plus contributions of state and federal tax dollars. Governor Romney's plan redirects money from this fund to subsidize health insurance costs for low-income residents of Massachusetts. The Romney Administration consulted with Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor Jonathan Gruber to study the state's population and health care needs. They determined that there was enough money in the "free care pool" to implement the Governor's plans, but that it would require more people to buy health insurance at full price in order to pay into the subsidized fund.[43]
The legislature amended Romney's plan, adding a Medicaid expansion for children and imposing an assessment on firms with 11 or more workers who do not offer health coverage. The assessment is intended to equalize the contributions to the free care pool from employers that offer and do not offer coverage. The General Court also rejected Romney's provision allowing high-deductible health plans.
Romney vetoed eight sections of the health care legislation, including a $295-per-person fee on businesses with 11 employees or more that do not provide health insurance.[44][45] Romney also vetoed provisions providing dental and eyeglass benefits to poor residents on the Medicaid program, and providing health coverage to senior and disabled legal immigrants not eligible for federal Medicaid.[46][47] However, the state legislature overrode all of the vetoes.[48]
Romney said of the measure overall, "There really wasn't Republican or Democrat in this. People ask me if this is conservative or liberal, and my answer is yes. It's liberal in the sense that we're getting our citizens health insurance. It's conservative in that we're not getting a government takeover."[35] The law was the first of its kind in the nation and became the signature achievement of Romney's term in office.[36] When Romney's official portrait was made for the Massachusetts State House, the composition included a leather binder with a medical seal representing the healthcare legislation.[49]
(Within four years, the law had achieved its primary goal of extending coverage: in 2010, 98.1 percent of state residents had coverage, compared to a national average of 83.3 percent.[50] Among children and seniors the 2010 coverage rate was even higher, at 99.8 percent and 99.6 percent respectively.[50])
During the 2002 campaign, Romney had proposed to institute full-day kindergarten in schools that were performing below standards and to introduce merit pay to teacher.[2]
As governor, Romney proposed $8 billion in bonds be authorized in order to empty the waiting list for school building projects.[51] Instead, the legislature authorized only $1 billion in bonds and allocated the rest from sales tax receipts.[51]
In 2004, Romney and the legislature established and funded the John and Abigail Adams Scholarship Program to reward the top 25 percent of Massachusetts high school students with a four-year, tuition-free scholarship to the state's public universities or colleges. He has also drafted other education reforms, including the recruitment of 1,000 skilled math and science instructors, bonuses of as much as $15,000 a year for top-performing teachers, and new intervention programs for failing schools.[52] Romney's plan would allow state governments to take control of underperforming schools after three years instead of the six-year period that is now in place. Regarding the achievement gap in public education, Romney has said, "I really believe that the failure of our urban schools and, in some cases our suburban schools, to help minority students achieve the levels that are necessary for success in the workplace is the civil rights issue of our time." Romney has also advocated for a nationwide focus on education to close the "excellence gap with the rest of the world".[53] As governor, Romney proposed mandatory parental preparation courses. He also supported English immersion classes for students that cannot speak English and opposed bilingual education.[54]
During his 2002 campaign, Romney had said he backed age-appropriate, comprehensive sex education in public schools. In 2005, he accepted federal funding to a faith-based organization to teach abstinence-only education in public schools. While Romney said such programs would supplement rather than replace existing ones, opponents feared that funding pressure would lead to schools dropping comprehensive programs for the freely available abstinence-only ones.[55][56][57]
During Romney's tenure as governor, Massachusetts' per capita funding for public higher education decreased from $158 to $137, and in national rank, per capita state expenditures changed from 48th to 47th.[58][59] In July 2005, Romney proposed $200 million in funding for University of Massachusetts capital projects. The governor's capital budget included $50 million earmarked to repair the crumbling parking garage and foundation of the UMass Boston campus.[60] The Massachusetts legislature declined to vote on the bond bill needed to fund the projects.[61] Romney also vetoed a retroactive pay raise for unionized employees of state and community colleges. Romney voiced his opposition to retroactive pay increases for public employees although the raises had previously been agreed to then vetoed by his predecessor.[62][63]
Romney successfully pressured William Bulger to resign as President of the University of Massachusetts (UMass) on September 1, 2003. Bulger said that his resignation was the result of "a calculated political assault" on him, largely by the governor. [64] William Bulger came under pressure from Romney and others to resign after he invoked his Fifth Amendment right not to testify when he was subpoenaed by a Congressional committee to testify about his brother, James J. "Whitey" Bulger, one of the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives. Romney, who had called for Bulger's resignation and the elimination of the UMass presidency as a cost-cutting move, denied that he had been personally targeting the former state senate president. "The decision was not a political calculation or a personal one," Romney said in February 2003, after unveiling his plan to eliminate the president's job.[65] The Governor's aides stressed that he had not been personally targeting Bulger, saying such interpretations of Romney's actions were cynical. "I think everybody should be taken at their word," spokesman Eric Fehrnstrom said.[66]
