
Associated Press
It's been nearly 48 hours since the political world learned that Mitt Romney, at a closed-door fundraiser, argued that nearly half the country is made up of lazy freeloaders who refuse to "take responsibility" for their lives. And since that time, the race has been on to see how many -- and how quickly -- Republicans will distance themselves from the comments.
As of yesterday, the list included Sen. Scott Brown of Massachusetts, Senate candidate Linda McMahon of Connecticut, Sen. Dean Heller of Nevada, New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez, New Hampshire gubernatorial candidate Ovide Lamontagne, and congressional candidate Mark Meadows of North Carolina.
Today, the club got bigger.
Gov. John Kasich told some Cleveland media outlets Wednesday that he doesn't "necessarily agree" with Republican nominee Mitt Romney's statements that "47 percent" of Americans view themselves "as victims" and can't be convinced to "take personal responsibility and care for their lives."
"We have all misspoken. Do I necessarily agree with him, no, but, I have done it, the president has done it," Kasich said, according to WOIO-19 TV.
This might slightly more persuasive if Romney hadn't said he believed every word he said -- Romney doesn't even claim to have "misspoken"; he's argued all week that he routinely makes similar arguments in public.
Also joining the ranks of Republicans who want to keep Romney at arm's length is Rep. Charlie Bass (R-N.H.), who said he "disagrees" with the controversial remarks, which he also considers at odds with "the fundamental American way."
Former Hawaii Gov. Linda Lingle, the Republican Senate candidate this year, added she does "not agree with his characterization of all individuals who are receiving government assistance."
As for the public, new polls from Reuters and Gallup show the public with negative reactions to the comments, too.





it's going to be downright funny when Rmoney shows up to campaign in their district and no running candidates show up.
Did you hear that Representative Todd Akin, Republican of Missouri called Mitt Romney and asked him to step down? Apparently Akin feels that Romney is hurting his chances in his Senate race in Missouri. :>)
Hopefully when the SS Romney makes its final dive to the bottom of the ocean, after running into the iceberg of political reality, the suction will take all these First Class passengers down with the ship.
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During the Sipe years ....
The Browns had the Steelers down by 20 going into the 4th (or was it the second half?).
I doubled down on the Browns to win.
I haven't doubled down since.
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Same thing for me!
I still root for the Browns (as I have since 1946) but cannot trust my health to withstand viewing a Browns' game.
This is getting ridiculous. Why were they fine with this bull for over two years but now they run from it? Mitt echoed what the right has been saying all along but now it seems they are embarrassed? Simply because some of their drones suddenly realized that they are part of that 47%? Good thing the diebolds are still out there huh.
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Watch the first segment of last nights Daily Show.
Bull@!$%# Mountain.
Jons wrap up statement was excellent.
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It was on a par with Clinton for "explaining" the bull@!$%#. But so much funnier - one of his best.
The unstated by obvious implication of this whole affair?
To the extent that Governor RawMoney believes that 47% of Americans are lazy and dependent, and will vote for President Obama exclusively as a result of their laziness and dependence, the clear implication from the governor is that if they are part of that 47% and vote for Mr. RawMoney anyway, not only are they still lazy and dependent, but apparently they are stupid too.
This point should not be lost on anyone. Lefties have questioned for years why working class folks would vote Republican and against their own economic interests. The governor essentially just made that same argument on the Dems behalf.
Based on my own personal knowledge and experience many working class whites cannot psychologically process a black man holding any superior position to them; it totally negates their sense of white superiority and their own self-worth.
They may be distancing themselves, but I have every reason to believe that they actually believe like Robme that 47% are lazy moochers, they just have enough sense not to say it in public!
i disagree because not all R politicians see things in this light. Gov. Martinez for example, wouldn't ever think in these terms because her view of being a republican is much differnt than the oligarchs in the party.
I am not sure you are right on this: I have heard her speak about why she was once and no longer is Democrat.
you may be right Tom, i got the feeling that she was persuaded to be a R by Michael Steele, and i'm fairly sure he could convince me that i'm a republican too... lol i don't think either of them would go for the concept that only 53% of the electorate is available to them for the reasons that Mr. Romney gave.
i could be wrong. wouldn't be the first time i've thought better of people than they deserved...
Whether or not this video is the REAL Mitt Romney or just the 'classic' say-what-they-want-to-hear Mitt Romney it stands to reason that there is some group of people in America that thinks the statements on the video are GOOD THINGS. We can pity them, but we cannot ELECT them.
