Ira Stoll on George Romney, Father of Mitt

One of the strange things about America — a country founded on a revolution against a hereditary monarchy — is that so many of our politicians seem to inherit their professions. John Adams begat John Quincy Adams. Senator Prescott Bush begat President George Herbert Walker Bush, who begat President George W. Bush. Senator Albert Gore, Sr., of Tennessee begat Vice President Albert Gore, Jr. Governor Brown of California, Sr., begat Governor Brown of California, Jr. Even the ties between Barack Obama, Sr., the Harvard-educated Kenyan socialist, and Barack Obama, Jr., the Harvard-educated incumbent president, are the subject of much discussion and debate. Whether one believes the apple doesn't fall from the tree, or whether one believes sons rebel against their fathers, there's a power to the notion that the careers of the fathers can tell us something about the characters of the son. So expect to hear more, writes Ira Stoll, about George Romney, the CEO of American Motors-turned governor of Michigan who is the father of Mitt Romney, the CEO of Bain Capital turned governor of Masschusetts turned Republican presidential candidate.