On September 5, 2006, Romney denounced Harvard University of Cambridge, Massachusetts for inviting former Iranian President Mohammed Khatami to speak at the school. Romney ordered all state agencies to boycott the visit by refusing to provide state police escorts and other service typically given to former heads of state.[67]
When he ran for governor in 2002, Romney declared his opposition to same-sex marriage.[68] "Call me old fashioned, but I don't support gay marriage nor do I support civil union," said Romney in an October 2002 gubernatorial debate. He also voiced support for basic domestic partnership benefits for gay couples. Romney won the endorsement of the Log Cabin Club of Massachusetts, a Republican gay-rights group, who in 2005 accused him of reneging on his 2002 campaign commitment to support some benefits for gay couples.[69] He also opposed an amendment, then before the General Court, that would have banned same-sex marriage and outlawed all domestic partnership benefits for gay couples. When campaigning in 2002, Romney's stated position was that "All citizens deserve equal rights, regardless of their sexual orientation. While he does not support gay marriage, Mitt Romney believes domestic partnership status should be recognized in a way that includes the potential for health benefits and rights of survivorship."[70]
Romney strongly opposed same-sex marriage during his governorship. He emphasized his desire to "protect the institution of marriage" while denouncing discrimination against gays and lesbians. "Like me, the great majority of Americans wish both to preserve the traditional definition of marriage and to oppose bias and intolerance directed towards gays and lesbians," Romney said in 2004.[71]
On June 2, 2006, Romney sent a letter to each member of the U.S. Senate urging them to vote in favor of the Marriage Protection Amendment.[72] In the letter, Romney stated that the debate over same-sex unions is not a discussion about "tolerance", but rather a "debate about the purpose of the institution of marriage". Romney wrote, "Attaching the word marriage to the association of same-sex individuals mistakenly presumes that marriage is principally a matter of adult benefits and adult rights. In fact, marriage is principally about the nurturing and development of children. And the successful development of children is critical to the preservation and success of our nation."
Romney's letter was his second effort to persuade the U.S. Senate to pass the Defense of Marriage Amendment. On June 22, 2004 he testified before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, urging its members to protect the traditional definition of marriage. "Marriage is not an evolving paradigm," said Romney, "but is a fundamental and universal social institution that bears a real and substantial relation to the public health, safety, morals, and general welfare of all of the people of Massachusetts."[73]
Romney attempted to block implementation of the decision of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court that legalized same-sex marriage in 2003. Romney criticized the decision as harming the rights of children:
| “ | They viewed marriage as an institution principally designed for adults. Adults are who they saw. Adults stood before them in the courtroom. And so they thought of adult rights, equal rights for adults…Marriage is also for children. In fact, marriage is principally for the nurturing and development of children. The children of America have the right to have a father and a mother.[71] | ” |
In 2004, the Massachusetts General Court addressed the issue of gay marriage before the implementation of the Goodridge decision. During a constitutional convention, the predominately Democratic legislature approved an amendment that would have banned gay marriage and established civil unions. An initial amendment offered by House Speaker Thomas Finnernan to merely ban gay marriage without a provision for civil unions was narrowly defeated.[74] The compromise amendment needed to be approved in a second constitutional convention to be held a year later before it could appear on a state election ballot. The amendment was voted down in the subsequent convention and never appeared on a ballot put before voters of Massachusetts.[75]
Romney reluctantly backed the compromise amendment, viewing it as the only feasible way to ban gay marriage in Massachusetts. "If the question is, 'Do you support gay marriage or civil unions?' I'd say neither," Romney said of the amendment. "If they said you have to have one or the other, that Massachusetts is going to have one or the other, then I'd rather have civil unions than gay marriage. But I'd rather have neither."[76]
In June 2005, Romney abandoned his support for the compromise amendment, stating that the amendment confused voters who oppose both gay marriage and civil unions. The amendment was defeated in the General Court (legislature) in 2005 when both supporters of same-sex marriage and opponents of civil unions voted against it. In June 2005, Romney endorsed a petition effort led by the Coalition for Marriage & Family that would ban gay marriage and make no provisions for civil unions.[77] Backed by the signatures of 170,000 Massachusetts residents the new amendment was certified as a valid referendum on September 7, 2005 by Massachusetts Attorney General Thomas Reilly.[78] The measure needs the approval of fifty legislators in two consecutive sessions of the Massachusetts General Court to be placed on the ballot.[79] The Massachusetts legislature however declined to vote on the initiative in two consecutive sessions held on July 12, 2006 and November 9, 2006.[80] Romney responded by joining former Boston Mayor Raymond Flynn and eight others to file a complaint with the state's Supreme Judicial Court to force the legislature to vote on the proposed amendment. The petition also asked the court to instruct the Massachusetts Secretary of State to place the referendum on the 2008 ballot if the legislature failed to vote on the amendment by January 2, 2007.[81]
