Romney: More Jobs, Opportunities

BOSTON--Republican U.S. Senate candidate W. Mitt Romney promised to provide every citizen with an opportunity for a good job at a speech in Boston yesterday evening.

Addressing the League of United Latin American Citizens, Romney told a crowd of about 100 Hispanic-Americans at the Boston World Trade Center that increased economic opportunities will make the United States "great, vibrant and successful."

"I will make sure every American has the opportunity for a good job," he said. "We'll see more kids stay in school because they'll see better jobs after school."

Romney said he will provide jobs by increasing the amount of capital available to both new and existing business.

Romney said many children are leaving school early and going into "careers" such as drug dealing because of a lack of job opportunities. He said more economic opportunity will decrease crime.

"Even if we're very tough, we will not solve the crime problem until we get to the root of the problem: more good jobs," he said.

Romney also told the crowd of Hispanic-Americans that he supports affirmative action and will hire qualified minority staffers.

"I also commit that I will not just have a token Hispanic-American," he said. "I will search across the country and find people of different backgrounds."

Although Romney said he hopes to eliminated many government regulations, he said he will push for companies to publish a list of employees by sex, ethnicity and income in order to increase economic opportunity for all.

"Before we can break through the glass ceiling," he said, "we need to know where it is."

The Latin-American community has typically been viewed as a Democratic stronghold, but they are beginning to move toward the right, said Mercedes L. Barnet, president of Massachusetts Hispanic Republicans.

"Republicans will earn 90 percent of the Hispanic vote," she promised.

She said voters are beginning to tire of incumbent Sen. Edward M. Kennedy '54-'56 because he has taken the support of the Hispanic community for granted.