The annual Spencer Fox Eccles Convocation address doesn’t pack the house every year, but Mitt Romney is no typical guest speaker.
Students, faculty and local dignitaries filled the auditorium in the Spencer Fox Eccles Business Building, and a live video-stream ran in rooms elsewhere in the business complex as the 2012 Republican nominee for U.S. president, former Massachusetts governor, CEO of the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics and noted businessman discussed America’s role in the world and took questions from audience members.
Mitch Peterson, a MAcc student, was one of those watching the video-stream on the seventh floor of the SFEBB, and he was anticipating an interesting speech.
“I think everyone knows a lot about Mitt Romney, we all watched the debates,” Peterson said. “With his background as a business owner and entrepreneur, I’m interested in what he has to say.”
After brief introductions by Dean Taylor Randall and Spence Eccles, Romney delved into his discussion to much applause while firing up a slide-show used to help illustrate his points.
Romney noted that there are four economic leaders on the world stage, including the United States, China, Russia and “jihadists who have the intent of collapsing other forms of government,” and added that it’s not “written in the stars” that America will always be one of the most powerful countries on Earth. It takes vigilance and action to stay there, he said, and too often the country’s leaders–of both political parties–don’t take the right steps to ensure America’s leadership into the future.
Romney listed several issues in need of attention, a message he said he heard as he met Americans throughout the country during the 2012 campaign. Government regulations are often too onerous for small businesses to flourish, and many in government “don’t understand the nature of competition,” he said. Immigration reform is an issue that all political parties agree needs to be addressed, yet nothing is being done. Climate change is a global problem without a global effort to address it, he said. America’s corporate-tax rate is the “highest in the world,” and the national deficit is a crisis in dire need of action.
“Great things can come from a great economy,” Romney noted, “but we’re making America a more difficult place to do business.”
There were plenty of light moments as well. Romney talked about then-California Gov. Arnold Schwarzeneggar putting up billboards of himself in Massachusetts, “trying to poach jobs from a fellow Republican governor,” then added that he put his own billboards up in California that showed that “my muscles aren’t as big, but our taxes are much lower.”
When asked about running for president again, Romney said he was done running, but that his wife Ann or his son Josh, who was in attendance, would both make good candidates. And he said he enjoyed the experience of his two runs for the White House.
“It was a great experience,” Romney said. “I’ve got to tell you, if you get the chance to run for president, do it.”