On the first day that same-sex marriages came into effect in Massachusetts, May 17, 2004, Romney instructed town clerks not to issue marriage licenses to out-of-state gay couples, except for those announcing their intention to relocate to the Commonwealth by requiring the enforcement of the "1913 law" (General Legislation, Part II, Title III, Chapter. 207 (Certain Marriages Prohibited), Sections 11, 12, & 13), which prohibits non-residents from marrying in Massachusetts if the marriage would be void in their home state. The law had not been enforced for several decades. Some legal experts have argued that the original purpose of the legislation was to block interracial marriages and have noted that the law was enacted due to a public scandal over Jack Johnson's interracial marriages.[82][83] Massachusetts Attorney General Thomas Reilly has stated that there in no evidence to support that claim. Those who agree with him claim that the law is meant to respect the laws of other states and has not been enforced simply because there was not reason.[84]
The Massachusetts legislature in 1913 passed the three laws denying marriage rights to persons domiciled out-of-state who came to Massachusetts to circumvent their own states' anti-miscegenation marriage laws. Romney was criticized for reviving a Jim Crow era piece of legislation that had avoided being nullifed by the U.S. Supreme Court's 1967 Loving v. Virginia decision due to it not saying anything about race. However, in March 2006, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court declared the statute legal under the state's constitution.[71] Romney declared the "ruling is an important victory for traditional marriage". He also stated, "It would have been wrong for the Supreme Judicial Court to impose its mistaken view of marriage on the rest of the country. The continuing threat of the judicial redefinition of marriage, here and in several other states, is why I believe that the best and most reliable way to preserve the institution of marriage is to pass an amendment to the U.S. Constitution."[85]
Romney subsequently released a statement in support of a proposed amendment to the Massachusetts state constitution defining marriage as existing only between "one man and one woman" in order to overrule the court's decision. His statement said, "the people of Massachusetts should not be excluded from a decision as fundamental to our society as the definition of marriage."
In addition to consistently rejected same-sex marriage, there was a rhetorical shift in emphasis during his time as governor, culminating with Romney rarely talking about protecting gays from bias and instead characterizing himself as a conservative stalwart in the battle against same-sex marriage and in support of heterosexual families.[86][87]
According to his 2002 gubernatorial campaign, Romney was a supporter of the federal assault weapons ban.[88] Romney also believed "in the rights of those who hunt to responsibly own and use firearms."[88] On July 1, 2004, Romney signed a permanent ban on assault weapons. "Deadly assault weapons have no place in Massachusetts," Romney said, at a bill-signing ceremony with legislators, sportsmen's groups and gun safety advocates. "These guns are not made for recreation or self-defense. They are instruments of destruction with the sole purpose of hunting down and killing people."[89] The law extended a temporary measure that had been in effect since 1998 and covered weapons such as the AK-47, Uzi, and MAC-10.[89] The same law also modified some other aspects of general firearms licensing regulations.[89]
The Massachusetts Governor's Task Force on Hate Crimes was an agency created by Governor William Weld, coordinating representatives of the state police and local law enforcement agencies with community advocates to further efforts to prevent and prosecute bias-motivated crime in Massachusetts. The Task Force was given permanent status by Weld's successor, Governor Paul Cellucci in 1998.[90] In 2003 Romney vetoed a bill funding hate crimes prevention, after which he impounded money previously approved by his predecessor, Governor Jane Swift, for a bullying prevention program.[91] The author of the bullying prevention program was Don Gorton, who had been appointed chair of the Task Force on Hate Crimes by Weld in 1991. The anti-bullying program attracted the ire of right-wing Christian activists.[92] Romney's actions against the Task Force preceded his efforts to dismantle same-sex marriage, which was legalized in Massachusetts in 2004 by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court.
In December 2004, Romney announced plans to file a death penalty bill in early 2005. The bill, filed April 28, 2005, sought to reinstate the death penalty in cases that include terrorism, the assassination of law enforcement officials and multiple killings. Romney's legislation required the presence of scientific evidence such as DNA to sentence someone to death and a tougher standard of "no doubt" of guilt for juries to sentence defendants. This differs from the "beyond a reasonable doubt" standard used in traditional criminal cases. The legislation called for a pool of certified capital case lawyers to ensure proper representation for the accused and allowed jurors who do not personally support the death penalty to serve in the guilt phase of the trial.[93] Romney said; "In the past, efforts to reinstate the death penalty in Massachusetts have failed. They have failed because of concerns that it would be too broadly applied or that evidentiary standards weren't high enough or proper safeguards weren't in place. We have answered all those concerns with this bill."[94] The Massachusetts House of Representatives defeated the bill 99-53.
