It takes a brave person to admit when they are wrong… Especially when he’s a Presidential candidate.
Well, Mitt Romney did just that. He went on Fox News and admitted that he was “completely wrong” about the 47% he referred to in a tape that was publicized by Mother Jones.
“Clearly in a campaign with hundreds if not thousands of speeches and question-and-answer sessions, now and then you’re going to say something that doesn’t come out right,” Romney said on Fox News. “In this case, I said something that’s just completely wrong.”
CNN also explains how not only the sentiment behind Romney’s 47% statement was wrong, but also the facts:
The non-partisan Tax Policy Center estimates that for tax year 2011, 46% of households will end up owing nothing in federal income taxes. But if payroll taxes are counted, the number of non-payer households drops precipitously – to an estimated 18% in 2011.
The misstatement sparked outraged among a large portion of the country, even among some who planned on voting for Romney. A blog called We Represent the 47 Percent was started to include the many stories of people who were among that demographic that Romney commented about.
What do you think of Romney’s mea culpa? Does it make you feel better about the candidate as an honest man? Do you think some of the independents he lost when he made that statement will come back around?
Do you think that the public’s outcry helped influence him to admit he was wrong?
Read GMP’s special section with We Represent the 47 Percent
Photo: Charles Dharapak/AP
I think Jacobtk nailed it. This was the perfect time to defuse the whole issue with an apology, while all the Sunday morning talk shows are going over the debate. I also think he will be more guarded about comments like that even at private fund raisers. It was a political damage control move that cost him nothing.
It’s too bad that politicians have earned so much of our cyniscism. I think Romney made an honest admission of making a wrong and misguided statement. I think, also, that Obama and the media have intentionally misinterpreted, or misapplied, his comments. What is true about his statement is that there is a portion of the voting public that pays little, or no, taxes. And those people are not going to be moved by his intention to reduce taxes. It’s irrelevant to them. So his campaign will not reach them. That is just true. But it was spun to mean “I… Read more »
It takes a brave person to admit they were wrong immediately, not weeks after the statement broke news and after they have a little wind in their sails from winning a debate.
Do you think that the public’s outcry helped influence him to admit he was wrong?
No, The first debate revived Romney’s campaign.
Romney managed to connect with people according to the polls I saw. The public have now warmed to him, so they are more likely to forgive his 47% comment
He’s a politician. He’s not an honest person. This mea culpa is neither brave nor sincere. It’s damage control.
He said what his audience wanted to hear, like a good politician. Whether he believes it is almost irrelevant to the troubling fact that THEY believe it.
His mea culpa is a crock. He misspoke? At length? Using statistics? And because he got caught he’s seen the error of his ways? That error being, next time, remember to bar the doors, confiscate the cameras, and be careful with whom you share your contempt of half the people you hope to govern. It might take a brave man to admit a mistake, but it takes a desperate politician. Polling pretty clearly shows that running to the right has all but sunk his chances in this election. Now he’s trying to tack to the center. And all that nutty… Read more »