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A joke made the rounds this week, which resonated with me. It goes like this: a man dies, goes to heaven, stands before St. Peter, and see a huge wall of clocks. The man asks what all the clocks are for and St. Peter explains, "These are lie clocks. Everyone on earth has a lie clock. Every time a person lies, the clock hands move."
Pointing to one, the man says, "Whose clock is that?"
"That's Mother Teresa's," St. Peter answers. "The hands have never moved, indicating she never told a lie."
"Incredible," the man responds. "And whose clock is that?"
St. Peter responds, "That's Abraham Lincoln's. The hands moved twice telling us he told two lies in his entire life."
"Where is Mitt Romney's clock?" the man asks.
"Romney's clock is in Jesus' office," St. Peter says. "He's using it as a ceiling fan."
It's obviously just a joke, but it reinforces an increasingly common observation about Romney's casual relationship with the truth. Consider, for example, the 40th installment of my weekly series, chronicling Mitt's mendacity.
1. At an event in Defiance, Ohio, last night, Romney told voters, "I saw a story today, that one of the great manufacturers in this state, Jeep, now owned by the Italians, is thinking of moving all production to China."
Even by Romney standards, this was a rather brazen falsehood.
2. At a campaign event in Reno, Nevada, Romney said President Obama has been "unable to communicate an agenda" for a second term.
The day before, Obama published a 20-page agenda for a second term.
3. At the same event, Romney said, "The idea that the president would cut Medicare for current seniors ... is something which I don't think the American people understand."
The notion that Obama is cutting Medicare for current seniors is ridiculously untrue. Indeed, Obama is expanding benefits, not cutting them.
4. Romney added, "I will get America to finally be on track to a balanced budget."
No he won't. Romney's plan slashes tax rates (which makes the deficit worse, not better), increases defense and entitlement spending (which makes the deficit worse, not better), and every independent analysis reaches the same conclusion: Romney's numbers don't add up.
5. Romney also argued, "If I'm elected -- when I'm elected -- we're going to finally get this housing market going."
The housing market is currently seeing its strongest gains in several years. Romney, meanwhile, has said he intends to deliberately avoid any efforts to curtail foreclosures.
6. Romney said, "Under President Obama, you really don't have a jobs plan."
Romney doesn't have to like the American Jobs Act, but he shouldn't get away with brazenly lying about its existence.
7. Romney went on to say, "Paul Ryan and I have a plan with five simple steps. These steps are going to get America's economy just cooking again."
The five-point plan -- oil drilling, trade, privatizing K-12 education, vague assertions about debt reduction, and ambiguous promises about doing nice things for small businesses -- is a rehash of Bush/Cheney promises. No credible analysis of the vague agenda has found it capable of boosting the economy.
8. At a campaign event in Henderson, Nevada, Romney blamed Obama for the "doubling of the gasoline prices you're paying."
This is wildly misleading. It's true that when Obama took office, gas cost about $1.81 a gallon, and it's more than double now. And how did gas prices get so low in late 2008 and early 2009? Because there was a global economic catastrophe -- gas was cheap because the economy had fallen off a cliff, and demand crawled to a stop. As the economy improved, demand went up, and the price of gas started climbing. It's Economics 101.
9. At the same event, Romney said, " We're gonna crack down on cheaters when they steal our jobs through unfair trade practices like China, we'll crack down. He has not."
10. In a television ad debuted this week, Romney says a second Obama term would mean "the debt will grow from $16 trillion to $20 trillion."
If Romney's elected and the Ryan budget plan is implemented, the debt will grow from $16 trillion to $20 trillion.
11. In the same ad, Romney adds that if there's a second Obama term "20 million Americans could lose their employer-based health care."
No. Millions may get different insurance, but they'll have better and more secure coverage, not nothing. By Romney's reasoning, if you replace your old, unreliable car with a new one, you've lost your car.
12. Also in the ad, Romney says in a second term for the president, "taxes on the middle class will go up by $4,000."
13. In the same ad, Romney whines about "$716 billion in Medicare cuts that hurt current seniors."
This is deeply silly. Obama strengthened the Medicare system's finances by reducing payments to insurance companies and hospitals. Benefits for seniors have been expanded, not cut.
14. In this week's debate in Boca, Romney argued, "Syria is Iran's only ally in the Arab world. It's their route to the sea."