In May 2005, Romney presented a proposal to the Massachusetts General Court to crack down on repeat drunk drivers. Massachusetts had some of the weakest drunk driving laws of any state in the country, and the state was losing $9 million annually from its highway budget because existing laws were not in compliance with federal standards.[95] Romney called his proposal "Melanie's Bill" in honor of Melanie Powell, a 13-year-old who was killed in 2003 by a repeat drunk driver while walking to the beach with friends. The bill included provisions that gave prosecutors greater power to go after repeat offenders with increased penalties. It also increased license suspensions, raised sentencing guidelines and required repeat drunk drivers to install ignition-interlock devices in their vehicles. The state House Judiciary Committee removed many of the bill's provisions and sent the reduced version to an eventual conference committee.[96] Romney criticized the "watered down" bill, which he said reflected the interests of defense lawyers, and sent the bill back to legislators with amendments to restore some of the original provisions.[97] On October 28, 2005, Romney signed the amended version of the bill, which approved two of Romney's three amendments and rejected Romney's provision for increasing penalties for motorists who refuse to take a breathalyzer test.[98][99] Eleven months after the enactment of Melanie's Law, arrests of repeat drunk drivers decreased by half, and the number of drivers agreeing to breathalyzer tests increased by more than 18 percent.[99]
In July 2006 Romney offered the assistance of his state police force to municipalities dealing with increased crime rates. Romney's offers were rejected by local officials. Officials from Boston Police unions complained that "if state aid hadn't been cut in recent years, then the city's police force might be staffed adequately to handle the crime surge."[100]
Romney was the first governor in modern Massachusetts history to deny every request for a pardon or commutation during his four years in office. He denied 100 requests for commutations and 172 requests for pardons, including the request from a soldier serving in Iraq to be pardoned for a conviction at age 13 involving a BB gun.[101]
In March 2002 during his run for governor, Romney told the Lowell Sun that, "On a personal basis, I don't favor abortion. However, as governor of the commonwealth, I will protect a woman's right to choose under the laws of the country and the commonwealth. That's the same position I've had for many years."[102] Also, during the 2002 governor's race, Romney's platform stated, "As Governor, Mitt Romney would protect the current pro-choice status quo in Massachusetts. No law would change. The choice to have an abortion is a deeply personal one. Women should be free to choose based on their own beliefs, not the government's."[103] Romney promised to "preserve and protect a woman's right to choose" and declared "I will not change any provisions in Massachusetts' pro-choice laws".[104]
Romney has said that his views on abortion have "evolved" and "changed" since 2002 such that he now considers himself a "pro-life governor" who wishes "the laws of our nation could reflect that view".[105][106]
Romney says that his views on abortion were drastically altered on November 9, 2004 after discussing stem cell research with Douglas Melton, a stem cell researcher at Harvard University. The Harvard Stem Cell Institute was planning research that would have involved therapeutic cloning.[107] The Governor says that Melton declared that the research "is not a moral issue because we kill the embryos at 14 days." "I looked over at Beth Myers, my chief of staff, and we both had exactly the same reaction, which is it just hit us hard," recalled Romney "And as they walked out, I said, 'Beth, we have cheapened the sanctity of life by virtue of the Roe v. Wade mentality.' And from that point forward, I said to the people of Massachusetts, 'I will continue to honor what I pledged to you, but I prefer to call myself pro-life.'"[108] Melton disputes Romney's account of the meeting, declaring "Governor Romney has mischaracterized my position; we didn't discuss killing or anything related to it ... I explained my work to him, told him about my deeply held respect for life, and explained that my work focuses on improving the lives of those suffering from debilitating diseases."[109] In a press conference video in May 2005 however, Romney when asked about Massachusetts abortion laws stated "I have indicated that as governor, I am absolutely committed to my promise to maintain the status quo with regards to laws relating to abortion and choice, and so far I've been able to successfully do that," indicating that the governor continued to hold a pro-choice position post-November 2004.[110]
Romney has said he has kept his campaign promises. Romney vetoed an emergency contraception bill in July 2005, claiming that allowing it to pass into law would violate his "moratorium" on changes to the abortion laws.[111] He vetoed a bill on pro-life grounds that the bill would expand access to emergency contraception in hospitals and pharmacies. He returned from his vacation house in New Hampshire to veto the bill, because the Lt. Govorner, Kerry Healey would have signed the bill into law.[112] The legislature voted overwhelmingly to overturn the veto and pass the bill into law on September 15, 2005.[113] At the time of the veto, Romney said he does not support abortion except in cases of rape, incest, and when the life of the mother is threatened.[114] He opposed the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade, criticizing "'one size fits all' judicial pronouncements".[114] The following year, Romney's spokesperson has also indicated that were he the governor of that state, he would sign into law the controversial South Dakota abortion law, but include exceptions for cases of incest or rape, which the South Dakota law excludes.[115]
In 2005, Romney's top political strategist, Michael Murphy, told National Review that the Governor had "been a pro-life Mormon faking it as a pro-choice friendly."[116] Murphy later clarified explained that he "was discussing a characterization the governor's critics use."[117]
