The text of my email:

I received the Economists for Romney petition and added my name because I had decided to vote for Romney and thought for what it was worth I would add my name to the petition as a way of supporting his candidacy. I do think of Romney and Ryan as pragmatic problem solvers whom I think will be more likely to come to grips, than would a second Obama administration, with the long term implications of the enormous structural deficit, a problem Obama intensified by pushing through, without sufficient bipartisan support, an inadequately understood health care plan. But my opposition to the reelection of Obama, whom I did not vote for last time around, is based primarily on issues other than economic issues, and my willingness to sign the statement was based more on these other factors than the specific economic content of the statement. Although since I did think the economic content deserved serious consideration in the upcoming election I decided I would sign it. For these reasons I’m prepared to be part of a panel that explained and defended the case for Romney and Ryan on the basis of economic policy. I’d have to spend more time preparing than I will have available both now and once classes begin. In light of this, perhaps I should not have signed the statement before I had thoroughly convinced myself that I fully supported all elements of the statement.

My support for Romney is based primarily in my opposition to Obama’s presidency and that opposition is based in the first instance, on my strong interest in the pro life issue, and the fact that Obama when he was a candidate last time around (and nothing has changed for the better in this regard in my view) was completely unacceptable from my pro life perspective. If you are interested in this perspective of mine i can explain my view in more detail. I also think it is important to support natural marriage in our law and public policy, and the fact that the Obama Justice Department would not defend challenges to the Defense of Marriage Act (passed with strong bipartisan support in both Houses of Congress and signed into law by President Clinton) on the basis of the reasons Congress had for enacting the law, has reinforced my opposition to Obama. And in the run up to the enactment of the Affordable Care Act the Obama administration persistently took the position of groups such as NARAL causing life long Democrats like me to conclude that the Democratic party had no place for us. I can add to this the current Obama confrontation with First amendment religious liberty rights that is implicit in the HHS mandate on the provision of contraceptives and abortifacients. I have also been particularly concerned about what I regard as the antidemocratic nature of the Independent Payments Advisory Board set up under the Obama health plan as the ultimate way to control health costs. I do not know how much thought you’ve given to this Board, but I believe its structure and operations are contrary to the principles of democratic governance. The decisions of this Board are it seems to me beyond effective democratic control.

Brian’s town-hall idea has more merit than you think.

As for the lovely Ms. Warren, recall my certainty that the cook-book plagiarism (never, as far as I know, denied or refuted) was the final sign that she was DONE: http://www.firstthings.com/blogs/postmodernconservative/2012/05/19/elizabeth-warren-the-low-down-democratic-goodness-of-public-shaming/

2. My concern is that the impact of such things will be limited and all of these people have real jobs. I just don’t think that we should expect too much from elected officials (not too little either.) A lot of the weight will have to be carried by conservative organizations. There is a lot of money out there being wasted on ads that make the rubble bounce in election years and say nothing to the constituencies the center-right needs to win over.

2. How about folks like Paul Ryan, Bobby Jindal, etc., do a series of town-halls and other sorts of events at campuses across the country? Year round, every year, all the time.