Mitt Romney

===College, France mission, marriage, and children===
[[File:Nixon Contact Sheet WHPO-1542 (cropped1).jpg|thumb|right|Mitt Romney and [[Ann Romney]] with [[George W. Romney|George Romney]] and [[Lenore Romney]] at the White House in 1969]]
Romney attended [[Stanford University]] during the 1965–1966 academic year.<ref name="bgseries1" /> He was not part of the [[counterculture of the 1960s]] then taking form in the [[San Francisco Bay Area]].<ref name="bgseries1" /> As [[opposition to United States involvement in the Vietnam War]] grew, a group staged a May 1966 [[sit-in]] at Stanford's administration building to demonstrate against draft status tests; Romney joined a counterprotest against that group.<ref name="bgseries1" /><ref name="cbs-rcp-stan">{{cite news|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/at-stanford-romney-got-his-bearings-in-a-year-of-change/|title=At Stanford, Romney got his bearings in a year of change|first1=Scott|last1=Conroy|first2=Laura|last2=Strickler|work=[[CBS News]]|date=June 7, 2012|access-date=April 17, 2020|archive-date=January 13, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200113083653/https://www.cbsnews.com/news/at-stanford-romney-got-his-bearings-in-a-year-of-change/|url-status=live}}</ref> He continued to enjoy occasional pranks.{{#tag:ref|Pranks conducted by Romney during his Stanford years included dressing as a police officer and pretending to arrest people<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/news/politics/2012/06/23/mitt-romney-impersonation-police-officer-high-school-and-college/3jTRhzcmp1C4XT70s1PbmK/story.html|title=Mitt Romney's prankster ways continued in college|first=Michael|last=Kranish|author-link=Michael Kranish|newspaper=[[The Boston Globe]]|date=June 24, 2012|access-date=June 21, 2017|archive-date=August 29, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170829080908/https://www.bostonglobe.com/news/politics/2012/06/23/mitt-romney-impersonation-police-officer-high-school-and-college/3jTRhzcmp1C4XT70s1PbmK/story.html|url-status=live}}</ref> and pre-[[Big Game (American football)|"Big Game"]] customs involving the [[Stanford Axe]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.stanforddaily.com/2012/08/22/mitt-romney-led-the-charge-as-a-big-game-prankster-in-1965/|title=Mitt Romney led the charge as a Big Game prankster in 1965|newspaper=[[The Stanford Daily]]|date=August 22, 2012|first=Edward|last=Ngai|access-date=August 27, 2012|archive-date=August 25, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120825235905/http://www.stanforddaily.com/2012/08/22/mitt-romney-led-the-charge-as-a-big-game-prankster-in-1965/|url-status=live}}</ref>|group="nb"}}

In July 1966, he began a 30-month stint in France as a [[Mormon missionary]],<ref name="bgseries1" /><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.boston.com/news/politics/2008/specials/romney/gallery/romney_france?pg=3|title=The Making of Mitt Romney: Part 2: Photo 3|newspaper=[[The Boston Globe]]|access-date=March 17, 2011|date=June 18, 2007|archive-date=June 29, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629024557/http://www.boston.com/news/politics/2008/specials/romney/gallery/romney_france?pg=3|url-status=live}}</ref> a traditional rite of passage in his family.{{#tag:ref|Mitt's great-grandfather, grandfather, father, and two uncles had been missionaries,<ref>Mahoney, ''The Story of George Romney'', pp. 73–74.</ref> as had his brother, Scott.<ref name="nyt-searching" /> He did briefly consider breaking with tradition and not going on a mission<ref>Kranish; Helman, ''The Real Romney'', p. 63.</ref> (and he had successfully been rushed by the [[Phi Kappa Sigma]] fraternity at Stanford, for sophomore year membership).<ref name="cbs-rcp-stan" /> But he did go, and all five of Mitt's sons later served as missionaries as well.<ref name="hewitt-82">Hewitt, ''A Mormon in the White House?'', pp. 81–82.</ref>|group="nb"}} He arrived in [[Le Havre]], where he shared cramped quarters under meager conditions.<ref name="bgseries2" /><ref name="nyt-searching" /> Rules against drinking, smoking, and dating were strictly enforced.<ref name="bgseries2" />