Iran doesn't share a border with Syria, and Iran already borders two bodies of water.
15. Romney also said, "We need to have strong allies. Our association and connection with our allies is essential to America's strength. We're the great nation that has 42 allies and friends around the world."
The United States has more than 42 allies and friends around the world.
16. Romney argued, "When the students took to the streets in Tehran and the people there protested, the Green Revolution occurred. For the president to be silent I thought was an enormous mistake."
Obama wasn't silent, and the comment continues to reinforce suspicions that Romney is incapable of thinking strategically when it comes to foreign policy.
17. Romney also said, "The president said by now we'd be at 5.4 percent unemployment."
That's a favorite GOP talking point, but the president never said this.
18. "As a matter of fact, Latin America's economy is almost as big as the economy of China."
As a matter of fact, that's really not true.
19. Reflecting on his education record, Romney boasted, "While I was governor, I was proud that our fourth graders came out number one of all 50 states in English and then also in math, and our eighth graders number one in English and also in math -- first time one state had been number one in all four measures. How did we do that? Well, Republicans and Democrats came together on a bipartisan basis to put in place education that focused on having great teachers in the classroom."
At a minimum, this is wildly misleading. It's true that policymakers from both parties instituted effective education reforms that improved Massachusetts schools, but this was done many years before Romney took office.
20. Romney argued, "Come on our website, you'll look at how we get to a balanced budget within eight to 10 years."
Aside from some vague platitudes, there is no balanced-budget plan on Romney's website. There's a good reason for that -- his numbers don't add up.
21. Romney went on to say, "We [balance the budget] by getting, by reducing spending in a whole series of programs. By the way, number one I get rid of is Obamacare. There are a number of things that sound good but, frankly, we just can't afford them."
This is incoherent and absurd. "Obamacare" cuts the deficit to the tune of about $109 billion over the next decade. It's simply incoherent to say you'll cut the deficit by eliminating a law, which would in turn increase the deficit. That's like promising to put out a fire by using more kerosene.
22. Romney argued, "I was in the world of business for 25 years. If you didn't balance your budget, you went out of business."
That's both untrue and ridiculous. Businesses operate in the red all the time, and take out loans for capital improvements, expansions, acquisitions, etc. If Romney's background is in the private sector, how could he not know this?
23. Romney also said, "I went to the Olympics that was out of balance, and we got it on balance."
In context, Romney made it sound as if he balanced the Olympics' books through skill. In reality, he balanced his budget at the Olympics thanks to a massive taxpayer bailout, the largest in U.S. history for any Olympic games.
24. Romney argued, "Our Navy is smaller now than any time since 1917."
25. Romney added, "[T]he president began what I've called an apology tour."
This is what I've called Romney lying.
26. Romney also said, "[T]he president said he was going to create daylight between ourselves and Israel."
There's simply no record of Obama ever saying that or anything like it.
27. Romney argued, "I look around the world, I don't see our influence growing around the world."
There's ample evidence that respect and support for the United States around the world has improved under Obama.
28. Romney added, "Is al Qaeda on the run, on its heels? No."
29. Romney complained about "our decision to cut back on our military capabilities -- a trillion dollars."
Romney appears to be referring to cuts, which have not yet kicked in, and which were crafted, not by the White House, but by Romney's own party. They were also endorsed and supported by his own running mate.
30. In reference to the rescue of the American auto industry, Romney argued, "I said they need, these companies need to go through a managed bankruptcy, and in that process they can get government help and government guarantees."
That is absolutely not what he said.
31. Romney went on to say, "I want to invest in research. Research is great. Providing funding to universities and think tank, great. But investing in companies? Absolutely not. That's the wrong way to go."
We know Romney doesn't mean this because, as governor, he invested in companies all the time.
32. Romney added we're "heading towards Greece."
For those who have even a passing familiarity with the Greek crisis, this is painfully untrue.
33. Romney argued, "I'll get people back to work with 12 million new jobs."
Putting aside the pesky detail that Romney doesn't actually have a specific jobs plan, the claim about 12 million jobs has been definitely proven fraudulent. His own economic advisor was forced to concede the candidate's -- and the campaign's -- talking point was based on a falsehood.
34. Romney also said, "I was in a state where my legislature was 87 percent Democrat. I learned how to get along on the other side of the aisle."
35. At a campaign event in Daytona Beach, Florida, Romney promised, "If I am elected, we're going to reduce taxes on middle income Americans."
