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Hayes: Romney's Emotion, Cont.

8:16 AM, Dec 18, 2007 • By STEPHEN F. HAYES
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After Mitt Romney's much-anticipated speech on religion, I wrote that the speech worked not so much because of what Romney said but how he said it:

The speech was effective for an altogether unpredictable reason. Romney became emotional as he delivered it. One problem many conservatives have had with Romney is that he can seem too programmed, too perfect. His campaign runs like a well-oiled machine, his speeches seem designed to appeal to just the right constituency at just the right time, his hair looks like LEGO-hair, his family is beautiful. He can come off as something of an automaton.

But his emotion today seemed real, not of the Bill Clinton bite-your-lower-lip variety. And that could end up helping him.

Many other (far more influential) people praised Romney for showing some emotion, too. And since then he has become emotional twice more - once on Meet the Press this weekend and again during a speech yesterday.

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