If you want more evidence of message confusion from Mitt, proof that he is a pathological panderer or just proof that he is the worst candidate ever, consider the following tidbits that were recently reported, all of which I predict will enrage his dwindling number of supporters.
Think Progress reports that:
Mitt Romney pledged to repeal Obamacare in its entirety on Wednesday evening, but joked that he would be happy to be known as the grandfather of the federal law. “Now and then the president says I’m the grandfather of Obamacare. I don’t think he meant that as a compliment, but I’ll take it,” Romney said at a Univision forum, adding, “this was during my primary we thought it might not be helpful.”
Thus in one fell swoop, he embraces health care reform, takes credit for legislation that was the forerunner for Obamacare and explains that he changes positions depending on the audience.
Brilliant!
And, according to today's New York Times, during the forum hosted by Univision yesterday, Mitt tried to etch-a-sketch his way to a more immigrant-friendly stance:
¶ Pressed for details, Mr. Romney said again that he would support giving legal permanent residence to illegal immigrants who serve in the military. But he also suggested he would support another big piece of a bill in Congress known as the Dream Act. “Kids that get higher education could get permanent residence,” Mr. Romney said, in what appeared to be another step away from his position during the nominating contests, when he said he opposed the Dream Act.
¶ Mr. Romney rejected mass deportation of illegal immigrants, but he sidestepped a question about whether he still supported encouraging “self-deportation” — encouraging such immigrants to leave the country by strictly enforcing immigration rules, a position he has advocated before.
¶ “We are not going to round up people around the country and deport them,” he said. “Our system is not to deport people.”
And for good measure, he also did some pandering to the gay community:
¶ Some of his most intriguing remarks, though, were not about Hispanics, but about gay and lesbian couples. In response to a question, he said that they should be able to “raise a family as they would choose.” In the past, he has sought to avoid discussing issues like adoption by gay parents, which many social and religious conservatives oppose.
¶ Asked what advice he would give his children and grandchildren if they were gay and wished to marry, Mr. Romney replied: “Well, my kids are all married, so I’d be surprised,” before reiterating that he believes that marriage should be reserved for heterosexual couples.
I look forward to the reaction of Eric Erikson and his merry band of loons.
quick edit: Upon re-reading both stories linked, I realize that all of the comments were apparently made in the same Univision event. Just wanted to clarify that.