During his 2002 campaign, Romney had expressed broad support for embryonic stem cell research, and said he would lobby President Bush (who the year before had banned most federal funding for such research) to support it.[118] In particular, Romney stated that he supported the use of surplus embryos from fertility clinics for stem-cell research. In early 2005, Romney announced his position on therapeutic cloning for the first time, saying he was against it, but was still in favor of research on unused embryos from fertility treatments.[118] Per this stance, he vetoed a Massachusetts bill to fund stem-cell research because the legislation allowed such cloning of human embryos. "I am not in favor of creating new human embryos through cloning," said Romney, calling the practice "a matter of profound moral and ethical consequence". Romney also opposed the legislation because of its assertion that life does not begin until an embryo is implanted in a uterus. "It is very conceivable that scientific advances will allow an embryo to be grown for a substantial period of time outside the uterus," Romney said in an interview with the Boston Globe. "To say that it is not life at one month or two months or four months or full term, just because it had never been in a uterus, would be absurd."[119][120] The state legislature overrode Romney's veto, with many legislators feeling that stem-cell research will be important in the future to the state's biotech industry.[121]
In February 2005, Romney filed legislation to increase benefits for Massachusetts National Guard members. Working with the state legislature, Romney developed the "Welcome Home Bill" which provides guardsman with reduced life-insurance premiums and free tuition and fees at Massachusetts universities and community colleges.[122] The bill also increases daily state active-duty pay rate from $75 to $100, and increases the death benefit paid to families of Guard members killed in the line of duty from $5,000 to $100,000.[123] Additionally, the "Welcome Home Bill" creates a $1,000 bonus for Guardsman and reservists called to active duty in Iraq and Afghanistan since the September 11, 2001 attacks and a $500 bonus for those who were activated for duty elsewhere. The legislation provides a $2,000 benefit for Gold Star spouses and increases the Gold Star parents' benefit from $1,500 to $2,000. High school diplomas will also be granted to veterans who dropped out to enlist in World War II, Korea or Vietnam wars. Romney signed the bill into law on Veterans Day 2005.[124]
In a November 3, 2006 press release, Romney stated that the account that funds the insurance benefits created in the "Welcome Home Bill" faced a deficit of $64,000. The Massachusetts legislature was out of session at the time of the shortfall. According to the press release, Romney transferred money from the governor's office budget to cover the deficit.[125]
Working with the legislature, Romney developed legislation to provide tax exemptions to disabled veterans and benefits to families of fallen and missing soldiers. Romney signed the Massachusetts Military Enhanced Relief Individual Tax (MERIT) Plan into law on August 14, 2006. The bill increases property tax exemptions for disabled veterans and grants spouses of veterans killed or missing in action since September 11, 2001 full property tax exemptions for five years. After five years the spouses receive an annual $2,500 exemption under the legislation.[126]
Romney was also the first governor in Massachusetts history to appoint a secretary of veteran's affairs to his cabinet.[127]
Romney's efforts to assist Massachusetts servicemen were recognized by the Employer Support for the Guard and Reserve, which presented him with the Pro Patria Award[128] and the 2006 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award.[129]
As governor, Romney signed off on a substantial increase in funding for the construction of thousands of new housing units, especially in urban or downtown areas.[51] A goal of this was to counteract the state's otherwise high housing prices.[51]
As a candidate for governor in 2002, Romney proposed indexing the minimum wage to inflation and raising the hourly pay for the state's lowest-paid workers from $6.75 an hour to $6.96 an hour starting January 2004, saying, "I do not believe that indexing the minimum wage will cost us jobs. I believe it will help us retain jobs."[130]
In July 2006, the legislature passed a bill increasing the minimum wage to $8.00 an hour, and he vetoed it. "I have spent hours reading a wide array of reviews on the minimum wage and its impact on the economy, and there's no question raising the minimum wage excessively causes a loss of jobs, and the loss of jobs is at the entry level," said Romney when he vetoed the bill.[131] He proposed an increase to $7.00/hour (which represented a 25 cents an hour increase over the existing rate.) The legislature voted on July 31, 2006 to override his veto (uanimously in the Senate) thus setting the minimum wage at the higher amount.[132]
Romney vetoed a bill in 2004 that would have allowed illegal immigrants to obtain in-state tuition rates at state colleges if they graduated from a Massachusetts high school after attending it for at least three years and signed an affidavit affirming that they intended to seek citizenship. Romney argued that the bill would cost the state government $15 million and that Massachusetts should not reward illegal immigration.[133] A study by the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation predicted that the legislation would generate over $5 million in state revenues; the Massachusetts Coalition for Immigration Reform disputed this conclusion.[134] In 2005, the bill was reintroduced to the House and brought to a vote on 11 January 2006. The legislation was defeated 96-57.[135]
On December 2, 2006, it was reported that a landscaping company Romney contracted to perform yard work at his home had been suspected of employing illegal immigrants. Romney said that he was unaware of the immigration status of the company's employees.[136] A year later it was reported that the same company was still using illegal immigrants to work on Romney's estate. After this second report, Romney fired the landscape company.[137]
Later in December 2006, Romney signed an agreement with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency that would have allowed Massachusetts State Police troopers to arrest and seek deportation of suspected illegal immigrants they encounter over the course of their normal duties.[138] Under the terms of the agreement, a group of 30 troopers would have received specialized training allowing them to question and detain suspected illegal immigrants, charge them with a violation of immigration law and place them in removal proceedings.[138]
