Romney unveils post-speech Iowa ads

One day after trying to dispel concerns over his Mormon faith, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney is unveiling a new ad highlighting conservative stances he has taken on abortion, gay marriage and immigration.

The ad will begin airing today in Iowa, where recent polls show Romney falling behind former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee less than a month before the Iowa caucus. Huckabee is an ordained Baptist manager who has made inroads with religious conservatives.

{mosads}Romney has taken hits for flipping positions on abortion, immigration and gay rights, with rival GOP candidates and conservative leaders attacking him for not being a true conservative. The new ad characterizes Romney’s positions on three hot-button issues while he was governor of a liberal state as both conservative and politically inconvenient.

“When it wasn’t politically correct,” the ad says, “he stood up for life in Massachusetts.” The ad also says Romney stood up for “English in the classroom” and marriage “between and a man and a woman.”

Romney has repeatedly been confronted by remarks suggesting more liberal positions on abortion and gay rights he made in past campaigns for the Senate and governor’s office in Massachusetts. On immigration, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who leads Romney and other GOP candidates in national polls, attacked Romney last week during the CNN/YouTube debate for employing illegal immigrants. Romney has since fired the landscaping company that works on his home.