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Mitt Romney gave a speech Beallsville, Ohio, this week, and presented an unfortunate attack against President Obama. "How can you go out there and tell people things that just aren't true?" he asked rhetorically. He added, "This is a time for truths."
In context, Romney was referring to Obama's claim that "we're adding jobs in the coal industry." In reality, the nation really is adding jobs in the coal industry -- Romney was looking for an example of the president saying something that "just isn't true," and he pointed to an Obama quote that happened to be accurate, though he told his audience the opposite.
It's hard not to appreciate the ironic circle -- the president said something true, Romney lied when he said the accurate claim is false, and then he complained about falsehoods in the campaign.
I don't know the Republican candidate personally, but from a distance, it appears there's a part of his brain that allows him to create some kind of deliberate blind-spot. It's actually a little scary to think of a leader -- a man who'd be given enormous power and influence, literally making life and death decisions on a regular basis -- who can convince himself that his falsehoods are true, and that others' truths are falsehoods.
But here we are. If this is, as Romney claims, a "time for truths," I can only hope the Republican candidate will take a few moments to consider the 30th installment of my weekly series, chronicling Mitt's mendacity. (This is the biggest list I've ever done.)
1. At an impromptu event in South Carolina yesterday, Romney said on Medicare policy, "Our plan [has] no change for current seniors and those 55 and older."
That's plainly false. Romney's plan eliminates all new benefits for seniors under the Affordable Care Act, which necessarily means higher prescription drug costs for seniors, and more expensive preventive care.
2. At the same event, Romney argued, "Under the president's plan, [Medicare] goes bankrupt... Under the plan I propose, it is solvent."
That's the exact opposite of reality. Obama's policy strengthens Medicare's finances, and under Romney's plan, the system would be closer to insolvency faster.
3. In Chillicothe, Ohio, Romney said that under Obama, "We've got lower economic growth."
Actually, we got higher economic growth.
4. In the same speech, Romney said that under Obama, "We've got higher unemployment."
Actually, we got lower unemployment.
5. He went on to say the annual budget deficit has hit the $1 trillion mark under Obama for the "first time the history of our country."
Not true. The first time in the history of our country that the deficit hit $1 trillion was George W. Bush's last year in office, when the annual shortfall was $1.3 trillion.
6. Romney added that Obama promised "he'd get the unemployment down to under 5.6 percent today if we pass that $1 trillion stimulus package."
That's actually two falsehoods wrapped as one. For one thing, the stimulus wasn't $1 trillion (Romney's off by over $200 billion, and that's real money). For another, that's not what Obama promised.
7. Romney added, "You see unlike President Obama, I won't raise taxes on small business."
Obama has repeatedly cut taxes on small businesses -- by some counts, 18 times -- and if given a second term, his tax plan would have no effect on 97% of small businesses.
8. In an interview with Fortune magazine, Romney said the president's stimulus measures "have not put Americans back to work."
9. In the same interview, Romney said he would create jobs by "taking advantage of America's energy resources, particularly natural gas, as well as coal, oil, nuclear, solar, and wind."
Much of this is contradicted by Romney's own agenda. He opposes the wind production tax credit, no matter how many jobs it costs the nation, and has vowed to cut off investments in renewable energy programs (Romney has said wind and solar do not constitute "real energy.")
10. Romney went on to say, "A nation which is a highly productive nation as we are benefits by trade with others... The Obama administration has negotiated no new [trade] agreements."
Did Romney not hear about the trade agreements with Panama, Colombia, and South Korea?
11. Romney added, "We have to cut the deficit and get America on track to a balanced budget in order to convince investors that America is a good place to invest long term.... The president has done virtually nothing other than to propose a series of tax increases."
Actually, Obama proposed a massive, $4 trillion "grand bargain," most of which was made up of spending cuts. Congressional Republicans turned it down anyway.
12. Romney also said, "We're at a 30-year low in new business startups."
13. Romney went on to say, "I indicated as I announced my tax plan that the key principles included the following. First, that high-income people would continue to pay the same share of the tax burden that they do today."