There's ample reason to believe the exact opposite -- independent budget analysts have concluded that once Romney slashes taxes on the wealthy, increases defense spending, increases entitlement spending, and cuts corporate tax rates, all while promising to balance the budget, he'll have no choice but to ask more from the middle class. Indeed, there's no other way for Romney to keep his other promises.
36. "Look, the president wants to fundamentally transform America. He's making us more and more like Europe. I don't want to become Europe."
The irony is, Europe is trying to grow through austerity, just as Romney intends to do here. He's lying in a self-refuting sort of way.
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, XXX, XXXI, XXXII, XXXIII, XXXIV, XXXV, XXXVI, XXXVII, XXXVIII, XXXIX
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How is it a business man with decades of experience can read a Bloomberg News article without totally screwing up what it meant? Mitt Romney: ate up like a football bat; ate up like a soup sandwich!
That news is so yesterday, Steve. Seriously, you've got to keep up!
Check out what Romney's saying about how Chrysler is going to move its Jeep manurfacturing plant to China...
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/post/the-morning-plum-romneys-false-scare-story-in-ohio/2012/10/26/5f8edbbc-1f58-11e2-ba31-3083ca97c314_blog.html
In truth, some Chrysler execs were discussing opening a Jeep plant in China to sell SUV's to the Chinese...
Romney reminds me of a fellow I used to go fishing with, also a Mormon... Used to listen to all kinds of tales while he was watching me clean my catch...
After catch-and-release got popular, I had to find a new fishing partner...
My husband majored in history and political science; I in psychology and religion. There are many discussions overheard by our precocious third grader about social issues and politics. His siblings are adult age so he hears a lot of adult debate and conversation. He asks a lot of questions and gets answers. He had an assignment to watch the debates and write facts and opinions for each candidate upon his sectioned paper. At one point he blurted out to me,"I have plenty facts and opinions for our President, but will Romney at least give a fact that Dad or you can't discredit. I hope Romney doesn't become our president he lies and says different things all the time." I sure hope the American people are as smart as my third grader. I think most are.
Out of the mouths of babes! Sounds like you are doing a great job with him...it's never too soon to teach your children how much the truth matters.
Bottom line - you are preaching to the choir. We ALL know how frightening the concept of President Mitt Romney actually is. What I'd like to figure out is - how the hell do his supporters actually think his social policies, his insistence that big business needs to be left alone (to go after more profits to our detriment unchecked) and his ignorance about anything that isn't rich, white and uptight are good for this country? I just don't get it.
A must read for those Who want the facts;)
What I find so discouraging and frustrating is that the people who are voting for Romney don't seem to CARE that he out and out LIES! So what does that say about THEM?
It says that they are callous and amoral, at best.
The really scariest part of all this is he has people believing him and I mean a lot of people. They are just rolling over and allowing his lies to be their truth. This is really dangerous because if enough people fall into this category and believe what he (Romney) is telling them, they will fall for it and vote for him anyway. This could have a huge impact on the election and this, in a nutshell, is what really scares me. What has to be done on the Democratic Party's part to wake these people up to the fact that he is lying just to get into that office and not wanting to get there on the part of the people, but himself? God only knows, the president has proven Romney wrong, time and time again, but he (Romney) just keeps on lying. Everything he says is wrong. At the last debate, the president called him out several times and said, "that just is not true, governor, You are lying to the people of this country." It doesn't seem to sink into his head. Do we want our country to be run on lies and to be led by a president that only wants to pad his own pocket and continue down the same road he is currently on? That is to close businesses and lay people off and even worse get us into a 3rd world war? This is where we are headed along with increased taxes on the middle class and lower taxes on his rich friends to pay for his so-called 5-point plan. I don't think so. Everybody better wake up out there and realize they're being duped by this man and vote for Barack Obama, just like Colin Powell is going to do. If you want really solid proof about Romney, read what Colin Powell says about him and why he (Powell) a Republican would not even think of voting for him. Nuff said (you be the judge), carry on.
You know what gets me -- Romney supporters will yell bloody murder as they swallow Romney's lie about Chrysler moving jobs to China even as they cheer the guy who made his wealth in significant part through American jobs being moved to China, and who even as we speak, is set to make a nice piece of change from more American jobs being outsourced to China. I mean...the disconnect is massive.
