Romney lands second Florida paper endorsement

Mitt Romney landed the endorsement of the Tampa Tribune on Sunday, his second endorsement by a Florida newspaper ahead of tonight's debate:

You can trust him to fulfill his pledge to slash the overabundance of federal regulations. We expect he will tackle the growth of entitlement spending methodically, understanding caution is necessary when revising important programs such as Medicare and Medicaid.

A few of Romney's stands trouble us. He can be bellicose on foreign affairs. His gushing enthusiasm for oil drilling and fossil fuels is a worry in Florida, where drilling off our Gulf of Mexico beaches would be a disaster.

But we are reassured by Romney's history as a deliberate leader of strong conservative values who will listen to others and carefully evaluate the facts. ...

The Tampa Tribune, with confidence and enthusiasm, endorses Mitt Romney for president.

On Friday the Orlando Sentinelendorsed Romney. Meanwhile, President Obama got the green light from the Tampa Bay Times.