At a minimum, this is ridiculously misleading. Under Romney's plan, high-income people would get an enormous tax break.
14. Romney added, "Obamacare is a tax. It's been so determined by the Supreme Court, and it falls predominantly on the middle class."
He's referring to an individual mandate that would apply to 1% of the population. And if President Obama's health care policy "raised taxes on the middle class," then Mitt Romney raised taxes on the middle class.
15. Romney also said, "President Obama raises taxes on the middle class. I will under no circumstances raise taxes on the middle class."
There's overwhelming evidence to the contrary.
16. Romney went on to say, "I will follow a model similar to Simpson-Bowles."
17. Romney also said, "I believe infrastructure is going to see very substantial investments over the coming decade."
He may believe that, but he's also endorsed a budget plan that drastically curtails infrastructure investments.
18. Romney argued, "I believe that you're going to see us having created 12 million new jobs."
If we do nothing, we're on track to create 12 million new American jobs over the next four years anyway.
19. In a televised ad, Romney said Obama "cut $716 billion dollars from Medicare ... to pay for Obamacare."
20. The ad goes on to say, in reference to seniors, "So now the money you paid for your guaranteed healthcare is going to a massive new government program that's not for you."
That's plainly false. Under the Affordable Care Act, seniors pay less for prescription medication and preventive care -- meaning the policy is "for" them, too.
21. At a campaign stop in Ohio, Romney said under Obama we're not "adding jobs in the coal industry" and not "producing more coal."
Romney's lying. In reality, we're adding jobs in the coal industry and producing more coal.
22. Romney said this week that Paul Ryan reached out to Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) to "co-lead a piece of legislation that makes sure we can save Medicare."
According to Ron Wyden, that's ridiculously untrue.
23. In another attack ad this week, Romney once again accused Obama of "quietly ending work requirements" in the welfare law."
He's still blatantly lying.
24. In Beallsville, Ohio, Romney argued, "President said he'd cut the deficit in half. He's doubled it."
Maybe Romney doesn't know what "double" means. The deficit on Obama's first day was $1.3 trillion. Last year, it was also $1.3 trillion. This year, it's projected to be $1.1 trillion. When he says the president "more than doubled" the deficit, as he has many times, Romney's lying.
25. In the same speech, Romney added that Obama has "raided that [Medicare] trust fund."
Obama has strengthened the Medicare trust fund.
26. Romney went on to call the Affordable Care Act an "unproven federal government takeover to health care."
There is no universe in which this makes sense -- "Obamacare" relies on private insurers, not a government takeover. (Also, it's not "unproven" -- the policy works quite well in, ahem, Massachusetts.)
27. Romney also said, "My number four [goal] is to stop spending massively more than we take in to get America on track to have a balanced budget. And I'll do it."
No you won't.
Romney says his plan "can't be scored," but independent budget analysts have found his agenda would make the deficit bigger, not smaller, and add trillions to the national debt.
28. Romney went on to say, "Seventy-five percent of small businesses in this country surveyed by the Chamber of Commerce said that Obamacare makes it less likely for them to hire people."
The "survey" is a joke. The Chamber, a pro-Republican lobbying institution heavily invested in helping Romney, put up an unscientific online survey. Treating this as a legitimate poll of businesses is fundamentally dishonest.
29. Romney also said, "I'm going to put work back into welfare."
Work hasn't been taken out of welfare.
30. Romney went on to say, "[Obama] said if you have a business, you didn't build that. Someone else did that."
That's not even close to what the president said.
31. At an event in St. Augustine, Florida, Romney said the president "won't want to remind people of Greece because that's where he's taking our country if we don't get off the road we're on."
32. In the same speech Romney said of the president, "He said he'd measure progress also by whether people were able to have a good job that kept them in their home and paid their mortgage. Well, 8.5 million homes foreclosed, a record level, is not success, Mr. President."
Putting aside how dishonest it is for Romney to blame the housing crash on the president, let's also not forget that Romney intends to deliberately avoid any efforts to curtail foreclosures.
33. Romney added, "I'm going to take every government program and apply this test: Is this program so critical it's worth borrowing money from China to pay for it? And if it's not, we'll get rid of it."
