Romney Declares ’08 Candidacy in Michigan

DEARBORN, Mich., Feb. 13 — Mitt Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts, came to the state where he was born this morning to declare his candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination, and became the latest presidential candidate to position himself as an outsider running against Washington.

“We are weary of the bickering and bombast, we’re fatigued by the posturing and self-promotion,” Mr. Romney said, standing at the Henry Ford Museum here. “For even as America faces a new generation of challenges, the halls of government are clogged with petty politics and stuffed with peddlers of influence.”
“I do not believe Washington can be transformed from within by a lifelong politician,” he said. “There have been too many deals, too many favors, too many entanglements and too little real world experience managing, guiding, leading.”