And GE, headed by Obama's good friend Jeff Imelt, moved its entire x-ray division along with its jobs to China. And GE doesn't even pay US taxes.
@justwant2bfree -- not for nothing, that is quite the lame misdirect. Why in the world you would want to shore up a candidate (Willard Mitt Romney) who directly profits in the millions of dollars time and again from American jobs being outsourced, and then turns around and lies to us to proclaim he'll "fight" for jobs, is truly a mystery.
"President Obama released his tax returns. It turns out he made $900,000 less in 2011 then he did in 2010. You know what that means? Even Obama is doing worse under President Obama." –Jay Leno
Okay, I'll bite: ""Mitt Romney says he's never paid less than 13% in taxes, which I think is fair because only 13% of his money is in this country." –Jay Leno
(Two can play that game. And for the record, I think both jokes are quite funny.)
I like it June! There are some great ones out there! We NEED to laugh, until this is over!
"Paul Ryan just released his tax returns for the last two years, and it turns out he and his wife had a combined income of over $323,000 last year. To which Mitt Romney said, 'See, I do reach out to poor people." –Jay Leno
"President Obama has revealed his new re-election slogan — 'Forward.' That's a good message for Obama. He's telling voters, 'Whatever you do, don't look back at all those campaign promises I made.'" –Jay Leno
Okay, my fellow American - I'm willing to call a truce for a moment and share a laugh indeed. Cheers.
Back at youTHANK YOU! You have made my weekend!! This has got to be the worst I have ever seen things. And yet, nothing changes. We will have the same discussions in four years that we are having this year, had 4 years ago, 8 years ago and on and on. They are all in it for themselves, not what they can do for us. It all depends on who we LIKE more.
Hmmm...bad grammar, spelling, idiot, troll, play in traffic. Defend your positions for God's sake!!!!!
Take your own advice.
YOu call that a plan "unable to communicate an agenda" for a second term.. . sounds like more promises that will be broken.
I stand by what I said whatever it was when I said it. And in a few minutes he will change it back again...Whatever!
Love this!!!
Somewhere a server is screaming, "Make Benen Stop! I can't take this much longer!"
#14 isn't a lie; it's simply a Palinesque ignorance of geography.
Steve Benen can't be serious questioning Romney's trustworthiness after four years of the biggest liar to ever inhabit the White House. Obama/Biden are in a class of their own when it comes to mendacity and the examples are too numerous to mention but some are especially glaring: lying about the violence in Libya being caused by some obscure video on youtube, Obama lying to Cardinal Dolan that Catholic institutions would be exempt from Obamacare's mandates that employers pay for birth control and the morning-after pill in their healthcare benefits to their employees. Benen's little joke makes me wonder if there isn't a special place in the next life for someone who lies to a Cardinal of the Catholic church.
Worthless, fact-free bagger drivel.
You just might be a Bible-First Republican Tea Partier, if
If you believe that Apocalypse is unavoidable and normal, You just might be a Bible-First Republican Tea partier.
If winning is more important than the truth, You just might be a Bible-First Republican Tea partier.
If you believe that two wrongs can make a right, You just might be a Bible-First Republican Tea partier.
If you believe that truth-in-advertising takes the fun out of it, You just might be a Bible-First Republican Tea partier.
If the secret church wars of burning books and torturing-nay-Sayers just had to be done, You just might be a Bible-First Republican Tea partier
If you can not remember how many mansions you own, You just might be a Bible-First Republican Tea partier.
Or. . . .not. . . .