This continues to be misleading. The implication here is that U.S. debt is financed by the Chinese, but this isn't true -- China only holds about 8% of the nation's debt.
Previous editions of Chronicling Mitt's Mendacity: Vol. I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX, X, XI, XII,XIII, XIV, XV, XVI, XVII, XVIII, XIX, XX, XXI, XXII, XXIII, XXIV, XXV, XXVI, XXVII, XXVIII, XXIX
Leave a Comment:
PLEASE PLEASE PLEAse... just watched your show, PLEASE go and ask the firms who Ryan wrote letters for to get stimulus money - IF they actually benefited by it. You mentioned one who got 20 million $$ PLEASE get a researcher to talk to them and find out what it did for them......
I agree with Martin.
That would provide damning information against the Lyin' Ryan and Tax-Free Romney campaign.
My guess is that if Ryan got involved then the money was stolen rather than utilized to any real potential. He probably showed his brother in laws or whoever how to "work the system". That is the typical way republicans scam the taxpayers.That and buying up property then building a road alongside it.They also love condemning personal property and handing it over to businesses for some under the table money.
Thus they call theft and fraud--capitalism or free enterprise.
To: Joyce Brand Wilson and Willow369182:
The question is, then, why are there so many more wingnuts in the USA than in the UK? Strongly preferring the comfort of simple blind faith to the advantages of reason is a mode of adjustment to one's personal problems and anxieties about a complex, ambiguous, and sometimes scary world. Why do so many more people in the USA choose to narcotize themselves with ideology and doctrine than in other countries? There can be no dialogue between the polarities without an answer to this question.
It's a good question, Soferclese. It almost certainly goes back to the religious history of the U.S., the differences between the North and South, the Civil War, the U.S. overprotection of "free" speech in political advertisements, money allowed in political campaigns, pockets of poor education in the country, ...
Surely the topic of a book.
Steve, I wish that all of your mendacity chronicles could be published in a book and mass produced to hand out to people while canvassing. Thank you so much for doing this. Thank you, thank you.
Amen to that, was thinking the same thing!
even if they were mass produced we still can't seem to get these uninformed right wingers to get their heads out of the sand and read things that are posted to inform them....they just would rather believe the LIES that r& r keep putting out there even when they are proved wrong...I thought some of the people I know were intelligent enough to know what was BEST for them ...BUT I guess I was wrong.....its a shame...
You needn't wait for Steve, Ms. Joyce.
Copy/paste them into Word, print them out, and hand them out, leave them in conspicuous places, go to conservative blog sites, and drop a few verbal bombs on them (which will promptly get deleted. No Facts Allowed), and memorize a few for those times you might encounter a conservative...
We can do this ourselves...defend our honor, defend our president, defend truth. There's some awesome folks on here, we could have some real fun with this gift that Steve has given us.
Romney/Ryan.
Two Rights Do Make A Wrong.
These guys are scarey. And what is even worse than that? There are people, lots of people, that are sitting in his audiences believing every word he says. And they will not listen to reason.
In the UK in their last election, the right wing Fundamentalists got less than 1% of the vote. In 2010 in Nevada, Sharron Angle got about 45% of the vote. Sure, she lost, but look at the difference!!
Call it "Mitt's Marvelous Mendacity", find an Ann Coulter double, slap her picture on the dust jacket, and con Regnery Books into publishing it!
I am convinced that Romney is merely reading what others have written for him - that he really believes what he is saying is true because he has no time to do his own reading and lets others on his team take care of those details. This makes him simply playing a role, much like Reagan did. The masses find him believable because he believes what he is saying.
Romney believes that if he says what he is told to say he will win!
Withay: The right wing billionaires said they only needed a President who would sign the reactionary legislation they put in front of him. So you're right in that regard. However, he can't believe what he says on one day and also believe the exact opposite that he says the next day, unless he's a deranged sociopath. As much as I detest him, I don't think he's that.
IF he seems to believe the self contradictory things he continually says, it's because he doesn't care what's true; he only cares about what will further his presidential ambitions in the particular moment. He's not overworked, he's over narcissistic.
