House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio takes questions during his weekly news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, May 17, 2012. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Tampa (CNSNews.com) – Long-time conservative activist Phyllis Schlafly told CNSNews.com that House Speaker John Boehner would be making a mistake to be critical of the Republican Party platform one day after the Ohio Republican seemed to scoff at platforms that he thought no one reads.
“I think he’s making a mistake if he’s criticizing the platform,” Schlafly said of Boehner. “The platform is a very grassroots accomplishment. It’s written by one man and one woman from each state who are elected by the delegates from their state. It’s a very grassroots document that I think the politicians ought to listen to.
On Monday, Boehner spoke to reporters at a Christian Science Monitor breakfast, where he took a question about the party platform.
“Have you ever met anybody who read the party platform?” Boehner said. “I’ve not met ever anybody.”
Schlafly told CNSNews.com that the 2012 Republican platform, drafted last week and to be formally adopted this week, is “maybe the best one we’ve ever adopted. It’s excellent. I’m very happy with it.”
“It’s hit all the big issues,” Schlafly said. “We have our pro-life plank. We have our marriage plank. We have strong immigration plank. We have (anti) voter fraud planks. We have good statements about energy, very strong statements about military superiority adding missile defense. So what is there to argue about?”
Schlafly is a longtime conservative activist and author of the landmark book, “A Choice Not an Echo.”
CNSNews.com asked if the conservative platform compensates for some of the concerns conservatives have about presumptive nominee Mitt Romney, who has a moderate record as a former Massachusetts governor.
She responded that the platform, along with choosing Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan as his running mate, help.
“A little bit,” she said. “Also the vice presidential nominee does too.”