The executive order pertaining to state police was consistent with Section 287(g) of federal immigration law. Section 287(g) is a program of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 that deputizes state and local law enforcement personnel to enforce immigration matters.[139][140][141]
The agreement was never implemented because governor-elect Deval Patrick, who had expressed strong opposition to the agreement before it was signed, revoked it a month later when he was sworn in.[142]
Governor Romney supported regulation of greenhouse gas emissions, primarily through voluntary measures[143] He issued a 72-point Climate Protection Plan in May 2004.[143] His staffers spent more than $500,000 negotiating the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), which Romney praised in November 2005, saying, "I'm convinced it is good business."[144][145] As plan details were being worked out, Romney pushed for a cap on fees charged to businesses who exceed emission limits citing concerns of increased consumer energy costs. He stated: "New England has the highest energy rates in the country, and RGGI would cost us more." This ongoing disagreement eventually led Romney, in December, 2005, to pull out of RGGI and Rhode Island Governor Donald Carcieri quickly followed suit. On the day he announced he would not run for reelection, Romney reversed pulled out of RGGI, spurring accusations that he switched his stance in order to gain support from industry groups for a presidential campaign.[146] In January 2007, Romney's successor in office, Deval Patrick announced the decision to overturn the withdrawal from the RGGI. Patrick estimated the cost of participation at $3 per year per household for electricity, and an implementation year of 2009.[147]
In November 2006, Romney cut $7 million from the maintenance budget for the state's parklands, which are the sixth largest state park system in the country. Romney also cut $154,590 for environmental law enforcement, $288,900 for cleaner water in communities, and $181,886 for hazardous waste cleanup.[148] In a 2004 press release Romney claimed, "Costs are down, but environmental enforcement is up". Romney successfully eliminated the Metropolitan District Commission by merging it with another agency into the Department of Conservation and Recreation.[51]
Romney opposed the Cape Wind offshore wind farm proposed for Nantucket Sound. Romney stated that the proposed Cape Wind project would depress property values and damage the local economy, which depends on tourism; he has described the area as pristine and a "national treasure".[149] Cape Wind supporters accused Romney and federal lawmakers of "back-door deal-making" in an attempt to kill the project.[150] Conversely, elected leaders in Massachusetts have accused Cape Wind developers of receiving a "back-room deal" for the 24 square miles (62 km2) of state controlled property to be used in the proposed project.[151] However, Romney voiced support for wind projects in Princeton, Hull and other Massachusetts towns.[152]
In August 2006, Romney unveiled an energy plan that called for improved energy-efficiency requirements for state buildings, increased use of biofuels in the state automobile fleet, the creation of a prize-rewards lottery for consumers who buy energy-efficient equipment, and proposals for wind and biomass power-generation for state facilities.[152]
On December 19, 2005 the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Hazardous Waste Site Cleanup Professionals convened and discussed a public records request for communications between the Board and "Willard (Mitt) Romney". The board released documents pertaining to the appointment of board members by the governor, and "No one could think of any other categories of records."[153]
During his campaign for governor, Romney proposed merging the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority, the government agency that managed the massive "Big Dig" project in Boston, with the Massachusetts Highway Department.[2][154] Under Massachusetts law the Turnpike Authority is an independent agency that does not report to the governor.[155] After being elected Governor, Romney called for the merger in 2003 and 2004.[156] The Massachusetts legislature rejected Romney's call for consolidation. However the legislature did approve making the head of the Massachusetts Department of Transportation the head of the Turnpike Authority.[51]
Following the discovery of leaks in the I-93 tunnel, Romney called for the resignation of Matthew Amorello, the Chairman and CEO of the Turnpike Authority.[157] Amorello refused to resign and in June 2005, Romney asked the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court to grant him the authority to fire Amorello. The request was denied, as the court declined to hear his case.[158] In July 2006 a woman was killed when a section of the I-90 roof collapsed on her car. Citing continued mismanagement of the project, Romney once again called for Amorello's dismissal and initiated legal proceedings to oust the chairman. Despite calls from Massachusetts Attorney General Tom Reilly, House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi, Senate President Robert Travaglini, Boston Mayor Thomas Menino, the chairman of both the house and senate transportation committees and the editorial boards of the Boston Globe and Herald, Amorello once again refused to step aside.[159][160] Romney responded by filing emergency legislation to wrest control of the inspection of the Big Dig tunnel system from the Turnpike Authority.[161] The Massachusetts State Legislature overwhelmingly approved the legislation, which Romney signed on July 14, 2006.[162] The Department of Transportation began immediate inspections of the I-90 tunnel and pledged a "stem to stern" review of the entire Big Dig Tunnel System. Meanwhile, Romney continued his effort to fire Amorello. He scheduled a termination hearing for the Chairman for July 27, 2006. Facing increasing pressure from associates and colleagues, Amorello resigned, effective August 16, 2006, one and a half hours before the hearing was to take place. "A new era of reform and accountability at the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority has begun," said Romney after receiving the resignation. "Patronage will be replaced by professionalism, and secrecy will be replaced by openness." Romney has pledged a "nationwide" search for a replacement to lead the Turnpike Authority and the Big Dig.
