Mitt was caught on tape once again, and his true feelings came out- once again. Transcript and video below the fold.
Update: This is the front page story on Huffpo, and I think it will blow up on the MSM.
I caught it on Thinkprogress, Romney's remarks start at 26:44:
I hope you make it very clear to your employees what you believe is in the best interest of your enterprise and therefore their job and their future in the upcoming elections. And whether you agree with me or you agree with President Obama, or whatever your political view, I hope — I hope you pass those along to your employees. Nothing illegal about you talking to your employees about what you believe is best for the business, because I think that will figure into their election decision, their voting decision and of course doing that with your family and your kids as well.
Basically, he is suggesting that rich employers implicitly threaten their employees about their jobs. And this isn't some off the cuff remark, this is a coordinated effort: As Thinkprogress states:
There have already been some reports of employers suggesting how their employees should cast their ballots. A CEO of a Florida resort company threatened to fire his employees if Obama won. The CEO of a timeshare company did the same. And the famous right-wing Koch brothers warned of “consequences” of not voting for Romney.
You know Romney is up to no good when he is reminding his fat cat donors that there is "nothing illegal" about his suggestion, as though that is all that is sufficient for them to make a decision. Note, also, Romney's shout out to Obama supporters, as if he is making an innocent suggestion that should work for both sides. This is clearly a planned attack, and he is saying what it takes to cover his tracks. it's a sign of a guy who knows this is shady stuff. How does that old saying go?" The thief always looks over his shoulder".
If it's not clear by now, understand that this is a national coordinated effort by Republicans to do what it takes to win, even if it means trampling on American principles. They don't care about middle class or poor Americans, but they found themselves in the unfortunate position of living in their democracy where their opinions matter. So what do Republicans do? They already threatened the right to vote for millions of Americans in Ohio, Florida, Pennsylvania, and other states- which is spitting on everything that our Founding Fathers fought and died for.
They need to convince the middle class and the poor to vote against their interests. Saying "cutting taxes for the rich improves the lives all Americans" is clearly not enough to convince the country, since we didn't see an economic boom under Bush. Saying "raising taxes will hurt businesses" is clearly not enough to convince the country, since we didn't see businesses getting hurt under Clinton after he raised taxes.
So they need to do underhanded tactics, and this is it. This is coming from Romney, the leader of the Republican Party, and represents what they stand for.
Update: And regarding comments wondering if this is legal: Huffpo states:
Romney is correct that such behavior is not illegal. After the Supreme Court's Citizens United ruling, which greatly expanded corporations and unions' political speech, employers can legally compel workers to participate in political campaigns.
If this is the standard of Republicans of what is OK to do, as long as it is legal, it makes you REALLY wonder about those taxes.