Associated Press
After winning several more presidential primaries this week, Mitt Romney delivered a speech his campaign billed as the unofficial kickoff of the general election. And while making his pitch as the presumptive Republican nominee, the former governor said President Obama intends to "run a campaign of ... distortions."
I very nearly fell out of my chair. After watching Romney closely for years, I've never seen any candidate in either party run a campaign of distortions as shamelessly as this guy, and this claim seemed to take the "I'm rubber, you're glue" tactic to new levels.
To appreciate the scope of Romney's distortions, consider the 15th installment of my weekly series, chronicling Mitt's mendacity.
1. Romney argued in Pennsylvania earlier this week that President Obama has "apologized for America."
The fact that Romney continues to repeat this lie every day is pretty depressing.
2. The Romney campaign argued this week that college tuition costs are going up because "this president decided to take over the student loan market."
As a matter of policy, that's ridiculous, and as a matter of accuracy, it's completely untrue.
3. Romney continues to push the line that under Obama, "the number of new business start-ups per year has dropped by 100,000 per year."
That's not even close to being true.
4. Romney said in New Hampshire this week that he wants to help rescue "the mom and dad who never thought they'd be on food stamps."
He neglected to mention that he endorsed a budget plan that slashes food stamps.
5. He also said he wants to look out for "grandparents who can't afford the gas to visit their grandchildren."
Romney plans to turn Medicare into a voucher program, which increases costs for seniors. He's also vowed to bring back Medicare Part D's "donut hole," which will quickly raise prescription drug costs for grandparents nationwide.
6. In the same speech, Romney said, "With Obamacare fully installed, government will come to control half the economy."
That's the opposite of the truth.
7. Romney added that under Obama, "we will have effectively ceased to be a free enterprise society."
No one can seriously believe such nonsense.
8. Romney vowed, "[W]e will stop the unfairness of one generation passing larger and larger debts on to the next."
That's misleading in important ways. Romney's platform calls for massive tax breaks that he can't pay for, which necessarily means growing the national debt.
9. The Romney campaign argued this week that the candidate hasn't endorsed "self-deportation" as an immigration policy.
Romney, earlier this year, explicitly endorsed "self-deportation."
10. The Romney campaign argued this week that under Obama, "the youth unemployment rate is double the unemployment rate for all Americans."
That's wildly misleading, too.
A few months ago, Fox News' Brit Hume, reflecting on Romney's flip-flops, said, "You're only allowed a certain number of flips before people begin to doubt your character."
I'm curious -- is Romney also allowed a certain number of falsehoods before people begin to doubt his character? And if so, what is that number?
Previous editions of Chronicling Mitt's Mendacity: Vol. I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX, X, XI, XII, XIII, XIV
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Well, if one flungs enough dung, some of it sticks and smells bad too. Then he can say, see, he stinks. I mean, this is as old as it gets as a tactic.
The students at Romney's last university visit had a look on their face that said "I'm only here because my teacher won't give me an A if they don't see me".
Hi CA,
Great observation!
It would be much easier to list the times that Mittens has mouthed the truth. Here is the list:
1) ....[crickets]....
2) ...[louder crickets]....
Funny - I was going to suggest that Mitt is telling the truth when he says "I'm Mitt Romney and I approved this message."
Then I realized it; even THIS isn't true. During one of the GOP debates, Mitt claimed he hadn't seen a commercial that one of his opponents was talking about. Yet, that very TV ad bore the statement "I'm Mitt Romney and I approved this message."
I'm curious -- is Romney also allowed a certain number of falsehoods before people begin to doubt his character? And if so, what is that number?
If a lie falls in the forest and nobody hears it, is it still a lie? For the bulk of the corporately owned media, Romney will never be called out for the massive number and scope of his lies.
In being a witness to the campaign commercials for the upcoming republican primaries in Indiana, it seems as if the entire republican party has adopted Mitt's tactics of never having met a lie that they would not tell. Indeed, it could be argued that the motto of the republican party is that if you tell a lie often enough and loud enough, it must be the truth.
Mitt has 240million reasons not to care about 260 million Americans.
So how do we tell the world about this? The famous "lame stream media" are all about supporting and protecting Rmoney so they won't do it. Forwarding this to people who might be interested is inadequate.
" he wants to look out for "grandparents who can't afford the gas to visit their grandchildren.
Well, to be fair, the cost of jet fuel HAS skyrocketed. . .
(And Mitt has lots of grandkids, in lot of houses.)
Very well done =)
Additionally, Willard probably paid for those houses. bet he doesn't take his dog with him either.
Great comment
For those who have been paying attention it is not news that Romney has lied more often and more seriously that any candidate for president in the modern era, maybe ever. Even the other candidates in his own party-a couple who also had professional dishonesty credentials and a couple who are regarded as relatively honest if nuts- identified this Romney trait/weakness as glaring and undeniable.