Since the collapse, the Securities and Exchange Commission has informally investigated whether Massachusetts Turnpike Authority bonds misled investors.[163] The SEC has requested documents relating to the Big Dig from the Turnpike Authority, the state Treasurer's office, the highway department and the governor's executive transportation office.[164]
In May 2006, heavy rains produced flooding in Massachusetts.[165] Romney declared a state of emergency,[166] mobilized the Massachusetts National Guard,,[167] called for volunteers and charitable donations to help residents,[168] and asked President Bush to declare the flooded area a major disaster area..[169] Romney was criticized by local politicians when he vetoed $5.7 million in state funding for flood control in Peabody six months after the town was flooded in April 2004.[170][171] After Peabody again suffered flooding in May 2006, Romney announced that he supported spending $2 million of state money on flood control for the town.[172]
Romney's relationship with the state legislature were somewhat fraught. He insisted that discussions with executive branch appointees always go through the governor's office, which left legislators annoyed.[51] Furthermore, he withheld giving the legislators permanent authority to create new committees or to grant committee chairs pay increases.[51] Romney was disinclined towards making political deals with the legislature, saying:
I ran on the platform of cleaning up the mess on Beacon Hill, [and] reform means changing the way things are. Legislatures by and large, despite the political titles, are conservative. They don't want to change the way things work. So of course it's going to be a battle."[51]
In turn, in 2004 the legislature passed a measure over his veto that took away the governor's ability to appoint a body to fill a vacancy in the U.S. Senate and instead set to schedule an early special election.[51] This was in large part an attempt to keep a seat in Democratic hands should Senator John Kerry's campaign in the United States presidential election, 2004, succeed.[173] (This measure would get reversed in 2009 following the death of Senator Edward M. Kennedy, so that a now-Democratic governor could quickly appoint a vacancy fill.[174]) In any case, Romney did not think much of Kerry, labelling him "a very conflicted person" who would be "a most unfortunate person to have as president of the United States."[51] By comparison, Romney expressed a measure of admiration for his one-time electoral rival, saying "Senator Kennedy is a workhorse."[51]
In the Massachusetts Senate elections, 2004 and Massachusetts House election, 2004, Romney campaigned heavily to try to recruit Republican candidates to contest seats.[51] He financed radio and television convincement campaigns on issues such as tuition for children of illegal immigrants.[51] However, his efforts were for naught.[36] Democrats gained two seats in the state House and one seat in the state Senate.[51] Romney subsequently made a conscious decision to focus less on the state Republican Party and more on bipartisanship at the state level and his own interests at the national level.[36]
Romney issued nearly a thousand vetos as governor, the large share of which of which were overturned by one or the other of the state houses.[36][175] Late in Romney's term, his vetos issued began to annoy Republicans in the legislature and he lost support among them too.[36] Nevertheless, Romney defended the practice:
"I know how to veto. I like vetoes. I've vetoed hundreds of spending appropriations as governor."[36]
On December 14, 2005, Romney announced that he would not seek re-election for a second term as governor, fueling speculation about a run for the White House in 2008[176] in the face of rising dissatisfaction with the Republican Party in the state.
In 2006, his last year as governor, Romney spent all or part of 212 days out of state, laying the foundation for his anticipated presidential campaign.[177] The cost of the Governor's security detail for out-of-state trips increased from $63,874 in fiscal year 2005 to a cost of $103,365 in the first 11 months of fiscal year 2006. Romney's use of state troopers for security during his campaign trips was criticized by former Governor Michael Dukakis, who never traveled with state troopers during his 1988 presidential run, and Mary Boyle of Common Cause who complained that "[t]he people of Massachusetts are essentially funding his presidential campaign, whether they like it or not."[178] A Romney spokesman noted that Romney did not accept a salary while he was Governor and that he paid for his personal and political travel, while the superintendent of the State Police pointed out that the Governor never requested the security and that the security detail followed the Governor on all trips.[178] In some cases his statements made while campaigning elsewhere in the country came back to affect him in Massachusetts, such as when he caused offense by using the term "tar baby" in Iowa in reference to the potential pitfalls of taking responsibility for the Big Dig.[179]
Lieutenant Governor Kerry Healey became the Republican nominee for the 2006 Massachusetts gubernatorial race and subsequently lost overwhelmingly to Democratic nominee Deval Patrick.