On average, individual Mormon missionaries do not gain many converts{{#tag:ref|Based on figures from 1971 to 2010, the average Mormon gets only 4–8 baptism converts to the faith per year during a mission.<ref>{{cite book|first=David G. Jr. |last=Stewart|year=2007|title=The Law of the Harvest: Practical Principles of Effective Missionary Work|publisher=Cumorah Foundation|location=Henderson, Nevada|isbn=978-0-9795121-0-0}}</ref> The church succeeds in expanding by having huge numbers of missionaries, so that the small number of conversions from each one add up.<ref>{{cite book |title=Building the Kingdom: A History of Mormons in America |url=https://archive.org/details/buildingkingdomh0000bush |url-access=registration |first1=Claudia Lauper|last1=Bushman|author-link=Claudia Lauper Bushman|first2=Richard Lyman|last2=Bushman|author-link2=Richard Bushman|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|location=New York|year=2001|isbn=978-0-19-515022-3|page=[https://archive.org/details/buildingkingdomh0000bush/page/97 97]}}</ref>|group="nb"}} and Romney was no exception:<ref name="nyt-searching" /> he later estimated 10 to 20 for his entire mission.<ref>Kranish; Helman, ''The Real Romney'', p. 69.</ref>{{#tag:ref|Romney's task was complicated by proselytizing for a [[Word of Wisdom|religion that prohibits alcohol]] in a [[French wine|country known for it]].<ref name="bgseries2" /> He reflected upon this in 2002: "As you can imagine, it's quite an experience to go to Bordeaux and say, 'Give up your wine! I've got a great religion for you!{{' "}}<ref name="nykr2002" />|group="nb"}} He initially became demoralized and later recalled it as the only time when "most of what I was trying to do was rejected."<ref name="nyt-searching">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/15/us/politics/15romney.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071117095728/http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/15/us/politics/15romney.html |archive-date=November 17, 2007 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Romney, Searching and Earnest, Set His Path in '60s|author=Kirkpatrick, David D.|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=November 15, 2007|page=A1}}</ref>

Romney soon gained recognition within the mission for the many homes he called on and the repeat visits he was granted.<ref name="bgseries2" /> He became a zone leader in [[Bordeaux]] in early 1968, and soon thereafter became an assistant to the [[mission president]] in Paris.<ref name="bgseries2" /><ref name="nyt-searching" /><ref name="tlgh-paris" /> While in Paris, Romney resided at the Mission Home for several months, and enjoyed a mansion far more comfortable than the accommodations he experienced elsewhere in the country.<ref name="tlgh-paris">{{cite news|last1=Samuel|first1=Henry|last2=Swaine|first2=Jon|title=Mitt Romney's life as a poor Mormon missionary in France questioned|newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]]|date=December 15, 2011|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-politics/8959440/US-election-2012-Mitt-Romneys-life-as-a-poor-Mormon-missionary-in-France-questioned.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111216023502/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-politics/8959440/US-election-2012-Mitt-Romneys-life-as-a-poor-Mormon-missionary-in-France-questioned.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=December 16, 2011}}</ref>

When the French expressed opposition to the U.S. role in the [[Vietnam War]], Romney debated them. Those who yelled at him and slammed their doors in his face merely reinforced his resolve.<ref name="bgseries2" /><ref name="nyt-searching" />

{{multiple image
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| image1 = Romney Great for '68.jpg
| alt1 = 1968 campaign poster showing a smiling George Romney
| caption1 = Mitt's father [[George W. Romney|George]] (pictured here in a 1968 poster) lost the Republican presidential nomination to [[Richard M. Nixon]] and later was appointed to the [[Nixon cabinet and appointments|Nixon cabinet]].
| image2 = Lenore Romney for U.S. Senate.jpg
| alt2 = campaign button advocating Lenore Romney for U. S. Senate
| caption2 = Mitt's mother Lenore, promoted here on a button, lost a Senate race in 1970. Mitt worked for her campaign.
}}

