Earlier this week, Romney faced a surprising rebuke in Colorado, Minnesota, and Missouri when Rick Santorum won all three states, underscoring the challenges Romney faces in securing the support of the country’s evangelicals and Tea Party stalwarts.
Romney has a tough road toward the Republican National Convention this summer in Tampa, Fla., as he continues to face questions about his ability to unite the Republican base.
In his speech to the hundreds of conservatives convening in the nation’s capital, Romney emphasized core principles. He repeated his opposition to abortion and gay marriage several times.
“We conservatives aren’t just proud to cling to our guns and to our religion. We are also proud to cling to our Constitution,” he told the crowd, which applauded enthusiastically.
Romney spoke of his opposition to abortion, his belief that marriage is between a man and a woman, and his experience as a businessman.
“As conservatives, we are united by a set of core commitments. … As we step forward together, now is the time to reaffirm what it means to be a conservative and why this must be our greatest hour.”
Romney used some variation of the word conservative some two-dozen times in the speech, which followed an address by rival Rick Santorum this morning. Newt Gingrich gets his shot later this afternoon.
In a veiled dig at Santorum, Romney criticized “any politician who tries to convince you that they hated Washington so much that they just couldn’t leave, well, that’s the same politician who will try to sell you a bridge to nowhere.”
Santorum is a former senator from Pennsylvania and Romney has criticized him for voting in favor of the so-called “bridge to nowhere” in Alaska that now serves as a poster child for a congressional tradition of pork barrel earmarks tucked into legislation.
“I am the only candidate in this race, Republican or Democrat, who has never worked a day in Washington,’’ he added, attempting to burnish his outsider credentials. “I don’t have old scores to settle or decades of cloakroom deals to defend.’’
But Romney reserved most of his barbs for Obama.
“I know this president and his liberal allies will attack me for leading where he has failed,” Romney said.
“He will attack us with the usual fear tactics, but we will remind Americans that during this president’s term we have seen record high job losses and record home foreclosures. We will not be lectured to on values by the man whose ineptitude and failure has created so much unnecessary pain for our fellow Americans.”
Bobby Caina Calvan can be reached at bobby.calvan@globe.com.