Sofferclese: Romney is reminiscent of Reagan in that Reagan read his lines quite well, and was even protected by his gang of thieves whenever signs of senility were apparent. (I think that was documented in Robert Draper's recent book, page 80 or 81 or so.) I don't think Romney is senile yet, and I agree with you that he is not a deranged sociopath; however, I do think he is reading whatever is put in front of him. That, along with some acting coaching, has made it possible for him to continually contradict himself and make him appear to be sincere.
http://readlists.com/3bc093f6/
This will look like spamming the comments b/c I posted it before seeing your comment. The link above is a link to a compilation of Steve's CMM posts. Once there, the compilation can be downloaded or sent to Kindle, iPad, and iPhone. It is also possible to convert the ebook to a PDF document if you know how to do that.
I just wanted to share a laugh.
Capital One ad with Jimmy Fallon and the baby.
Jimmy: You want an Etch a Sketch?
Baby: NO!
I agree with @Duebee Steve. this is the most powerful argument against Romney and will be an excellent study for political science students in future. Thank you, I really look forward to seeing what lies you chronicle each week...its fascinating and a bit sad really.
Well, it could be the first of a brave new world of post-truthiness. You can't study anything in that world. Because there is no truth; it's been erased.
MITT ROMNEY "SHOW ME THE MONEY" !!!
????????????
All wingnut trolls are on the verge of incoherence. Looks like this one went over the edge.
It's Friday and they've started drinking their tears away early.
Maybe they shorted her on her Troll Inc. (a wholly owned subsidiary of Elect The Robot Enterprises) paycheck this week, and she's demanding her boss pay her.
What is amazing about this growing list is, it's a lot of the same lies over and over again. He just keeps saying them. It gets a bit redundant hearing the same lie from Mitt and reviewing the same proof of his mendacity. But the alternative would be to--what? Stop refuting it, which means to allow him to keep saying the old lies until they become 'common wisdom?'
How about if Romney didn't pay at least 13% in taxes, all the congresspersons and senators that signed a"no tax pledge" with Norquist resign?
Exactly. That's why that method works. They're running you in circles.
Pastor Rick Warren has a funny phrase that he uses.... Common Sense isn't very common anymore...
the twit Mitt has less common sense than most I feel. Those who swallow his diatribe are not much better.
Speaking of lying and tax returns - Wouldn't it be great if Harry Reid promised to step down as Senate Majority leader if Romney releases 10 years of return and it shows that he paid at least 13 percent in each year. I'd love to see Reid make that challenge.
Great idea, and if Mitt actually shows his tax returns and we learn that he didn't pay even 13 percent in taxes during those years, can we count on you to express a similar wish for Mitt's resignation from the campaign trail?
Well last I knew Reid isn't running for the highest office in the land, and how do you know he lied. If Romney is so adament he has nothing to hide, then prove it to the people of the US, matter settled. And why would he pay only13% in taxes when many of us pay much more and earn much less? It really is simple, show us all your honest tax returns Romney both parties have asked to see them.
..why should he? the ball is in romney's court. see mitt squirm
I dislike any idea of another quid pro quo for Romney's taxes. The quid -- Obama's taxes -- has already been presented. So no. Not like Romney would go for it -- he still hasn't released all of the one year he made public, and the other promised year is still not available. (My guess is he will never release a page more. And will keep whining.)
It's like doing an deal with the Devil anyway -- you'd have to word your request very specifically and carefully, with an eagle eye towards loopholes (e.g., "if your complete and unamended federal tax returns show that you actually paid at least 13% of your income-- from all U.S. and all foreign funds, properties, trusts and investments-- in federal income taxes in each of those years"...) and he'd have to do his end FIRST.
I think Reid's position would be safe as houses, but I still wouldn't want the suggestion that Romney should need any more incentive than he already has to release his returns. I mean, really? If being viewed as a truly viable and honest Presidential candidate is not enough, what would be? The stuff in those returns must be really explosive.
