Wow oh wow! After the debate Wednesday night one of the complaints pundits and others had about President Obama's performance was that he didn't bring up Mitt Romney's 47% comment. Last night Mitt Romney appeared with Sean Hannity on Fox News and Hannity asked Romney what he would have said if the president had mentioned the comments.
Hahahaha! Today I've seen on television and read in several places that now the pundits are wondering if President Obama intentionally didn't bring up the comment because it would have given Romney an opening to apologize to 60 million viewers. Instead, he was forced to apologize to a much smaller audience on Fox News.
And now the Obama Truth Team hits Romney where it hurts by pointing out that for seventeen days Romney stood by his original comments and only would admit that they were poorly worded. What was the phrase he used? Not elegantly stated. Well, something like that. Before the debates we had learned (I think from Nate Silver) that the 47% comment was hurting Romney in the polls. So while President Obama went to the debates and met a man he didn't recognize saying:
And when I got on to the stage, I met this very spirited fellow who claimed to be Mitt Romney. But it couldn't of been Mitt Romney because the real Mitt Romney has been running around the country for the last year, promising $5 trillion in tax cuts that favor the wealthy. The fellow on stage last night said he didn't know anything about that. The real Mitt Romney said we don't need any more teachers in our classrooms.
It turns out that Mitt Romney walked on that stage expecting something from President Obama he didn't get, a comment about Romney's 47% remarks. The Obama-Biden Truth team is on the job.
Please note: The Obama Truth Team has been very busy today. They released two other web ads slamming Mitt Romney on his lies at the debate about Medicare and clean energy. Those ads are available in a separate diary with transcripts.
Mitt Romney's Disdain For The Middle Class: He Said It, He Meant It
On Screen: Remember when Mitt Romney said 47% of Americans are "victims" who don't take responsibility for their lives?"
Mitt Romney speaking at fundraiser: All right, there are 47 percent who are with him, who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims. And so, my job is not to worry about those people. I'll never convince them they should take personal responsibility and care for their lives.
On Screen: 17 days after it leaked, he's saying he didn't mean a word of it ...
Video of Mitt Romney on Fox News, 10/4/12: Clearly in a campaign with hundreds, if not thousands of speeches, and question and answer sessions, now and then you're going to say something that doesn't come out right. In this case I said something that's completely wrong.
On Screen: But that's not what he said the day the video came out...
Video of Mitt Romney at hastily called press conference: It's a message which I'm going to carry and continue to carry [break in clip] As I point out, I recognize that among those that pay no tax, approximately 47% of Americans, I'm not likely to be highly successful with a message of lowering taxes.
On Screen: Or the day after ...
Video of Mitt Romney on Fox News: And those that are dependent upon government, and those that think government's job is to redistribute, I'm not going to get them.
On Screen: Or four days later ...
Six Minutes Interview:
Scott Pelley: Peggy Noonan a very well known conservative columnist said that it was an example of this campaign being incompetent and I wonder if any of the critism gets through to you and whether you're concerned about it at all. Whether the ...
Mitt Romney: That's not the campaign, that was me, right?
On Screen: Mitt Romney's disdain for the middle class. He said it. He meant it.
On Screen: OBAMA-BIDEN TRUTH TEAM?