Mitt and the Mormons

Speculating on what-might-have-beens has kept me thinking a bit lately about Mitt Romney. One issue with his now-ended campaign was Romney’s religion — his Mormonism. I don’t think that his religion kept him from winning primaries, but events in a small town in Texas this week make me wonder.

If you haven’t been following it, 416 children were removed last week from an FLDS (fundamentalist Mormon) compound. There are concerns about under age marriage and sexual abuse within the polygamous FLDS community. The New York Times has extensive information on the matter here.

Romney is by no means associated with the FLDS church, but I think that if this issue had popped up while Romney was still campaigning, I think it would have killed any remaining chances for his candidacy. Guilt by association — and I’m certain that the FLDS community faces plenty more court battles in the next four years — and they have the resources to keep going to court for a while yet. It’s pure luck that Romney didn’t have to tangle with the matter.

I don’t claim to know what Romney’s next step is, but I wouldn’t be surprise if he continues to be active in politics. As legal issues for the FLDS church continue to build up, though, I think Romney’s going to eventually have to find a way to make it clear how far apart he is from that sect.