If it was proven that Harry Reid did not have a credible source tell him that Romney paid no federal income tax, then yes, he should at least be shamed. But if Mitt actually paid a whopping 13%, it's Reid's source who was mistaken.
Romney is no more credible than Reid, I think that's the point.
There's no reason to believe Romney telling us MORE, not showing any proof than believe Reid's statement. Both are heresay.
Yes, it is very sad how people will believe one thing based on hearsay, but not another.
Oh, I would say Mitt is far less credible than Reid.
Me too Dave, the point is why would anyone believe a known liar to say Reid must prove it and Rmoney doesn't have to show us until Reid proves it. Well, why do we believe Rmoney when he tells us 13%? Reid is driving that point home, knows Rmoney won't show us his tax returns, it could well be 0 for all we know.
I'm like a broken record: When will you, Steve, and Rachel send this list to your bosses at NBC and have them report this on the Nightly News and publish it on your NBC website? This is news: the constant and blatant telling of demonstrable lies by a candidate for the office of President of the United States of America.
How about Rachel calling out her boss for a live interview on her show?
I also notice that there are ads on her show and her colleagues' for the 2016: Obama's America movie by Dinesh D'Souza. How about some pushback on that? Clearly this movie is an assault on Obama and needs to be reviewed during the same time it is run on MSNBC.
MSNBC is corporate media. Only 10% of Americans now approve of American political media. 80% disapprove and our American corporate political media doesn't really seem to care. But then again, the political media is generally paid off by the same folks who buy off the GOP. Corporate advertising revenue primarily fuels corporate media, and pays the pundits' salaries. MSNBC isn't Fox but MSNBC is corporate.
Um, maybe she shouldn't because "calling out" one's boss, however justified, is often not a "good career move"?
It would be nice if "journalists" with very large mass-media audiences did a better job of living up to their responsibilities to the citizenry as part of the "fourth estate". It would also be nice if the handful of large corporate "people" who own all of the truly mass-media outlets in our country would interfere less in the operations of their news divisions (which I'm convinced they do, whether for the motives of profit or ideology, regardless of how much they may protest to the contrary).
But, realistically, it's best if Dr. Maddow not provoke those who own the cameras (by which her show is brought to us) into terminating one of the few outlets that exist for reliably informative news and punditry from a progressive perspective. I would imagine this is possible if she should manage to convince the "powers that be" that she's more trouble than the profit and attention her show may generate are "worth". I, for one, don't need to see Rachel get "Olbermanned".
;-)
It looks like Soledad O'Brien on CNN is dipping her toe into challenge-the-lies territory. If she keeps it up, maybe others will follow suit? One can hope.
In the UK lying in a political ad would get you into massive trouble. Lying in any sort of advertising would have you up in front of a regulatory authority and fined.
You need Jeremy Paxman over there
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1KHMO14KuJk&feature=player_detailpage
Yeah, instead of that, we went with a Constitutional amendment that made any such law unthinkable.
And hey, we've had our ups and downs with it, but, on balance, it was working out pretty well for us until the 1990's when our upper class, led by a guy named Murdoch you made have heard of, started treating political speech as an exciting new investment opportunity.
Given Paul Ryan's non-stop weaselry, it would be great to see a companion piece on him as well, say, "Chronicling Paul's Prevarications." Of course, I realize there are not enough hours in the day to tabulate the non-stop lies pouring forth from these two.
An entire industry will grow up around exposing the lies, blatant and otherwise, of Messrs. Romney & Ryan. Aloha . . .
How about "Publishing" Paul's Prevarications? Or "Reporting Ryan's Lyin'?"
Ryan said he didn't ask for stimulus. But then forced to admit he did.
http://news.yahoo.com/presented-letters-ryan-admits-requesting-stimulus-cash-234025910--abc-news-politics.html
http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2012/08/presented-with-letters-ryan-admits-requesting-stimulus-cash/
Do you know anything about 2016 the movie? From the places its being shown it looks like a tea party film. It all so sounds like a muckraking false expose of Obomba life. I just want to know what it is.
It is.
Google 2016: Obama' America, or Dinesh D'Souza and read some of the reviews. There is a ton of information.
