Romney takes a careful tack

Governor Mitt Romney announced yesterday that he will lead the Bay State team working to reelect President Bush, but he made it clear he's reluctant to criticize Bush's Democratic opponent, Massachusetts Senator John F. Kerry, or even Kerry's colleague, Senator Edward M. Kennedy.

Far from establishing himself as Bush's attack dog in Massachusetts, Romney offered several compliments for Kerry even as he critiqued him, at one point praising Kerry's military service in order to critique his record in the Senate.

"Senator Kerry is a fine person. I enjoy him socially. I enjoy to chat with him and to interact," Romney told a small crowd of Republican supporters at the Seaport Hotel in South Boston. But "while he was distinguished in the jungles of Vietnam, I haven't seen him distinguish himself in the jungles of the United States Senate."

Romney, who relied on thousands of Democratic voters for his 2002 election, faces the dilemma of trying to stump aggressively for Bush without alienating Massachusetts residents who are expected to overwhelmingly back Kerry in the fall election.

In attempting to show how Kerry has fallen short as a senator, Romney went out of his way to laud Kennedy for fighting to make sure that Hanscom Air Force Base is not closed and for lobbying the federal government to protect citizens living in subsidized housing.

"I believe Senator Kennedy's been an effective senator," said Romney, who lost to Kennedy in 1994. "Even though we disagree on issues time and again, we also come together and work together for the best of the people of the Commonwealth."

Recently, Kennedy and Romney have been working together to find a compromise plan for maintaining and operating the new Rose Kennedy Greenway, which will replace the elevated Central Artery in downtown Boston.

Romney did get around to taking aim at Kerry, saying the state's junior senator has paled in comparison to Kennedy as a clear-voiced advocate for Massachusetts' citizens. He also said that Kerry "stands on both sides of most issues," a frequent refrain from Republicans during the still-young campaign.

"As I look at the major initiatives that have been won or lost over the past decade or two that he's been in Washington, I don't see him as one of those who's been a champion," Romney said of Kerry. "And as I think about the kind of leadership our nation needs at a time when we are under attack militarily and under attack economically, we need to have the kind of leadership that is clear and that is strong."

Romney conceded that he and Bush do not see eye to eye on all issues, but hastened to add that Bush has staked out definitive positions on a host of issues and thus "is a man who you know exactly where he stands." Asked later which issues he disagrees with Bush on, Romney quipped, "I've got a full list here," holding up a binder, "but that would not be good for him nor good for me, so I won't go down that course.

"But no one is ever going to agree 100 percent with every other political leader. . . . But one thing's very clear: This president and his policies are leading this country in the right direction, and John Kerry and his policies will take us in the wrong direction."

Michael Meehan, senior advisor to the Kerry campaign, brushed aside Romney's criticism and compliments alike. "We'll let the voters decide," he said.