Look, I'll acknowledge that last night I questioned whether Mitt Romney's remarks on that now-notorious video would kill his campaign. I did so because I've seen how susceptible hearland Americans are to rugged-individualism propaganda.
But I'm not denying that what Romney said is profoundly insulting to much of America. Chuck Todd, on the other hand, is denying that. I know his job is to tell you at all times that the system isn't broken and both sides are equally extreme and both sides are equally to blame for anything that's gone wrong in our politics, but on last night's NBC Nightly News, confronted with incontrovertible evidence that Mitt Romney holds us peasants and non-scions in utter contempt, Todd basically insisted that it was unfair to ascribe Mitt Romney's words to Mitt Romney:
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CHUCK TODD: ... you don't necessarily know. Is the candidate saying what he truly believes? Or is he saying what he thinks the audience wants to hear? Particularly at a place like a fund-raiser where partisan red meat is had, not just rubber chicken, if you will, that they eat. But, you know, in this videotape -- which, of course, our national investigative correspondent, Michael Isikoff, acquired -- you do get a sense of at least what the campaign is thinking sometimes. And in many ways Mitt Romney was sounding like a pundit -- right? He was saying there are 47% of the country that is going to be with the president no matter what. But the part that he said, talking about that they pay no income taxes, that they want to be part of a government, it's probably going to have legs and something he's got to deal with. He's put out a statement, sort of a non-, innocuous statement, trying to deal with this a little ways. And it is a reminder: President Obama, when he was candidate Obama, had a similar incident where he was overheard talking about analyzing folks in the state of Pennsylvania, saying they cling to their guns and religion. And, Brian, it's a political comment to this day that's still a political problem for the president to deal with in those states.So to sum up:
* Romney was calling half the country parasites just to be polite to his dinner guests.
* Romney was saying "what the campaign is thinking sometimes," which lets him off the hook because Romney is not to be held responsible for the actions of the Romney campaign.
* Pundits just sling statistics to fill airtime and column inches, with no actual core beliefs -- that's their job. When Romney said that half of all Americans are parasites, he was just being a pundit.
* This could hurt Romney politically, which is what's really important here.
* Oh, and both sides do it.
Thanks for that perceptive analysis, Chuck.
9 comments:
Great video.
Actually, I'm surprised he wasn't more angry and contemptuous, as the right usually are.
Too bad.
Chuckles Todd is the living embodiment of "The Peter Principle."
He was a pretty good numbers analyst over several elections.
So, they elevated him to a political pundit.
And it appears that they provided David Broder as his tutor.
But, as bad as UpChuck can be, he's a political savant compared to Puke Russert. If Timmeh wasn't his father, he's be about to be fired from his 33rd waiter job - getting caught spitting in peoples food again.
Every time I see his smug face, and before I had to listen his inane Village blather that he's absorbed as if it's the gospel, my hand can't get to the remote fast enough.
UpChuck's on Cup O' Schmoe as I write. Let's see if he doubles down on his own stupidity...
WOW!
He didn't!!!
I guess youngish dog's can be taught new tricks.
While it is usually fair to question whether Romney actually believes what he says, he actually has been "severely" consistent on the subject of taxes, regulations, and social equity. He has so many gaffes on this subject that it would be hard to argue he even understands the controversy.
If you listen to Mitt's little speech, he never sounds awkward, never has pauses.
He's talking to his peep's in language he's comfortable with.
In that, he's exactly like W. When Bush talked aboug war and terror and tax cuts - he was smooth as silk. Never a syllable out of place, no awkward pauses.
It's when he tried to sound empathetic that he became a can't walk and talk at the same time gaffe machine.
Mitt sounds insincere when he tries to sound sincere, because he isn't sincere.
Agreed, Victor.
Mr. Romney finally speaks from the heart.
He will dismiss 47% of Americans as beneath his consideration. He will be the President of the 53% (or whatever percentage of the population votes for him.)
This was no gaffe.
A gaffe is when one misspeaks.
This was not a mistake.
Mr. Romney was telling it as he believed.
For the first time, we hear a man speaking confidently, eloquently, because he is saying what he believes.
Who knew. We had thought he was just a candidate uncomfortable with oratory. No, he was a man who was hiding what he really believed and unable to do it artfully.
Yes, Mr. Romney has finally told the truth.
And that is the problem.
Goodbye, Mr. Romney.
Go away.
Go to your multiple homes, or to Switzerland or to the Caymans or wherever else you can be with your millions (or is it billions?)
Go away and don't come back.
Please.
I think all this pointing fingers just is asking for fights. I do not understand why Romeny could be running for president and start to attempt to "fix" the economy when he supposively owes a bunch of back taxes. That's not a red flag?
Steve
Thanks for catching this, and posting ... I haven't been writing my blog (due to a prolonged illness), as i used to jump all over Chuck Todd ...
Nice job!
Peace
JTD
Dear Steve: All NBC News personnel become more understandable once you realize they are not journalists, but actually act as lobbyists for Comcast and GE. Their job is to maintain influence through access and nice treatment of anyone deemed in those companies' best interests.
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