Thanks for asking!
Your take on the 2016: Obama's America is spot on. The movie presents as 'true' totally false scenarios that nevver happend or were taken completely out of context (which is their modus operandi). But, Republicans are going to see it in droves, even standing, whistling and applauding at the end. Gullible bunch of fools. As they leave the theatre, they are like a bunch of giddy drunks...drunk on lies.
It seems to be a shame that despite our knowing of Romney's underhanded political manuevers, and his being 'out-of-touch' with the average American coupled with his elistist attitude,,,,,that his catering to the super-rich 1%, thus becoming the reciepient of hundreds of millions of dollars in his campaign fund......that he may be able to 'BUY' his way into the presidency!
Adelson certainly thinks he can buy the Presidency for the GOP and has even put a price tag on it.
Unfortunately, Americans have come to the conclusion that politicians lie. Fortunately, most of us will not sit by and let a person that lies so profusely into our highest office, no matter how much money is poured out to make it happen.
yes..but what kind of America will he govern. i expect it will be the one that suddenly realizes [too late] that the GOP has stolen yet another election from them. then what?
Between the buying, the voter ID drives, and all the other GOP chicanery and dirty tricks learned in years gone by, there may well be a nasty outcome to this "election." But there's this -- if an "election" has been tampered with so openly and with such contempt for the process, is it an "election" that has to stand? Do We the People permit this to happen, if it does? Or would we let Paul Ryan pipe up about "government by consent of the people"?
Hopefully, enough folks will get out there on the ground to make sure folks get sufficient voter IDs in the states where that is an issue. And continue the legal fights in, say, PA -- requiring that every town and village has an office to provide voter IDs within a 24 hour period -- or that town or village cannot require IDs.
I realize that most political campaigns put out misinformation or skewed statisics all the time. It's just SOP I suppose, off putting, but the unfortunate standard. For the most part, it's the ads and so called surrogates that do this, not the candidates themselves for the most part. Mitt, and now Ryan it seems, simply lie ALL THE TIME. It's not even interpretation of the facts, it is out and out lying. Never took stimulus money, but my staff did, BS! Take my word, I paid taxes every year, yeah right! If you hadn't just lied through your teeth in the previous statement, I might give them the benefit of the doubt, but now, I will just take EVERYTHING these mendacious clowns say as a LIE.
Maybe Romney doesn't know what "double" means. The deficit on Obama's first day was $1.3 trillion. Last year, it was also $1.3 trillion. This year, it's projected to be $1.1 trillion. When he says the president "more than doubled" the deficit, as he has many times, Romney's lying.
Please write more about this. I see commenters at other blogs tossing around the statement that 'Obama added $5 trillion to the deficit." I'd love to have a nice, handy link to refer them to.
Keep up the great work!
People regularly confuse the terms "debt" and "deficit." They're two different things. Even the campaigns do it. Except I think the GOP does it on purpose.
So, obviously Ryan will not be making up in truth what Romney spreads in lies.
Romney/Ryan
Two rights DO make a wrong.
Funny. I'm totally stealing that!
;-)
I'd like to also leverage your, "Two rights DO make a wrong," as well. Any objections? Happy to give you literary credit whenever I use it. Thank you
Have at it! lol
Ok, here's what we do...obtain the picture of the RR 'announcement' (the one with them hugging on the battle ship - <snicker/giggle>) and caption it with the "Two rights DO make a wrong..." I'd also suggest putting the word "Apparently" at the beginning.
So. Picture of hugging RR's, followed by "Apparently, Two rights DO make a wrong..." (maybe a tag line that says "Vote Democratic for your sanity" or something like that. Any takers want to produce this bumper sticker? I'd buy one Pronto!!
I'm still waiting for the media to cover Romney's illegal campaign donations from people in foreign countries.
Foreign Cash Disqualifies Romney from Presidential Bidwww.veteranstoday.com
Romney's Israeli Fundraiser with Sheldon Adelson Campaign Finance Violation By Gordon Duff, Senior Editor Romney raised millions in foreign cash at fundraisers across Israel. One table alone gave him a million in cash. None was from...
