Backing Mitt Romney(Part 5)…

Ah, where to go next in discussing Mitt Romney’s record and stances?  Oh yeah!  Tort reform and school choice.  Two issues that are important, but usually go by the way side in elective politics.  Two issues that are difficult for a politician to take on and to be honest usually that’s our fault.  This is a message that does not get communicated enough.  We need to apply conservative principles to these two issues and I’m going to talk about Mitt Romney’s stance in these areas. 

Governor Romney is on record supporting charter schools, school vouchers, and home schooling.  He really did focus more towards charter schools during his tenure as Governor.  He pushed to eliminate a state cap on the number of charter schools(why would there be a cap on this sort of thing in the first place?  Oh yeah it’s Massachusetts) and successfully vetoed a delay on the opening of new charter schools in the state.  Good he’s leaning towards more private education, but this is just a very small step in the direction we need to go.   Acknowledging that fact it was probably more wise of him to spend political capital on more attainable goals.  However, we need to go much further than these schools that are still publicly funded.  Where I disagree with Romney is as a Governor he has warmed up more to the department of education.  Before he became Governor he believed it needed to be abolished.  Alas, such is the total republican party flip it seems once they reach the legislative or executive levels of the government. 

 Romney has always been a strong proponent of tort reform.  He supported capping personal injury claims in automobile related cases and advocated for overhauling the state’s ridiculous malpractice system.  Massachusetts is known for having some of the highest malpractice insurance rates in the country.  Translation: Doctors are leaving the state.  I promise you that’s not a good thing although I don’t see liberals complaining about THEIR insurance rates.  Figures.  I can imagine this was a thorn in the side of the liberals in that state.  In 2006 Governor Romney proposed specific tort reforms such as reducing lawyer fees from 25% for verdicts over $500,000 to 15% for verdicts over $600,000.  Ah, this takes incentive down to go to court over everything.  Usually people go to court based on bad information given to them by attorneys.  He also proposed to tighten the states tribunal system so that only the most deserving malpractice cases go to trial.  I will freely admit that is a bit too open for interpretation for me personally, but the idea is right.  One proposal of his I do like very much is to reduce lawsuits by allowing doctors to disclose medical errors without fear of admissibility in court.  Folks, it’s time we started getting in the corners of our doctors in this country.  They are people and they make mistakes just like everyone else.  We need to give them more freedom in helping their patients without fear of malpractice lawsuits(you listening John Edwards?).  We need to come back to the table and be reasonable.  Doctors by vast majority are compassionate people that want to help their fellow man.  I believe some of Governor Romney’s tort reform proposals would go a long way in achieving a better doctor-patient relationship.