In defending Mitt Romney, Michael Gerson says that Romney's Massachusetts record and Rick Perry's record on immigration are just examples of "ideological regionalism" and, therefore, comparable.
Some of Romney’s transformation is explainable as the result of ideological regionalism.
.... But the problem is not unique to Romney. Rick Perry won in Texas with an approach to immigration that is hard to translate in South Carolina.
Ronald Reagan, as California’s governor, approved the liberalization of abortion and divorce laws. For a governor seeking the presidency, such tensions often arise.
We probably won't ever hear Romney use the words "ideological regionalism", but he, no doubt, hopes that's the kind of justification conservatives have in mind.