Rachael and Steve: This seems incredibly important to me! Please put this on the show!!!!!
I wondered about when he was in Israel. We cannot let the powers that be let him get away with this!
It's like his stashing his $ off-shore, then probably getting "amnesty" at the last minute. Is that what his tax returns would show??? Retroactive Robme.
The trick is they gave that money to his SuperPac, not to him personally. There is no restriction on foreigners giving money to an independent entity.
This is probably the biggest flaw when it comes to SuperPacs.
I am Joseph- That's not really true. Foreign individuals/entities are barred from donating, even to Super PACs. The problem comes in when the outside spending groups accept dark money and when they don't disclose. They are still technically liable, though proving a case is far more difficult. The gray area is the so-called social welfare groups' assertion that they aren't engaging in electioneering activities. There are too many ways that bad actors can circumvent existing rules.
Hi Steve. you do really great work. Followed you here from Wa Monthly and you're on my daily read.
Hey, with the addition of Paul Ryan I'm afraid I need to ask you to step up your game and begin Chronicling Paul's Mendacity.
I posted above some suggestions for titles as did June Day. (Comments #10, #10.2)
Sadly, the sheep that follow FauxNews and Talk Radio will believe what they're hearing without checking the facts.
Keeping track of all this stuff must be a headache, thanks Steve Benen.
You know what is more frightening than a person who convinces himself the untruths he is telling are true? The person who knows he is lying and lies anyway to get what he wants. That is Machevellian and downright scary. Which is Mitt? Whatevet he is one day it will come back to haunt not him but us if buy in and elect this guy!
Pseudologia fantastica, mythomania, or pathological lying are three of several terms applied by psychiatrists to the behavior of habitual or compulsive lying.[1][2] It was first described in the medical literature in 1891 by Anton Delbrueck.[2] Although it is a controversial topic,[2] pathological lying has been defined as "falsification entirely disproportionate to any discernible end in view, may be extensive and very complicated, and may manifest over a period of years or even a lifetime.
The defining characteristics of pseudologia fantastica are:
Pseudologia fantastica may also present as false memory syndrome, where the sufferer genuinely believes that fictitious events have taken place, regardless that these events are fantasies. The sufferer may believe that he or she has committed superhuman acts of altruism and love or has committed equally grandiose acts of diabolical evil, for which the sufferer must atone, or has already atoned for in her/his fantasies. Wiki
Thanks, reveal5. This pathology is presented as applying to Romney when it applies to many more. Disassociation is common among politicians and all together makes for quite a grand illusion of sound and fury while the all cookie jars are emptied. I've never seen it this bad before.
I guess this is a technical definition of truthiness. Thanks!
Mitt Romney or the (bad) actor currently playing Mitt Romney isn't responsible for what he says, he just says whatever the writers script for him. He is the lyingest lying liar I have ever seen and he isn't even convincing when he says these things. Why is it that most people can't see this? Any thoughts?
Romney's got some very convincing Religious camouflage, but underneath his robes, he's a shark.
A shark in magic underwear, no less.
I get sick to my stomach when I turn on the evening news on any major network and hear NOTHING about this. The most dishonest man to ever run for President is making up lies about the President's record, his plans and the economy every day and the media in general is shrugging. Why is this not a lead story? Why is the media not doing it's job by reporting each lie Romney has told and yes, I would expect them to hold Obama to the same standard. It is possible this country will hire a pathological liar as President if nothing is done. I would say the same if Romney were a Democrat... he is not fit to serve as President! I pray voters are educated to this fact in the debates or somehow before the election. It's frightening. Truly.
I agree. As I wrote above, this is NEWS! I still think Rachel could make a bigger deal to her corporate bosses. Yes, she risks a reduction in rank or termination, but if you've ever heard Daniel Ellsberg's story, the person who released the Pentagon Papers, he was faced with life in prison and his wife, Patricia Marx Ellsberg, stood by his side. His only regret is that he waited to release the papers and feels responsible for the lives lost while he hesitated. From what I can tell, Rachel has sufficient income to sustain herself in a comfortable manner and she would not be breaking any laws. Just my opinion.
