Putting Repeal First

After another strong debate performance on Thursday night, Mitt Romney is now the Republican frontrunner. He has consistently been the most prepared, articulate, and presidential of the leading candidates, and he increasingly looks like the best bet from among the current field to defeat President Obama. But the upcoming election isn’t just about beating Obama, as important as that is. It’s also about electing someone who will sweep away his statist agenda before it takes root.

The other leading Republican candidates have left little doubt about the strength of their commitment to repealing the centerpiece of that agenda: Obamacare. Rick Perry says, “The first thing that the new president, and the new Congress, needs to do is abolish that — is repeal Obamacare,” which Perry calls “the greatest intrusion on individual freedom in a generation.” Michele Bachmann declares point-blank, “My number one priority is to repeal Obamacare.” And Ron Paul, who calls Obamacare “monstrous,” says, “I want to repeal the whole government” — so it seems a safe bet that he’d also be willing to push hard for the repeal of President Obama’s signature legislation.

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