It did seem a little odd for a guy who made $21 million last year and paid 14% in taxes to mouth off about the lack of concern for the poor, a group that has been growing throughout the recession. Today he tried to backtrack but it’s hard to believe that he didn’t mean what he said, which is the poor are not a concern nor is income inequality. When it comes to Mitt, and much of the Republican platform, the belief seems to be in Reaganomics “trickle-down” theory whereby the rich getting richer helps the poor, even though the last decade has proven that statistically not to be the case.
What do you think?
Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney said Thursday he “misspoke” when he told CNN on Wednesday he was “not concerned about the very poor.”
In an interview with Nevada political reporter Jon Ralston, Romney sought to downplay the comments, which have been widely criticized.
“It was a misstatement. I misspoke,” Romney said.
“I’ve said something that is similar to that but quite acceptable for a long time. And you know when you do I don’t know how many thousands of interviews now and then you may get it wrong. And I misspoke. Plain and simple,” Romney added.
The morning after winning Tuesday’s Florida primary by a large margin, Romney went on the morning television shows to promote his campaign’s message of helping the middle class.
Asked about his economic proposals, Romney said “I’m not concerned about the very poor. We have a safety net there. If it needs repair, I’ll fix it. I’m not concerned about the very rich. They’re doing just fine. I’m concerned about the very heart of America, the 90-95 percent of Americans right now who are struggling.”
About Tom Matlack
A semantic gotcha. Good for you.
To think Romeny really isn’t concerned about the poor, full stop, is nuts and you’re not nuts.
He found out that he can’t tell the truth and survive as a politician. His “apology” is not sincere, he is only trying to placate.
Can we really do anything about the poor, our poor? We never have. Nobody has ever succeeded in helping the poor. What he should have said is I am very concerned for the poor, and our fervent hope is a rising tide lifts all ships. What we need is a return to americas days of glory, a powerful economy that lifts all our hopes, gives us all a measure of success, I accordance with our god given talents, energy, luck etc. I’m sure that’s,what the democrat party wants, but we are better at it.
I think Romney does not care about anything except his own political future. However, that is just what I think. He never said that. And he never said he is “not concerned about the very poor”. He stumbled over words while trying to say something completely different, which is very apparent when you listen to his statement in its entirety:
“This is a time people are worried. They’re frightened. They want someone who they have confidence in. And I believe I will be able to instil that confidence in the American people. And, by the way, I’m in this race because I care about Americans. I’m not concerned about the very poor. We have a safety net there. If it needs repair, I’ll fix it. I’m not concerned about the very rich, they’re doing just fine. I’m concerned about the very heart of the America, the 90, 95 percent of Americans who right now are struggling and I’ll continue to take that message across the nation.”
What he meant to say is, the people who are most at risk are those that fall outside the social safety net. He certainly never meant to say he does not care about poor people, and it is dishonest to pretend otherwise.
Does Romney really care about the poor? I doubt it. For one thing, I don’t know what “safety net” he is talking about. Homeless shelters, maybe? Soup kitchens? This country’s “safety net” is a patchwork of practices and programs designed to prevent people from starving and/or freezing to death. Preventing death is not the same thing as allowing life.
I think we can criticise Romney based on things he has actually said and done. There is no need to conjure a make-believe heartless bogey-man. It is not necessary, and it is not honest.