Where, oh where is" "Keeping Them Honest" w/Anderson Cooper?! Aloha . . .
Couldn't agree more. I don't know what the MSM is afraid of here. Sure, it is their responsibility to report the news without opinion (there are plenty of other outlets for opinion nowadays on every side of every issue) ... but how can the major networks allow a candidate for president to spout out-and-out lies without calling him on it?
It is terribly irresponsible, it makes absolutely no sense and it scares me.
I agree. The mainstream media has a responsibility to tell the truth, report on those who are blatantly lying, over and over and over. When the media does call them out, they timidly report a few falsehoods, then they give equal (or even more) time to the liar, who just repeat their lies as if they are true...and the media lets them do it without even producing challenging them on the facts that prove the liar to be a liar. Someone needs to keep score on the lies being told. It would look somewhat like this:
In the past 3 months Romney/Ryan lies: 666,666
In the past 3months Obama/Biden lies: 3
The Republican Party has become a perversion. Of all the reasons why, at the top of the list is indeed the main Party plank, from nearly all its players, LYING: consistent, persistent, willful, spiteful, obvious, odious, onerous, endlessly repeated, amplified, ennobled, solidified, trivial or gigantic, loud and proud, outrageous or preposterous, debunked or fact checked, impervious and immune from truth.
It’s quite a sinister achievement when focus groups refuse to believe, e.g., factual statements about Republican intentions and actions because they can’t conceive of anyone actually promoting or doing such horrendously terrible things.
It’s getting to the point where the Republicans are little more than obscenities and venalities, a total lack of socially redeeming values, consumed with hubris, hypocrisy, hype, and hollowness. Social Darwinism at its worst. They do not believe in people nor we the people. They neither give the average person fish, nor teach them how. They are at core rapists and soulless vampires, of people, the land, resources, wealth, and governments. Every aspect of the Madison Avenue marketing machine is devoted to shaping the message to the masses, to sell a product with words and images that deceive and distort. All the corporate media are used to create stories, entertainment and distractions from the actual details of reality and public policy.
We know that that childhood ditty about Sticks and Stones is not true. Words do hurt. The speech and imagery of hate and violence and false witness are absorbed. That those megaphones are listened to, supported, and allowed to exist is in itself a sin. There is sufficient evidence that the bile is synthesized by us all, and becomes a contributing factor to low information voters, incurious, irrational, and single issue crackpots, and right wing loonies.
Well said!!!
And while doing all this, they claim to worry about the declining values of the country (which they ascribe to the rest of us)!
When people say Mitt is at least "a good businessman," I think: only by THEIR business model --characterized by a lie-cheat-steal, buyer-beware philosophy.
Bible alert- They ALSO claim moral high ground and God/Jesus is on their side, not ours. Another huge lie, and I can quote the Bible to back up the claim that words can never hurt you. Let's just turn (for Bible followers) to http://bible.cc/matthew/15-11.htm
WOW, out of the park! Bravo
The more I read your statements the truth is coming out even more how you liberal must have been drinking tainted water. But that's OK. After hearing Obama speech yesterday, it's over. Romney and Ryan will win the election hands down. Dear friends of mine still serving in our military think Obama and Joe Biden are nuttier than a Pet Raccoon. Hell I was in a pub having a drink around 100 patrons, we all were watching his speech, I was sitting and only observing. They were rolling over laughing their as-ses off how delusional he sounds. WOW.
Ah, how wonderful the daydream, how sharp reality! -- and by the way, "pub"? Where are you - Liverpool?
I'm waiting for Chronicling Ryan's Mendacity. Too bad there isn't a good synonym for "lie" that starts with "R."
Maybe we could just start saying "Oh, that's quite a Romney you just told".
How about the one I came up with yesterday? Lyin' Ryan!
Which is higher, Romney's credibility rating or your income tax rate?
Sandy, you can't use "Romney" like that. It has already been defined as "to defecate in terror".
Oh, I think we can find room for homographs here.
http://www.dailywritingtips.com/homograph-examples/