This is a silly article and all the agonizing that the Rachel Maddow show and other pundits Do over the serial flip flopping of MItt Romney is a waste of valuable airtime and stress. Their inability to reject political correctness and remove their filtering glasses that say that they can't look at the effect of one’s religion in a person's life has resulted in probably 100 hours of wasted air time agonizing why MIT Romney says one thing one minute and another thing another minute. They're not going to see anything to the pathetically small prism of their secular background that fails to comprehend that there are people on this earth for whom their religion is the center of their world. Mormonism is the center of MItt Romney’s life. It rules his life. He s a Bishop in the Mormon church for years. He has moremen meetings twice every week. He gives 10% of hse income to the Mormon church. The history channel aired a show: "Ten things that you didn't know about mormonism". That included that they bought the properties in Las Vegas such as the flamingo hotel and Sands. This church that condemns gambling Is the landlord for some of the biggest gambling casinos on the planet. The Mormon church is $30 billion corporation. Romney's second cousin Park Romney who used to be in the inner circles of the church was interviewed for a documentary (also recently aired) called “the Mormon candidate” and said that the Mormon church is a dictatorship that imposes its views on its members with serious and destructive consequences if they don’t accept it without question. When Romney was sent on his mission, he had to be trained in verbal techniques to keep the other party engaged in a conversation when they didn't wanted change their religion and and they wanted to send the young man out the door. One of those techniques is to always make it sound like you agree with the popular position ( the position of the homeowner) whatever it is even if that means that you have to change your position even in the same conversation. In other words say whatever you need to say them to make a sale regardless of how inconsistent or false It is .do you need to know any more ? also women are secondary and subservient in the Mormon church. Romney isn't running for president ; the Mormon church is. On the Front Line documentary (a third recent documentary that the pundits with the exception of the Ed Shultz don’t have the courage And journalistic integrity to talk about ) an elder in the chart said that having a President Of United States who was Mormon would take them along way to their stated mission of establishing the kingdom of heaven on her earth . they already have the Majority Leader Of The Senate and the former Chairman Of The Senate Judiciary Committee. Take your politically correct glasses off Rachel and wake up.
Speaking of glasses
Both Rachel and Melissa are guilty of the four-eye-damnation. In grade school, I flat hated my ugly specks. So I understand. But truthfully, I think Rachel and Melissa kind of look sexy in the librarian-look. Or it could just be that I am male, and think smart chicks are kool. My bad.
Not exactly the point which I was trying to make. Those of us in the real western states have had financial dealings with Mormons. It is the rule and not the exception for them to withhold many of the critical terms of the deal and what they actually intend to do while insisting that you sign on the line anyway and take a pig in the Poke. That was the sketchy deal that president OBAMA identified correctly and advised the American people that they shouldn't take that deal . The point of my post is to show that their history and their pronouncements and just the fact that they are a $30 billion corporation Gives you enough information to know just what to expect.. a $30 billion corporation wants all the favors and tax breaks that mitt Romney himself has been enjoying over the years, increased revenue streams and increased power .so Like many multibillion dollar corporations they Hate democracy (corporations are not democracies ) and the will of the people as frustrating and disagreeable obstacles in the way of their quest for more power and wealth. So what do you think They will do when they have their man in the White House (and as majority leader of the senate and as chairman of the senate judiciary committee) will do with all that power for instance in supporting the power of eminent domain to oil companies to seize private lands?
Does anybody know whether or not Romney, if he becomes President, will have to bring all of his money back into the US? And what about all of the companies he and his children are invested in? He has no integrity but I see even bigger problems looming if he becomes Prez, so who will make sure he and his family get "clean".
Of course not.
Everyone in the US will be told how to move OUR cash off shore in order to avoid paying taxes as well ! !. . . .Dude ?. . . . .What would happen if no one paid taxes ? Hello Tea Party . .or. . Bye, bye America ? ?
Onnly if there is a hurricane and it blows back in from the Caymans!
Or a freak super winter storm hits Switzerland, locking it in hundreds of feet of ice forever. Sorry sir, but your assets have been frozen.
Romney doesn't just lie about Obama, he lies about himself! Good grief, he could teach Madonna a thing or two about self-re-invention. If he can rebrand himself as a moderate, this suburban Jewish mother can rebrand herself as a teen popstar to sing about his flipflops . . . http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAXGb4lCPso
Sounds good, when does the album come out ?
If you end up going on the road, I would volunteer playing the keyboards !!
I kind of figured it, MSNBC were in fact killing off the poll question. I did try to sign up for the Polldaddy with no luck. [Polldaddy sounds like a stripper joint] The reason I liked Ed Schultz poll question is it was a center gathering point. With several spots each with their own topic, is just too much.
Rachel start a poll question.
I call bull@!$%# on the Mother Teresa fan. She was a hideous boil on the ass of mankind.
Disgusted, I agree that the media has been very lax in pointing out the tremendous number of lies and inconsistencies that Romney has uttered, but remember that there are a lot of people who get their "news" from that oxymoronic Fox News.
There is one last possibly that must be considered. What if the nation feels so sorry for the poor Romney/Ryan GOP crew that it picks them as a Pity-Vote ?? You have to admit, they are pitiful !