ROBERT SIEGEL, host:
From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Robert Siegel.
MELISSA BLOCK, host:
And I'm Melissa Block.
Today, the presidential campaign headed south and west. All three of the leading Democrats campaigned in Nevada today. Nevada holds its caucuses this Saturday. The GOP candidates have mostly ignored Nevada in favor of South Carolina. That Republican primary is also this Saturday. And the race remains wide open. For Mitt Romney, who won yesterday in Michigan, South Carolina will be tougher territory.
SIEGEL: Mitt Romney joins us from his campaign bus near Charleston, South Carolina. Welcome to the program.
Mr. MITT ROMNEY (Former Massachusetts Governor: Republican Presidential candidate): Good to be with you, Robert.
SIEGEL: You have contrasted your optimism about American manufacturing jobs, in particular, the auto industry jobs in Michigan, with the Washington-style pessimism, you said - I assume of Senator McCain. Can you deliver on the promise to work to transform the U.S. auto industry and save auto jobs?
Mr. ROMNEY: Well, first I'd tell you that the pessimism is far more widespread than any one individual. I think there's a general perspective in this country that we just can't compete with China, that we just can't compete with Korea, that manufacturing here is going to go away, and that perhaps other jobs will go away as well. And I reject that idea. I think the transformation and change, which you're seeing in technology, suggests that if we lead that change, that we may well be able to develop products for the future that can rekindle the kind of strength that we've seen in these industries before.
SIEGEL: But what does the president of the United States do in that or that as opposed to the presidents of GM or Ford, let's say?
Mr. ROMNEY: Well, you know, as a nation, we invest very substantially in basic science. And we do that in space program and we talk about how we spin out products that come from the space program. We invest in the basic science of health care. And that, of course, leads to products for the health care industry and defense as well. In all three areas, we invest and we lead the world.
But we're going to have to start investing also in energy technology, fuel technologies, material science, some basic areas that will help rid us of our dependence on foreign oil. And that offers the opportunity for technology sharing that may well lead to great products for the home and for the, if you will, for the garage.
SIEGEL: But in Detroit, you spoke of increasing R and D from $4 billion to $20 billion, I assume for the auto industry, it seemed that's what you were saying.
Mr. ROMNEY: No, no, actually you didn't read the article or the speech carefully. It speaks of taking our investments in - federal investments in energy, material science, automotive technology and fuel technology from $4 billion a year, which it is today, rising over time to $20 billion a year. That's the kind of technology investment I believe is going to be necessary akin to the Manhattan project or the Apollo project. To be investing in technologies related to reducing our use of energy.
SIEGEL: Where does the extra $16 billion come from?
Mr. ROMNEY: Well, we're going to be dramatically reducing the amount of the money that's been going in discretionary nonmilitary funds. That's something which I've said I'd cap, at the inflation less one percent.
SIEGEL: Just to clarify here. The nondefense, discretionary spending is only about a fifth of the federal budget. Can you imagine programs in your mind that could be done away with or radically cut - just off the bat - to pay for new projects without raising taxes?
Mr. ROMNEY: Yes. Actually, the 10-year forecast of holding that level at inflation less one percent is approximately $300 billion. So not only there are plenty of money to fund the increase from four to 20 as I was speaking about, there's a great deal more funds to do other things as well. Look at the kinds of programs we have.
We have 40 different job training programs in America administered by different agencies and departments, in many cases with extraordinary bureaucracy and duplication. I would slim these down to a very small number. I also would make it more likely that we just give an account to people who are laid off and let them use this account to pay for community college or perhaps even to use as a on-the-job-training program for people who'll actually find real work and a real employer.
So there are numerous ways for us to become more efficient, the way we spend our money, and then, of course, we have to go through the big one. And the big one is entitlements. And we, right now, are seeing entitlements gobbling up a larger and larger portion of our federal spending. And it's time for us not just to talk about that and to say it's a problem, but actually to propose solutions, and I've done that.
SIEGEL: You're there to contest South Carolina seriously and win a big share of the vote there?
Mr. ROMNEY: Well, we're going to do better than people expect here, at least I sure hope so. I think Senator McCain has been putting a lot of time and money to the state and I believe it's a must-win state for him. So we're here to campaign, get our shares and delegates and keep on going. We've got a lot of states ahead of us. There've been four states so far. I've won two. I've come in second in the other two. No one's come close to me in terms of the total number of Republican votes I've received and the total number of delegates I got. So if I can keep this up, that'll be good news.
SIEGEL: But it's a must-win state for McCain, South Carolina. Is there — are there other must-win states for you down the road?
Mr. ROMNEY: Yeah, I think Michigan came as close as that…
SIEGEL: No, I mean future, future primaries is what I mean.
Mr. ROMNEY: You know, I don't think anyone would suggest that there is a particularly must-win state for me going forward. But, of course, that could change. But at this stage, on the heels of victories both in Wyoming and Michigan and with the lead in delegates, I think I'm given a bit of a rest here. But I'm going to keep on working hard and hope to do well here in South Carolina and, of course, in Nevada as well.
SIEGEL: Governor Romney, thanks a lot for talking with us.
Mr. ROMNEY: Thank you, Robert.
SIEGEL: That's Mitt Romney, former Massachusetts governor, the winner of the Michigan Republican primary speaking to us from the Mitt mobile in South Carolina.