In June 1968, while in southern France and driving an automobile that was hit by another vehicle, Romney was seriously injured. The crash killed one of his passengers, the wife of the mission president.{{#tag:ref|On June 16, 1968, Romney and five fellow Mormons were traveling on dangerous roads in southern France.<ref name="bgseries1" /><ref name="wapo-mission">{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/09/AR2007120901473.html|title=A Mission Accepted|author=Saslow, Eli|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|date=December 10, 2007|access-date=September 5, 2017|archive-date=December 25, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171225011259/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/09/AR2007120901473.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="bg-accident" /> As they drove through the village of [[Bernos-Beaulac]], a [[Mercedes-Benz|Mercedes]] that was passing a truck missed a curve and swerved into the opposite lane hitting the [[Citroën DS]] Romney was driving [[head-on collision|head-on]].<ref name="bgseries1" /><ref name="lexpress.fr">{{Cite news|url=http://www.lexpress.fr/info/monde/dossier/usa2008/diaporama.asp?id=464805|title=La jeunesse française de Mitt Romney|newspaper=[[L'Express (France)|L'Express]]|date=January 23, 2008|language=fr|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080130005110/http://www.lexpress.fr/info/monde/dossier/usa2008/diaporama.asp?id=464805|archive-date=January 30, 2008}}</ref> Trapped between the steering wheel and door, the unconscious Romney had to be pried from the car; a French police officer mistakenly wrote ''Il est mort'' in his passport.<ref name="bgseries1" /><ref name="ap-2007-prof" /><ref name="bg-accident" /> Besides killing the wife of the mission president, the other four passengers were seriously injured.<ref name="bg-accident" /> George Romney relied on his friend [[Sargent Shriver]], the [[U.S. Ambassador to France]], to go to the local hospital and discover that his son had survived.<ref name="ap-2007-prof" /> Mitt Romney, who was not at fault in the accident,<ref name="nyt-searching" /><ref name="bg-accident">{{cite news|author=Paulson, Michael|url=https://www.boston.com/news/politics/2008/specials/romney/articles/part1_side/|title=The Making of Mitt Romney: Survivors recall tragic car crash in France with Romney at the wheel|newspaper=[[The Boston Globe]]|date=June 24, 2007|author-link=Michael Paulson|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101020133426/http://www.boston.com/news/politics/2008/specials/romney/articles/part1_side/?page=full |archive-date=October 20, 2010}} Also available as {{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/24/world/europe/24iht-24Romney.6300715.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111120031921/http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/24/world/europe/24iht-24Romney.6300715.html |archive-date=November 20, 2011 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Survivors recall tragic car crash in France with Romney |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=June 24, 2007 }}</ref> had suffered broken ribs, a fractured arm, a concussion, and facial injuries, but recovered quickly without needing surgery.<ref name="wapo-mission" /><ref name="bg-accident" /> The French police say that they have no records of the incident because such records are routinely destroyed after 10&nbsp;years.<ref name="bg-accident" />|name="nb-acc"|group="nb"}}

Romney then became co-president of a mission that had become demoralized and disorganized after the [[May 1968 events in France|May 1968 general strike and student uprisings]] and the car accident.<ref name="wapo-mission" /> With Romney rallying the others, the mission met its goal of 200 baptisms for the year, the most in a decade.<ref name="wapo-mission" /> By the end of his stint in December 1968, he was overseeing the work of 175 others.<ref name="nyt-searching" /><ref name="bg-accident" /> As a result of his experience there, Romney developed a lifelong affection for France and its people, and has remained fluent in French.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/americas/united-states/120111/mitt-romney-blasts-obama-europe-new-hampshire-speech|title=Mitt Romney blasts Obama, Europe in NH primary victory speech|publisher=[[GlobalPost]]|date=January 11, 2012|access-date=October 11, 2012|archive-date=November 9, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121109043542/http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/americas/united-states/120111/mitt-romney-blasts-obama-europe-new-hampshire-speech|url-status=live}}</ref>

At their first meeting following his return, Romney and Ann Davies reconnected and decided to get married.<ref>Kranish; Helman, ''The Real Romney'', p. 88.</ref> Before their wedding, Romney moved to [[Utah]] and enrolled at [[Brigham Young University]], where Ann had been studying.{{r|horowitz20120218}} They married on March 21, 1969, in a civil ceremony in Bloomfield Hills and the next day, they flew to Utah for a Mormon wedding ceremony at the [[Salt Lake Temple]]; Ann had [[Religious conversion#Latter Day Saint movement|converted to the faith]] while he was away.<ref name="bgseries4">{{Cite news|author=Swidey, Neil|author2=Ebbert, Stephanie|url=https://www.boston.com/news/politics/2008/specials/romney/articles/part4_main/|title=The Making of Mitt Romney: Part 4: Journeys of a shared life: Raising sons, rising expectations bring unexpected turns|newspaper=[[The Boston Globe]]|date=June 27, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100112211501/http://www.boston.com/news/politics/2008/specials/romney/articles/part4_main/|archive-date=January 12, 2010|url-status=live}} Also [https://web.archive.org/web/20121203030413/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-8706571.html available in HighBeam]. Also available as [http://www.deseretnews.com/article/680196334/Romney-determined-to-make-mark-early.html "Romney determined to make mark early"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101102020010/http://www.deseretnews.com/article/680196334/Romney-determined-to-make-mark-early.html |date=November 2, 2010 }}, ''Deseret Morning News'', July 4, 2007.</ref><ref name="nyt-wedding">{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1969/03/22/archives/mitt-romney-marries-ann-davies.html|title=Mitt Romney Marries Ann Davies|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=March 22, 1969|page=37|access-date=July 23, 2018|archive-date=July 23, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180723182352/https://www.nytimes.com/1969/03/22/archives/mitt-romney-marries-ann-davies.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

