Editor's Note:  Jason Downey is a Partner at Carr Downey, Attorneys-At-Law in Macon, GA.  Jason graduated from Marshall University and was Vice President of the College Republicans while at Marshall.  He graduated, from Mercer University Law and is an alumni of the Youth Leadership School at the Leadership Institute in Arlington, VA. 

Yes, I’m THAT guy. In the land of Herman Cain and Newt Gingrich, deep in the South, where the red of the state stains like fresh blood on the national map, I am a Mitt Romney supporter. While my fellow Republicans and conservatives around me here in Georgia throw their support behind Newt Gingrich (now that Herman Cain has suspended his campaign), I remain the voice (of reason) for Romney.

I feel very strongly about Ronald Reagan’s Eleventh Commandment, “Thou shalt not speak ill of any fellow Republican.” Therefore, you’ll rarely hear me speak critically of any other Republican candidate for President in 2012. Further, I’ve pledged that I will support whomever wins the Republican Nomination, whether it be Newt, Bachmann, Perry, Santorum, Paul (God help us), or Romney. Unfortunately, there are supporters of other candidates who have point blank told me, “If Romney is our nominee, I will NOT support him.” I quickly fire back, “So then, you’ll vote for Obama?” They usually mumble, “Nah, I just won’t vote, I guess.” And ladies and gentlemen, this seems to be wherein the problem lies. After all, the common goal is to oust President Obama from the White House, correct? I simply believe that Romney is the best choice for that to occur. Here’s why:

First, Romney is the only viable candidate with executive experience from his days as Governor of Massachusetts. Why is this important, you may ask? Well, let’s take a look at Romney’s time while serving as Governor of one of the most liberal states in the Union. (After all, there’s a reason it’s earned its name as “Taxachussetts”.) For starters, Romney received 50% of the popular vote in his 2003 bid for Governor of Massachusetts, at a time when the state had 13% of its registered voters claim they were Republican. This is critical because it means that Romney can appeal to moderates and Democrats in a general election. After all, if the voters of Massachusetts voted strictly down party lines, no Republican would ever be able to be elected Governor there. Nonetheless, Massachusetts had a history in the mid to late 1990s of electing Republican Governors. As we look to 2012, it is important that we as a party look beyond our own party’s voting base for success in the General Election against Barack Obama. For a Republican to defeat President Obama in his re-election bid, we must appeal to independents, moderates and even some Democrats (who I will identify as fiscal conservatives, social moderate/liberals). Romney showed in 2003 that he can do that, being a Red Governor in one of the Bluest of Blue States.

This leads me to my second point: I firmly believe that Romney is the ONLY Republican candidate who will be able to beat President Obama in November’s General Election. Romney has proven that he can appeal to the moderate and independent voter (and perhaps occasional Democrat). Without specifically calling out certain Republican candidates currently vying for the Party’s nomination, I will say simply that other candidates will not perform as strongly as Romney would against the President. National Polls even support this assertion: The ABC News/Washington Post Poll of December 15-December 18, 2011 shows Romney and the President in a hypothetical tie; Public Policy Polling’s Poll of December 16-December 18, 2011 shows Romney with a 2 point lead over Obama; the rest of the polls show Obama with virtually a negligible lead. No other Republican candidate comes as close as Romney in hypothetical national polls against the President. For the Republican Party to win in November 2012, there must be an outreach beyond the Republican Party. Romney has the track record of attracting those voters, and will be the best candidate to make that happen in the General Election.

Romney also has the credentials as a successful businessman in the private sector to attack the President’s failed economic ideas and regulations. When Romney took over as Governor of Massachusetts, he inherited a significant deficit that was paid down under his watch. Romney’s tax plan is right for the Middle Class in America- keep the Bush Presidency Income Tax Rates, eliminate the Death Tax, and reduce corporate tax rates to allow for more job growth. He also wants to pursue a Balanced Budget Amendment for the Federal Government, and decrease the size of said government by 10% through attrition. His plans are traditionally conservative- he does not come from the tax-and-spend way of thinking. A vote for Romney is a solidly conservative vote for President.

Supporters of other candidates see fit to criticize Romney for a variety of reasons. They do not take the Eleventh Amendment to heart, despite saying they are true Reaganites. Romney is labeled as a RINO- Republican in Name Only. I reject this notion and challenge others to explain to me why this is the case. For starters, labeling someone as a RINO when they don’t conform to individual beliefs and one supports another candidates is an easy, cheap way out of a solid debate. Criticisms of Romney have called out that he supported abortion rights and enacted a statewide healthcare system that is similar to ObamaCare. However, Romney has never outright stated that he was ever pro-choice on the issue of abortion. (for the sake of saving time, please check out how many people get the facts on Romney’s abortion views, and many other social issues, dead wrong at www.WhyRomney.com). God forbid any individual have a change of heart on a topic such as this. Does that make him a RINO? Also, just because Romney was the Governor of a liberal state doesn’t make him liberal.

I’ve listed just a handful of reasons why Romney is the right candidate. If I wrote all of the arguments for him, I’d be writing for weeks (and would missing the early caucuses and primaries!) Critics of Romney claim that his Mormonism will be a hindrance in November; that evangelicals will not vote for him. Seriously? Yes, evangelicals will vote for Romney when the alternative is Obama, a President that evangelicals believe is an “Ungodly” President. And if there are really people in our Republican Party who say they will not vote in the election if Romney is the nominee, then they should either 1) convert to the Democratic Party, 2) break off and form a new Party, or 3) move to another country.

However, our Party is better than that, aren’t we? We will rally behind our Party’s candidate to ensure President Obama’s defeat, won’t we? We will go door to door, and knock; we will put out yard signs; we will phone bank; we will financially support our Party’s candidate. Won’t we?

Then we will welcome President Mitt Romney.