"Gov. John Kasich told some Cleveland media outlets Wednesday that he doesn't "necessarily agree" with Republican nominee Mitt Romney's statements"
"necessarily agrees" WTF is that suppose to means? Maybe he agrees under certain circumstances or settings?
It's alright, John Kasich will never be able to convince said 47% to vote for him either, no matter how Mitt meant it!
Man, he's now even more unpopular in the GOP than George W. Bush, and he didn't even have to f*#$ up the country first.
It wasn't all that long ago that we were hearing about all the down-ticket Democrats who were skipping the convention so as to distance themselves from Obama.
I wonder if they're having second thoughts now.
If they truly disagree with his statements, then why aren't they shouting it from the rooftops in support of The American people they are being paid to represent. Breaking news... Romney is now referring to the 1% as the 100% it's their secret code.
Romney with his lack of understanding of what is going on in the Middle East and how the average person lives is really too much of a risk for him to be in the White House. Most of the middle east people are just so plainly fed up with being squashed down so much by these dictators that were supported by modern world countries. It can be seen where these Middle East people are not going to trust so easily and it is going to have to take time just to change things. Romney with his lack of any real knowledge can too easily cause a major conflict there. Romney is in no way capable of handling such a situation, except his bully attitude and I’ll show them. People who think Romney was something great when he insulted and knocked down 47% of the American population are fools in thinking that was a good thing. Don’t these people realize that to Romney it doesn’t matter if it is 47% or 99% of the American people, Romney still thinks we are all smoochers unless you are that rich person. Romney is not going to do anything for the average person, except that I’ll show you attitude. Romney is the ultimate cheap bastard as only his interests are of major concern and that is his back pocket. Romney’s idea is to take everything he can get from the government and give it to the rich as everybody else pays. That is why Romney wants to privatize and sell off our government. Romney would be the collapse of America if he got any real power and control. This is got to be the most awful election I have ever seen, when you really take a good look at what these Republicans are doing. It is outright disgraceful.
Kasich and Pawlenty are typical of the sell-outs whose parents were working class and sacrificed to send their ungrateful offspring to college and were repaid by said offspring by becoming right-wing shills for the same people who held their parents in industrial bondage from the 1920s through the 1950s.
Just a day or so ago Romney was doubling down on his 47% statement and saying he just wasn't elegant.
Today he hit the reset button and now supports 100% of us. Wow! what a great reset button. Does he really think people are that stupid to now believe he would represent 100%? He could hit the reset button when he was a vulture capitalist and people would try to believe him because they hoped they wouldn't lose their job, but it doesn't work when he can't intimidate us.
Romney has been telling us right along that he only cares about millionaires and his clip about the 47% not being worth his time is exactly who Romney is and he really is a mean money hungry bully.
Mitt seems to want to keep his father's accomplishments at arms length. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_W._Romney
Romney waded into deep water when he mentioned being born in
Mexico. Why did his parents live there? They (or his grandparents) were Mormon polygamists who left the US to avoid prosecution. There's something selfish about that sort of decision, a refusal to move into a new century, and to reliquish the very sexist role as cock in the henhouse.
Has Romney learned that opportunism is the way to get what you want? Make money by looting businesses then closing them? Rejecting the same pro-life views that won the governorship of Massachusetts? A candidate's religion shouldn't matter, unless it offers insight into character. How about Romney, a good Mormon? This religion and its practices control most aspects of a member's life. Members are expected to attend church meetings, for women to join "family home nights," for couples to produce as many children as possible, and to tithe 10 percent of the family's income. But the tenent that I think makes Mormonism a cult, is the threat that only baptized Mormons will go to the exclusive Mormon heaven, where they will be reunited forever with family. Stray from the fold, think for yourself, and you will spend eternity alone. Few Mormon, trained from childhood, are willing to risk it.
Are these the type of people we want running office's of importance in this country! We have a congress who are getting paid for doing nothing, and republicans who wouldn't even vote for a jobs bill for veterans! How disgusting do this party have to get before we vote them out of office?
Who was at that closed-door fundraiser?
Romney described those 47 percent as people who "are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe that government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you-name-it."
I would argue that they have a right to healthcare,food and housing and past agreements of the United States government seem to agree.As Article 25(a) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948), a founding U.N. document signed by the United States, clearly acknowledges (emphasis mine):
Housing as a human right has been reaffirmed in Article 11 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (1966), to which the United States was also signatory, and in many other international human rights documents since then.