Here is my analysis of the last question of the night and the 47%.
Q: Hi, Governor. I think this is a tough question. Each of you: What do you believe is the biggest misperception that the American people have about you as a man and a candidate? Using specific examples, can you take this opportunity to debunk that misperception and set us straight?
Romney said:
Thank you. And that’s an opportunity for me, and I appreciate it. In the nature of a campaign, it seems that some campaigns are focused on attacking a person rather than prescribing their own future and the things they’d like to do. And in the course of that, I think the president’s campaign has tried to characterize me as — as someone who — who is very different than who I am.
That’s interesting considering 42% of all the statements that have been researched by Politifact have been either “mostly false”, “false” or a “pants on fire lie”. You can see that for yourself HERE. That is compared to a 30% rate by Obama HERE.
The following quotes come just from Republicans about what they think about Mitt Romney.
In December of 2011 – Rudy Giuliani said this about Romney:
“This is a man without a core, this is a man without substance, this is a man that will say anything to become president of the United States.”
In December of 2011 – Michelle Bachmann said this about Romney:
“They (voters) want to know what’s the truth. They’re not interested in a chameleon.”
In February of 2012 – Rick Santorum said this about Romney:
“He glosses over and doesn’t even tell the truth. … Here is a guy who is the ultimate flip-flopper running for president, and he’s attacking me for not being principled? That doesn’t wash.”
In January of 2012 – Rick Perry said this about Romney:
“I know the difference between venture capital[ism] and vulture capitalism. Venture capitalism is a good thing, comes in, gives that gap funding to help these companies get off and get started creating jobs, and work. But Mitt Romney and Bain Capital were involved with what I call vulture capitalism. And they walked into Gaffney and took over that photo album company for no other reason than to basically pick the bones clean. And those people lost their jobs.”
In January of 2012 – Newt Gingrich calls Romney a liar HERE.
In October of 2011 – Jon Huntsman said this:
“You can’t be a perfectly lubricated weather vane on the important issues of the day, whether it’s Libya, whether it’s the debt ceiling, whether it’s the discussion around the Kasich bill in Ohio, where Gov. Romney has been missing in action in terms of showing any kind of leadership.”
In 2008 – Mike Huckabee said about Romney:
“I believe most Americans want their next President to remind them of the guy they work with, not the guy who laid them off.”
In January of 2008 – John McCain said about Romney:
“As head of his investment company he presided over the acquisition of companies that laid off thousands of workers.”
Then Romney said:
I care about a hundred percent of the American people. I want a hundred percent of the American people to have a bright and prosperous future. I care about our kids. I understand what it takes to — to make a bright and prosperous future for America again. I — I spent my life in the private sector, not in government. I’m a guy who wants to help, with the experience I have, the American people.
Compare that statement to the statement he made behind closed doors to a bunch of rich donors HERE:
There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what. All right, there are 47 percent who are with him, who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe the government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you-name-it. That that’s an entitlement. And the government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what…These are people who pay no income tax. [M]y job is is not to worry about those people. I’ll never convince them they should take personal responsibility and care for their lives.
Which statement do you believe? Because you can’t possibly believe both.
It’s very courageous of Romney to take such a bold stance as caring for 100% of Americans in front of 60 million viewers. Unfortunately – his budget call for huge cuts in Medicare, Social Security, Pell Grants, eliminating tax credits for the working poor all the while giving huge tax cuts to the rich. He says he cares about 100% of Americans but his priorities say differently. As for his “life in the private sector” – you can read more about that in “BAIN CAPITAL PUT ARMED GUARDS AT THE DOORS … AND TOLD US WE WERE ALL FIRED”.
Then Romney said:
My — my — my passion probably flows from the fact that I believe in God, and I believe we’re all children of the same God. I believe we have a responsibility to care for one another. I — I served as a missionary for my church. I served as a pastor in my congregation for about 10 years. I’ve sat across the table from people who were — were out of work and worked with them to try and find new work or to help them through tough times.
Oh yeah – he was a man of god alright. He told a woman who was pregnant to give her child to the church because she got pregnant out of wedlock or she would be punished with excommunication from the church. You can read all about Mitt Romney: Man of God HERE.
I went to the Olympics when they were in trouble to try and get them on track. And as governor of my state, I was able to get a hundred percent of my people insured — all my kids; about 98 percent of the adults. Was able also to get our schools ranked number one in the nation so a hundred percent of our kids would have a bright opportunity for a future.
Romney did a great job with the Olympics; kudos to him. He received more federal funding than any other Olympics before that, but I do not fault him for that. As for his claim that he was able to get 100% percent of Massachusetts residents insured … he is against the exact same plan he passed in Massachusetts. So – what now conservative Governor? He implies that his policies led to putting Massachusetts schools in first place in the nation. In fact – they were first place in the nation before he took over and first place when he left. Congratulations – you didn’t break it. As for his plans with education for the country – he will make significant cuts to Pell Grants and wants to eliminate the Department of Education.
Romney said:
I understand that I can get this country on track again. We don’t have to settle for what we’re going through. We don’t have to settle for gasoline at four bucks. We don’t have to settle for unemployment at a — at a chronically high level. We don’t have to settle for 47 million people on food stamps. We don’t have to settle for 50 percent of kids coming out of college not able to get work. We don’t have to settle for 23 million people struggling to find a good job.
We won’t have to settle for so many people on food stamps because he’ll cut that program by huge amounts. We won’t have to settle for college kids unable to find a job because he’s going to cut Pell Grants and allow banks to make profits off of students via government guaranteed loans and students will be able to “get the education they can afford”. He likes to throw around the 23 million # for a big bold number. 12 million are unemployed today; we’ve seen 5.2 million private sector jobs created since January 2010. The first 3 months of 2009 – the country lost 2.2 million jobs. Romney wants you to think that’s Obama’s fault. He is simply unwilling to recognize the economy is on its way and improving albeit slowly.
Romney said:
If I become president, I’ll get America working again. I will get us on track to a balanced budget. The president hasn’t. I will. I’ll make sure we can reform Medicare and Social Security to preserve them for coming — coming generations. The president said he would. He didn’t.
How is Romney going to balance the budget by increasing spending on the military by $2 trillion and cutting taxes by $5 trillion? His plans would ADD to the deficit just like under George W. Bush. Romney’s economic advisers are the same advisers that George W. Bush had by the way. (source)
Part of Obama’s last two minutes:
And — and that is part of what’s at stake in this election. There’s a fundamentally different vision about how we move our country forward. I believe Governor Romney is a good man. He loves his family, cares about his faith.
But I also believe that when he said behind closed doors that 47 percent of the country considers themselves victims who refuse personal responsibility — think about who he was talking about: folks on Social Security who’ve worked all their lives, veterans who’ve sacrificed for this country, students who are out there trying to, hopefully, advance their own dreams, but also this country’s dreams, soldiers who are overseas fighting for us right now, people who are working hard every day, paying payroll tax, gas taxes, but don’t make enough income.
And I want to fight for them. That’s what I’ve been doing for the last four years, because if they succeed, I believe the country succeeds.
The problem for Mitt Romney regarding his 47% mulligan is that that’s what the Republican party believes. Paul Ryan said it’s really just 30% HERE; Romney’s surrogate Bay Buchanan said “we’re a nation of people dependent on government” HERE. Rudy Giuliani said Romney “should be proud” of his comments HERE. This is just what Republicans believe. Obama correctly asserts that these 47% who don’t pay income taxes are seniors, military, working poor who are already paying every other tax in the world. Now the question is – will voters believe Romney’s whitewashing of his own history?