At the end of Romney's term, several of his staffers purchased the hard drives from their state-issued computers, and emails were deleted from the server.[180] The amounts expended purchasing the drives came to nearly $100,000.[181] Under the Massachusetts Public Records Law, the emails did not have to be made public but did have to be preserved.[180] Terry Dolan, who worked as director of administration under Romney and several other governors, has said that scrubbing the servers was a common practice but that selling the hard drives was not.[182] When news of the actions became widely known in 2011, a Romney spokesperson said that the purchase of the computer equipment "complied with the law and longtime executive branch practice."[180] State government officials and aides to Romney's three predecessors as governor said that they did not know of any prior sales of hard drives to staffers.[182][181] When questioned on the subject in 2011, Romney responded that he had not wanted the information to be available to "opposition research teams".[183]
Romney's term ended January 4, 2007. Romney filed papers to establish a formal exploratory presidential campaign committee on his next-to-last day in office as governor.[184]
| Date | Approval | Disapproval | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nov. 18, 2003 | 66% | 33% | Before Supreme Court ruling on Gay Marriage. |
| Nov. 27, 2003 | 45% | 39% | After taking a stance against Gay Marriage.[185] |
| July 2004 | 48%[186] | ? | |
| Jan. 2005 | 56% | ? | |
| March 2005 | 52% | 37% | After rumors of running for president.[187] |
| April 2005 | 43%[188] | ? | |
| March 2006 | 46% | 47% | After announcing not running for re-election.[189] |
| May 2006 | 46% | 52% | |
| June 2006 | 39% | 56% | |
| Nov. 2006 | 34% | 65% | End of governorship.[190] |
Romney had a difficult time maintaining his approval ratings in office as governor of liberal Massachusetts in the wake of the legalization of gay marriage and the fall of Bush's approval ratings. For the majority of Romney's term however, his approval ratings were in positive territory. Romney's frequent out-of-state travel also contributed towards declining ratings towards the end of his term.[191]
After Democrat Deval Patrick succeeded Romney as Governor of Massachusetts, he undid several of Romney's initiatives, including those related to budget cuts, policing of illegal immigration, and the state's automobile insurance system.[191] Patrick ran into his own set of difficulties with the public.[191] Patrick's approval rating was 33% in April 2009 and 49% said Romney did a better job as governor than Patrick.[192]
| The Romney Cabinet | ||
|---|---|---|
| OFFICE | NAME | TERM |
| Governor | Mitt Romney | 2003 – 2007 |
| Lt. Governor | Kerry Healey | 2003 – 2007 |
| Commonwealth Development | Douglas I. Foy Andrew Gottlieb |
2003 – 2006 2006 – 2007 |
| Transportation* | Daniel A. Grabauskas John Cogliano |
2003 – 2005 2005 – 2007 |
| Housing & Community Development* | Jane Wallis Gumble | 1996 – 2007 |
| Environmental Affairs* | Ellen Roy Herzfelder Stephen Pritchard Robert W. Golledge, Jr. |
2003 – 2005 2005 – 2006 2006 – 2007 |
| Economic Development | Robert Pozen Ranch C. Kimball |
2003 – 2004 2004 – 2007 |
| Consumer Affairs & Business Regulation** | Beth Lindstrom Janice S. Tatarka |
2003 – 2006 2006 – 2007 |
| Business & Technology** | Barbara Berke Renee Fry Deborah Shufrin |
2003 – 2005 2005 – 2006 2006 – 2007 |
| Workforce Development** | Jane C. Edmonds | 2003 – 2007 |
| Health and Human Services | Ron Preston Timothy R. Murphy |
2003 – 2004 2005 – 2007 |
| Elder Affairs | Jennifer Davis Carey | 2003 – 2007 |
| Labor | Angelo R. Buonopane Gayl Mileszko |
2003 – 2005 2006 – 2007 |
| Administration & Finance | Eric Kriss Thomas Trimarco |
2003 – 2005 2005 – 2007 |
| Veterans' Services | Thomas G. Kelley | 2003 – 2007 |
| Public Safety & Homeland Security | Edward A. Flynn Robert C. Haas |
2003 – 2006 2006 – 2007 |
* reports to Commonwealth Development
** reports to Economic Development
Source: www.mass.gov
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Argeo Paul Cellucci |
Massachusetts Republican Party gubernatorial candidate 2002 (won) |
Succeeded by Kerry Healey |
| Preceded by Jane Swift (as Acting Governor) |
Governor of Massachusetts January 2, 2003 - January 4, 2007 |
Succeeded by Deval Patrick |