While it may be entertaining to speculate about why he does it- gross dishonesty, a ridiculously large capacity for self deception, the feeling of self entitlement of one born with a silver Chrysler in his mouth- the important question is why is he able to continue this obvious and extremely dishonest behavior in the fish bowl of a presidential campaign were supposedly the full power of the free and unbridled media- of the much heralded "FREE PRESS"- is daily brought to bear?
In short, I don't really care why he does it but, I very much want to know why he gets away with it?
Shiftless con artist, thy name is Mitt Romney.
oh, no - he shifts. he shifts a lot.
I look forward to the final installment of these chronicles (it will be Vol. XLII). This is a great service Steve Benen does, and I suspect it is not a fun one to perform.
When the Romney-Obama debates roll around, I would absolutley LOVE to see a fact-checking element that takes place DURING the debates, and puts the candidates on the spot for their misrepresentations and flat-out lies.
Of course, then we'd have the pain of listening to Mitt for 90% of the debate. But at least he'd be twisting in the wind the whole time.
I 100 percent agree. I suggested this to the commission, as well as to cnn and msnbc during the GOP debates. Funny, I didn't hear anything back.
It's very frustrating that these lies are not constantly challenged. If this guy wins, it will be a travesty. How could anyone vote for a person who lies so fluidly. Could he ever be trusted?
I'm beginning to think that only agnostics and atheists should run for elected offices anymore. I'm so sick of the lies spewing from these people that wear their religion on their sleeves and now mormon Mitts takes the lies to such a new level that I'm becoming anti-everything-religious.
It disgusts me that the lies keep being repeated, but what disgusts me more is the people that buy into the lies and repeat them right along with the liar that spews them in the first place. MSM being owned by the tealiban big business buys into it by repeating the lies, too.
Agree 100%
Well, just follow the dotted lines.
Has Mitt denied asking his church to baptize Ayn Rand for his buddy Paul Ryan?
Good one.
Baptize the dead-atheistic-communist that created the GOP economic platform.
Crackhead
Ayn Rand was one of the most vehemently anti-communist person that ever lived. So I hope that part was meant in irony.
I just saw a speech where every word was a LIE. No energy (WHAT ABOUT CONGRESS?), failed policies (yada yada) and then the kicker, that HE has told us about HIS plans ad naseum...REALLY???
His plan is to get into the White House. He's made that clear plenty of times. What more do you want?
RACHEL - DON'T YOU REMEMBER - YOU CALLED IT!! I know it's hard not to get excited because it's ridiculous, but keep your cool - just like Obama does.
Remember that Carl Rove tactic you were talking about (at least I think it was you..?)... It's the same thing they used on John Kerry with the swift boat ads. They take their own biggest weakness, which is, in this case "a campaign filled with distortions" and they turn it on their opponent.
Obama's too cool to fall for that crap - but the American Public is not - so we now have to make jokes about it (like you said) and then Romney will turn into the joke.
This is good time for Comedy Central to kick it! Ask Jon if he's got any rally's planned??
Rachel Maddow doesn't write this blog. Steve Benen does.
thank you for this service to your country
The Obama reelection campaign should send out mailers chronicling Romneys mendacity and how Romney can technically never be wrong on his position on any issue because he takes whichever one suits his needs at the time whether he has taken the opposite position before. Generally speaking, people don't have the best memories, but if they are confronted with someone who goes with flavor of the moment stances and as a result has zero integrity they cannot in good conscience vote for him.
Someone else should send them on his behalf. Everything he does or says, however innocent, just seems to stir up the haters. Besides, what someone else says about a person always carries more weight that what he says about himself.
You vastly understate it. Turning Medicare into a voucher program won't just drive up costs. Imagine being 66 with a pre-existing condition and trying to buy private insurance in Romney/Ryan's world.
Here's and idea for a bumper : We Will Remember in November.
What do you think?
You think that'll scare Republicans?
I am starting to think the only way to save this country is to burn it down and start over, maybe we should go ahead and let the teaparty have their way, once grandma and grandpa teaparty start dying under freeway overpasses and the younger ones kill each other off fighting over resources we may be able to rebuild on better terms.
Lies are the only thing that comes out of Mitt Romney's mouth.Do we really want a President that lies like this. As for me I say an emphatic NO!!!. If he lies to the American people what is he going to do lie, to the rest that he as to deal with as President ?.