Romney had missed much of the tumultuous [[Opposition to the U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War|anti-Vietnam War movement in America]] while in France. Upon his return, he was surprised to learn that his father had joined that movement during [[George Romney presidential campaign, 1968|his unsuccessful 1968 presidential campaign]].<ref name="nyt-searching" /> George was now [[George W. Romney#Secretary of Housing and Urban Development|serving in President Richard Nixon's cabinet]] as [[United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development]]. In a June 1970 newspaper profile of children of cabinet members, Mitt said that U.S. involvement in the war had been misguided – "If it wasn't a political blunder to move into Vietnam, I don't know what is" – but supported Nixon's ongoing [[Cambodian Incursion]] as a sincere attempt to end the war.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=SSIrAAAAIBAJ&pg=3426,2026569|title=Generation Gap Reaches to Top|agency=[[Newsweek|Newsweek Feature Service]]|newspaper=[[Reading Eagle]]|date=June 4, 1970|page=32|access-date=February 6, 2020|archive-date=February 26, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210226001627/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=SSIrAAAAIBAJ&pg=3426,2026569|url-status=live}}</ref> During the [[Conscription in the United States|U.S. military draft]] for the Vietnam War, Romney sought and received two [[Class 1-A|2-S student deferments]], then a [[Class 1-A|4-D ministerial deferment]] while living in France as a missionary. He later sought and received two additional student deferments.<ref name="cbs-rcp-stan" /><ref name="bg-draft" /> When those ran out, he drew number 300 in the [[Draft lottery (1969)|December 1969 draft lottery]], ensuring he would not be drafted.<ref name="cbs-rcp-stan" /><ref name="bg-draft">{{cite news|author=Kranish, Michael|url=https://www.boston.com/news/politics/2008/specials/romney/articles/part1_side_2/|title=The Making of Mitt Romney: Mormon church obtained Vietnam draft deferrals for Romney, other missionaries|newspaper=[[The Boston Globe]]|date=June 24, 2007|author-link=Michael Kranish|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091031020120/http://www.boston.com/news/politics/2008/specials/romney/articles/part1_side_2/?page=full|archive-date=October 31, 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sss.gov/LOTTER8.HTM |title=Results from Lottery Drawing&nbsp;– Vietnam Era&nbsp;– 1970 |publisher=[[Selective Service System]] |access-date=March 13, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120915232321/http://www.sss.gov/LOTTER8.HTM |archive-date=September 15, 2012 }}</ref>

At culturally conservative BYU, Romney remained separated from much of the upheaval of that era.<ref name="nyt-searching" />{{r|horowitz20120218}} He became president of the Cougar Club [[Booster club|booster organization]] and showed a newfound discipline in his studies.<ref name="nyt-searching" />{{r|horowitz20120218}} During his senior year, he took a leave of absence to work as driver and [[advance man]] for his mother's unsuccessful U.S. Senate campaign;<ref name="ap-2007-prof" /><ref name="bgseries4" /> together, they visited [[List of counties in Michigan|all 83 Michigan counties]].<ref name="time-dreams">{{cite news|url=http://www.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,2115636,00.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141021232613/http://www.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,2115636,00.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=October 21, 2014|title=Dreams from His Mother|first=Barton|last=Gellman|author-link=Barton Gellman|magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]|date=June 4, 2012}}</ref><ref name="nyt-lessons" /> Romney graduated from BYU in 1971 with a [[Bachelor of Arts]] degree in [[English studies|English]] and a 3.97 [[Grading (education)#United States|GPA]].<ref name="horowitz20120218">{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/mitt-romney-as-a-student-at-a-chaotic-time-for-byu-focused-on-family-church/2012/02/17/gIQABaWaMR_story.html|title=Mitt Romney, as a student at a chaotic time for BYU, focused on family, church|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|date=February 18, 2012|author=Horowitz, Jason|access-date=October 16, 2022|archive-date=November 26, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221126215547/https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/mitt-romney-as-a-student-at-a-chaotic-time-for-byu-focused-on-family-church/2012/02/17/gIQABaWaMR_story.html|url-status=live}}</ref> He gave commencement addresses to both the College of Humanities and the whole of BYU.{{#tag:ref|Some sources incorrectly report that Romney graduated first in his class at BYU. Romney himself has corrected this notion, saying that he didn't. While Romney believes he did have the highest grade point average for his on-campus BYU years in the College of Humanities, he did not if his Stanford record was factored in.<ref name="hewitt-46" />{{r|lamb20060319}}|group="nb"}}

