Its no secret that the media has spent the last several months going out of its way to dig up everything and anything it could find on Mitt Romney (remember the days spent analyzing the ethics of putting a dog on the roof of a car). Well, Glenn was fed up with the media’s inability to tell Americans the truth about Romney, so he asked his staff at TheBlaze to go out and find the stories about Romney the media isn’t covering.
It’s become more and more evident that Romney isn’t the kind of guy who goes around talking about all the good he has done, so on tonight’s program, Glenn chose to invite some of the people whose lives were changed for the better by Romney, many of whom had never even met him, so that Americans could get the real story on the Republican presidential candidate.
Glenn first sat down with the Nixon Family, whose two sons, Reed and Rob, were paralyzed in a car crash on their way home from a youth event at their church. It was a horrific crash that landed the children in different hospitals, and it took six months for Reed and Rob to complete their rehab and return home. Soon after they got home, Stuart and Sheryl Nixon, Rob and Reed’s parents, received a phone call from Mitt Romney. While the Nixon’s were not well acquainted with Romney, they knew one another through the Mormon community. Romney could have cut a check or sent some presents, but instead he asked to come over to the Nixon’s home. Mitt, Ann, and three of his sons, visited the Nixon’s on Christmas Eve, bringing along gifts for the entire family. It was a special moment, but it didn’t stop there. Romney went on to regularly attended benefits and fundraisers for the boys, and ultimately paid for both Reed and Rob to attend the college of their choice. Perhaps unsurprisingly, this story has never made it in the headlines, but it says more about Romney’s character than a policy or platform ever could.
Watch the Nixon’s share their story below:
Next, Glenn spoke to Bryce Clark, who, like Glenn, struggled with drug and alcohol addictions throughout his young life. Unlike Glenn, Clark was a member of the Mormon Church from birth, and the community would not tolerate such addictions. As it came time for Clark to embark on his mission, he had to meet with Romney, his state president (similar to a Catholic cardinal), to discuss his plans. Clark admitted to Glenn that he lied throughout his interview with Romney, not letting on to his personal struggles that kept him from feeling like he was worthy of going on a mission. That night at 11 o’clock, Clark realized he needed to come clean. Clark went to visit with Romney who did not fault him for his actions, but rather told him that he “was not alone.” Clark credits this moment as one that “changed the paradigm of his life.” It was not easy for him to overcome his addictions and demons, but Romney continued to be a part of his recovery: writing him letters and ultimately attending the blessing of Clark’s first child several years later. While the New York Times did cover Clark’s story, they refrained from publishing or referencing the many hand-written letters Romney had sent Clark over the years.
See one of the letters, and Clark share his story here:
Earlier this week on radio, Glenn previewed the story of Ken Smith, director of Boston veteran’s shelter, whose organization benefited from Romney’s generosity. During his 1994 run for Senate in Massachusetts, Romney visited Smith’s shelter to tour the property and get a better understanding of their financial situation. Smith recalled that Ted Kennedy, Romney’s opposition, stopped by for a quick tour lasting no more than 30 to 45 minutes, but Romney spent 45 minutes with Smith just looking at the organization's books before embarking on a tour of the facilities. There was a great deal of press at the walk through and on his way out, Romney asked Smith what his biggest problem was. Smith told Romney it was a lack of milk, to which Romney responded, “Well maybe you should teach them [the veterans] how to milk cows.” Needless to say, the press had a field day with the gaffe, and the following day Romney called Smith to apologize. The following Friday, the milkman arrived as usual with 7,000 pints of milk, only this time the bill for that milk was half price. When Smith inquired as to why the milk was less expensive, the man would not tell him. Two years later, on the milkman’s last day before retirement, he finally told Smith that it was Romney who picked up the tab for the milk. Again, where is the media’s coverage of a story like this?
Smith explains Romney’s charity below:
Finally, Glenn sat down with Reed Fisher, who lost his home in a fire. Fisher’s son Ethan was friendly with Romney’s son Matt because they lived nearby. In the days and weeks following the fire, the community came to the Fisher’s aid - helping them to remove debris from their property and helping to get their lives back in order. After things began to die down, Ethan received a call from Matt Romney, asking if it would be okay for him to come over and continue to help. Fisher came home a few days later to find four people out in front of his house working on breaking down the trunk of pine tree that had burned in the fire. More surprisingly, Fisher found Mitt and Matt Romney participating in the cleanup effort. Romney was campaigning in the area and chose to take the morning off to help the Fisher’s in their time of need. There was no press coverage of these actions, and it did little or nothing to further his campaign, but that didn’t stop Romney from lending a hand.
Watch the whole interview with Fisher below:
You may or may not have known these stories about Romney, and this may or may not change the way you vote, but it will hopefully change the way you think about this decent man. “Vote for Romney or don’t vote for him,” Glenn said at the end of the show. “It doesn’t matter to me. What I hope you take out of this is: ‘I could do better.’”