Lying is just one (huge) defect of Mitt Romney's personality. It is obvious that he is narcissistic. He manipulates and takes advantage of others to achieve his goals (Bain Capital). He has an exaggerated sense of superiority and importance, as well as a preoccupation with success and power (in business as well as in politics). He is arrogant, self-admiring, odd, and eccentric (car elevator?). He disregards the safety of others (Seamus the dog), and shows no guilt or remorse for his actions. He cannot recognize the feelings, needs and viewpoints of others (women, immigrants, the middle class, the unemployed, the poor, the uninsured, and financially struggling college students). To top it off, Mitt Romney believes that everyone is envious of him. The guy's a mess.
AMEN
Or he believes that he's a Silent and that we forget everything but the post-hypnotic suggestions he plants in our minds.
Hey, Eileen. Totally true. I can remember many nights staring at the news and listening to Mitt, and thinking, "That's a blatant, pants-on-fire-lie!" This guy is running for president and he compulsively, reflexively, unapoligetically LIES about stuff. Just one example is his oft-repeated whopper about how President Obama goes around the world "apologizing for America." There is a young woman I know through a blog who is a totally deranged, Tea Party zombie. She raves on about Khazar (Jewish) banking conspiracies; how Obama is stupid and how the Republicans are going to hand us our heads again....just like in 2010. I challenged her to cite on instance of Obama's apologizing for America. She was unable to do so. Rachel Maddow nailed Romney for his endless lies. Forget his policy positions: His menacity disqualifies him for office. Not to mention his narcissism and sense of entitlement. Not to mention his disastrous policy ideas....basically Bush on Steroids. I hope that he loses....I really hope that the American electorate is not that stupid.
My worry is that there are so MANY falsehoods, it's overwhelming. Here's a suggestion Steve -as an added bonus to your weekly series, why don't you pick (or allow readers to pick) the LIE of the week? It will allow readers to focus on what the most important falsehood is,rather than just be astounded by the volume of lies. Just a thought.
Why does the media, even MSNBC (during the day) let people say all kinds of bull@!$%# and never correct them or call them out?? Why do they even let these people who say these things back on their shows? Since when did "finding out the truth" become something that the media doesn't think is appropriate for them to be doing? I can't watch any "news" anymore since it is all a bunch of worthless BS and a waste of my time. The majority of people who don't look things up for themselves are just going to believe ALL of this crap. Not even Jon Stewart or Colbert or anyone who has a microphone seems to be hammering this point home to people, that they cannot trust anything in the news anymore. Colbert has spent a year hammering home how ridiculous super pacs are, but why hasn't anyone started showing how corrupt all of our news has become?
Because the media is a business. And business is concerned not with it's mission and function to society but to its bottom line. If it calls out the lies of the people it covers, those people won't come on their shows or give them interviews. This hurts the bottom line. The only way to get the Republican lies known to the public is for Democrats to simply and directly call the Republicans flat-out liars. Then the media will cover it because it is sensational. But Democrats are cowards, so they will not do what they need to do.
You have seen nothing yet. The Republican Lie Machine isn't even warmed up. An intelligent person will only be able to shield his eyes and cover his ears to avoid incapacitating nausea once that Machine is let loose on the masses.
And Democrats will do nothing but cry about the unfairness.
"Because the media is a business. And business is concerned not with it's mission and function to society but to its bottom line."
A VERY good point!!! This is why the Citizen's United decision that 'corporations are people' is SO DAMAGING to this country. Corporations aren't loyal to any country, not even the United States. They could care less where or how they earn the money - so long as they earn it!
yah and these stupid businesses think they have it all figured out with their formulas and strategies and they get stuck in their ways and never try anything new... I think there is a great hunger out there for more fact-checking in the news and i don't understand why people in the news think they have to be all hush-hush about strategy and ratings... why don't they just come out and say that they are going to begin rigorous fact checking but are curious what it will do to their ratings and make their ratings public so we all can watch the experiment unfold.. that would be a hell of a lot more entertaining to watch and follow every night than listening to spokespersons spin their bull@!$%# unchallenged
they should also have a permanent web link or number to text for people to be able to vote in if they think something is being way over-covered or is a bunch of bull@!$%# and to move on to something relevant... I don't get why they don't do this already because people who are already fed up enough to bother voting are on the verge of switching to a different news channel anyway.. at the very least if would give people a way to vent as a last ditch effort to keep them tuned in
All I know is this: if Obama's campaign sits back like it's doing and allows this bull@!$%# to continue, then Romney's lies become fact to the country. The media will NOT challenge it.
Behold not only media incompetence, but political incompetence by Obama and his team.
And get used to the phrase "President Romney."
We need to organize and put pressure on the main stream media,local and national, to investigate and report the lies.
How? It would take mass threat of subscription cancellations to get the attention of those in media who determine the focus of reporting. How is that going to occur.
I've already cancelled many subscriptions and told them precisely why when I did so. My protests haven't changed anything. It will take lots of people telling them why they are unfit to be financially supported by the public.