Yesterday was a good day to be a West Virginia Republican. Kanawha County played host to the very first declared Republican presidential candidate to visit our state, Governor Mitt Romney. His speech at the Kanawha County Lincoln Day Dinner was as good as stump speeches go and while one should never make their decision on whistle-stop addresses, he raised several points worthy of consideration.

He started, of course, with the obligatory recognitions of different Republican leaders, calling them by first name as if they were all old friends. Then there was the warm-hearted anecdote that endeared the crowd. But once Mitt Romney finished with the content typical in every speech giver from President to mayor, he dealt with several controversial issues head on.

He began by mentioning the various problems facing our country today and how there are two ways of addressing it: the Democratic way or the Reagan/Republican way. The Democrats choose to turn to government programs, Romney said, as the solution while Republicans believe that small government and lower taxes is the way to go.

Romney then addressed the ballooning size of government and how it is increasingly inefficient and how he would reduce our dependence on foreign oil until we “have all the resources in our country to be energy independent.”

He discussed our growing illegal immigrant problem and how he will secure the borders and create employment verification.

As he began closing he said, “When facing challenges, folks say we must turn to the source of our strength.” Democrats, Romney said, say the source of our strength is the government. He believes our source of strength is the people.

We “strengthen the people” not only by lowering taxes, reducing the size of government, and a building vibrant economy, but also through a strong family. A strong family is created by “making sure we have a mom and a dad in each home,” Romney said. “I am concerned when I see so many kids born out of wedlock. It is important that we stress that marriage comes first and kids come later.” Romney stressed how the United States is affected by what happens within the four walls of a home.

While I still have my doubts about Romney, I walked away satisfied with his performance. Talk is cheap and stump speeches are just words – the most worthless commodity known to man. But while he did not mention it directly, I feel Mitt Romney has a correct understanding of the role of government.

All in all, it was a great event.

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Kudos to the Kanawha County Republicans and especially their fearless leader, Melody Potter, for putting on a very successful Lincoln Day dinner.