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Much Republican love for Congressional candidate Mia Love
By Catholic Online (NEWS CONSORTIUM)
August 30th, 2012
Catholic Online (www.catholic.org)
August 30th, 2012
Catholic Online (www.catholic.org)
"Mr. President, I'm here to tell you the American people are awake and we're not buying what you're selling in 2012," Utah Congressional candidate Mia Love told the crowd at the Republican convention in Tampa, Florida. With African-American support for Mitt Romney at 0.0 percent, Love represents the small, but growing presence of blacks in the Republican Party.
LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - The 36-year-old daughter of Haitian immigrants, if Love should win, she will be the first-ever black Republican woman to win a seat in Congress.Love told of her parents' journey to the U.S., saying they arrived with only $10 in their pockets.
"The America I grew up knowing was centered in self-reliance and filled with the possibilities of living the American dream," Love, the mayor of Saratoga Springs, Utah said.
"Our story has been told over 200 years, with small steps and giant leaps, from a woman on a bus to a man with a dream," she said.
She took president Obama to task, calling his version of America a divided one, one that pits people against one another "based on income level, gender and social status."
"We are not better off than we were four years ago and no rhetoric, bumper sticker or Hollywood campaign ad can change that," she said.
She also said that the American dream is not just her story, or President Obama's story but "our story." Love said it's possible to restore and revive the American story. "The world will know it, our children will tell it, and our grandchildren will possess it for years to come," she said.
Love is a conservative and a convert to Mormonism. She's currently challenging Democratic Rep. Jim Matheson, a six-term incumbent. Her exposure at the convention could give her a boost.
She is also a favorite of tea-party and conservative Republicans for her groundbreaking role in state politics as Utah's first black woman to become a mayor.
Her speech lasted only a few minutes but she was an instant hit, drawing numerous ovations, even chants of "U-S-A."
Love took office as mayor of Saratoga Springs two years ago and has received a lot of support from top Republicans.
Arizona Sen. John McCain and House Speaker John Boehner made recent stops in Utah to help her raise money, and she was endorsed by Ann Romney, the wife of GOP presumptive presidential nominee Mitt Romney. Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice plans to give Love another boost September 7.
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