The Romneys' first son, [[Tagg Romney|Taggart]], was born in 1970<ref name="hewitt-82" /> while they were undergraduates at BYU and living in a [[basement apartment]].{{r|horowitz20120218}} Their son Matthew was born in 1971 and Joshua in 1975. Benjamin (1978) and Craig (1981) were born after Romney had begun his career.<ref name="hewitt-82" />

Romney wanted to pursue a business career, but his father advised him that a law degree would be valuable to his career even if he never practiced law.<ref name="bgseries3">{{Cite news|url=https://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2007/06/25/reaping_profit_in_study_sweat/|title=The Making of Mitt Romney: Part 3: Reaping profit in study, sweat|author=Gavin, Robert|author2=Pfeiffer, Sacha|newspaper=[[The Boston Globe]]|date=June 26, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100112040340/http://www.boston.com/news/politics/2008/specials/romney/articles/part3_main/|archive-date=January 12, 2010}} Also [https://web.archive.org/web/20121128192753/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-8712358.html available in HighBeam]. Also available as [http://www.deseretnews.com/article/680195957/Plenty-of-pitting-preceded-Romneys-profits.html "Plenty of 'pitting' preceded Romney's profits"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181208080345/https://www.deseretnews.com/article/680195957/Plenty-of-pitting-preceded-Romneys-profits.html |date=December 8, 2018 }}, ''Deseret Morning News'', July 3, 2007.</ref><ref name="nyt-harvard">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/25/us/politics/how-harvard-shaped-mitt-romney.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111225002053/http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/25/us/politics/how-harvard-shaped-mitt-romney.html |archive-date=December 25, 2011 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|title=At Harvard, a Master's in Problem Solving |last=Kantor|first=Jodi|date=December 25, 2011|page=A1}}</ref> As a result, he enrolled in the recently created four-year [[JD–MBA|joint]] [[Juris Doctor]]/[[Master of Business Administration]] program coordinated between [[Harvard Law School]] and [[Harvard Business School]].<ref name="bg-harvard">{{cite news|url=http://archive.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2007/06/26/romneys_harvard_classmates_recall_his_quick_mind_positive_attitude/|title=The Making of Mitt Romney: Romney's Harvard classmates recall his quick mind, positive attitude|author=Pfeiffer, Sacha|newspaper=[[The Boston Globe]]|date=June 26, 2007|access-date=February 7, 2020|archive-date=January 23, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230123110046/http://archive.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2007/06/26/romneys_harvard_classmates_recall_his_quick_mind_positive_attitude/|url-status=live}}</ref> He readily adapted to the business school's pragmatic, data-driven [[Case method|case study method of teaching]].<ref name="nyt-harvard" /> Living in a [[Belmont, Massachusetts]], house with Ann and their two children, his social experience differed from that of most of his classmates.<ref name="bgseries4" /><ref name="nyt-harvard" /> He was nonideological and did not involve himself in the political issues of the day.<ref name="bgseries4" /><ref name="nyt-harvard" /> Romney graduated from Harvard in 1975. He was named a Baker Scholar for graduating in the top 5% of his business school class and received his [[Juris Doctor]] degree ''[[Latin honors#United States|cum laude]]'' for ranking in the top third of his law school class.<ref name="hewitt-46">Hewitt, ''A Mormon in the White House?'', p. 46.</ref><ref name="bg-harvard" />