« BACK  |  PRINT

RS

EDITOR OF REDSTATE

Treat the Press as Enemy Collaborators

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  September 17th, 2012 at 09:15 PM  | 

RESIZE: AAA

“So how do you feel about your new position with Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL)?” asked Media Bistro of Jonathan Allen. “Certainly excited. I’m happy to go to work for someone who inspires me and who I admire. I’m hopeful I can advance the Democratic Party’s goals and obviously, the congresswoman’s goals,” Jonathan Allen replied.

Jonathan Allen is now the Politico’s senior Washington correspondent.

This is the week when Democrats and the Arab street both erupted in frenzies over otherwise obscure YouTube videos, with our media tripping over itself to provide excuses for both.

On September 11, 2012, as North Africa blew up and the American Embassy in Cairo started apologizing for everything, the Romney team finally sent out a statement, but embargoed it till midnight because they had promised not to go negative on September 11th.

I guarantee you a member of the media sent it to Team Obama and I guarantee you it was no coincidence the White House put as much distance as possible between them and the Embassy before the expected release of the Romney statement at midnight. By the time Mitt Romney decided he had to lift the embargo early, the Obama camp had pivoted around him and the media was ready to pounce with “ROMNEY SCREWED UP!!!!”

The Romney campaign cannot work with the press. They must work around the press. They must be more John Sununu vs. name your interviewer of choice and less anything else. Bluntly, the general rule for Team Romney should be to treat the press as an enemy collaborator with Barack Obama with exceptions only as appropriate.

That leads me to the latest enemy collaboration. The left wing magazine Mother Jones has undercover video of Mitt Romney talking to donors. He is, on the video circulating now, talking about the 47% of Americans who do not pay income taxes. The press and left are already orgasmic at the find. As an aside, I find it hysterical that the videographer and Mother Jones were apparently connected together by Jimmy Carter IV, who is being described as unemployed — a state of existence common in this Presidency, which has become the second coming of his grandfather.

Mark Halperin of Time, whose colleague Michael Scherer came from Mother Jones to Time, began setting the narrative quickly. “Many of us have seen pols pander to donors in closed events. I’ve heard my share Rs+Ds. Never anything this damaging however,” he tweeted. Really? Not Barack Obama with the “guns and religion” comment about Pennsylvania Democrats?

And what of the damage to our national security by Barack Obama’s open mic moment with then President Medvedev of Russia?

The Romney campaign should double down on what he said. They should own it. The trouble for the left and media (but I repeat myself) is that most Americans agree with Mitt Romney. Most Americans consider themselves part of the 53% and it is not a winning proposition for Barack Obama to convince Americans they are less than they think they are when most Americans already recognize he has made them less than they were.

Team Romney should force this debate onto the national stage. They should not walk it back. The American people are with him. It is the perfect time to remind people that Barack Obama, who authored Obamacare, wants to now be the arbiter of people’s fair share. To Obama, fair share means you fork over your money so others can have a life of government dependency. Romney’s point about government dependency ties perfectly to the dreadful economic news of late and is a perfect pivot back to that.

In fact, one of the least appreciated differences between the Republican and Democratic conventions is that the GOP put people on stage who had succeeded in life and the Democrats put a bunch of people on stage portrayed as victims. This all goes perfectly together.

The media will use this as an opportunity to stop covering North Africa, which continues to have negative implications for Barack Obama. In moving the focus to this, Mitt Romney should embrace it. It’s time to have the discussion everyone has been waiting for and now, with terrible economic data and North Africa Mitt Romney has a very simple message to close the sale: leading from behind is failure.

When I pointed out that were the election held today Barack Obama would win. And he would win because Mitt Romney has a muddled messaging mess. For pointing that out and suggesting that if he fixes it he could win, I was called a “liberal flack” an “Obama collaborator” and Twitchy called me a hand wringer lumping me in with liberals David Frum and Ezra Klein. It is to be expected. But I stand by the point. Now, Mitt Romney has the perfect opportunity to focus his message like a laser and close the sale.

Tags: , ,

COMMENTS

POSTING RULES  |  LOGIN TO COMMENT  |  REGISTER TODAY
  • generica

    Everybody keeps saying Romney should double down instead of backing off, that he should just strike the colors, load the cannons, and sail right at the Obama campaign.

    If that is the kind of campaign Romney is running, you think we’d have seen it by now. It’s simply not in his character or his campaign’s character. The embassy statement is the only bold move I can remember them making and it they walked it back/qualified it/under-cut it the next day.

    It’s clearly time for him to make a stand, but not here, guys. He said in no uncertain terms that the 47% of Americans who don’t pay income tax won’t vote for him no matter what he does. To have your message tied to that kind of self-defeating, self-fulfilling prophecy – although talking about the tactical interests of voters is refreshingly honest from Romney, that kind of talk needs to be kept far away from the campaign message.

  • carolina

    Glad to hear it! (I was afraid to watch)

  • runner12

    What Romney said was the truth in his intention. His point was that those who want free stuff without working will vote for the guy who is promising them free stuff without working. That happens to be Obama. In no way was he insulting the Americans who have been forced to accept temporary aid due to job loss under this administration.

    And EE is right, most Americans agree with Romney. I am telling you it is the only thing that I can get both Independents, Dems, and Conservatives to agree on when we talk. Too many people who are entitled and the debt crisis.

  • littlehouse18

    Yes. Go bold and never back down. Hammer Obama on his economic failure AND on his disastrous foreign policy. Double down on pointing out all the lies and weakness of this administration just in one week with respect to the Middle East. Keep pressing the foreign policy issue whenever possible and make them at least cover some of it. No matter what they ask you, bring it back to Obama’s many failures. Treat every question as an opportunity to press criticism of this president. They won’t be able to handle it.

  • M_Becker

    Nice headline. The shame of it all is that should have been the modus opperandi for the last 60 years. Only Ronald Reagan understood it and acted appropriately. Seems like every Republican running for office thinks that the press is just looking for a reason to like them. Nothing could be further from the truth.

  • redbirdpatriot

    I agree 100%! Openly identifying the MSM as part of the opposition is what Newt understood more than anyone else (whatever you might think of him). This can be accomplished in a number of different ways……Answer questions with questions, Refuse to be held to different standards, Effectively point out inconsistancies and hyprocricy, etc.
    Also, it’s important that the obvious MSM collaboration with Dems be communicated to the public in a combination of serious and light hearted approaches. AND, Romney and his team should continue calling out the MSM throughout his presidency. This will be crucial to his success as president.
    Many of my friends fear a second B.O. term (as I do); however, I sometimes feel a timid and ineffective Romney for four years could set us up for something worse in 2016 (as hard as that may be to imagine). No doubt Romney will receive my vote. I just wish someone would wake him up to help him understand how imperative it is to fight relentlessly while also managing to change the hearts, minds and souls of the other “47%”.

  • redstatepjp

    Wait, who authored ObamaCare? Cause for a minute I got confused about which guy wrote it. BTW, there is a great piece on TheConservativeAmerican that points out that Republican tax cuts are the great source of the 47% not paying taxes. And, what you often don’t report on is that you need to look at the mix of the 5 major taxes that all Americans pay/ Of developed nations, we are one of the least progressive (meaning the rich don’t pay that much more). Please raise your reporting game and the intellect of the comments!

  • fightnright

    Exactly right. Republicans spend too much of their limited press time rationalizing their positions and endlessly parsing policy articulations that the press – not the electorate – creates issues with, and too little time attacking genuine malfeasance by the Democrats.

    For God’s sake, the administration let a US ambassador get dragged through the streets and not only did Obama virtually hide from the cameras for days (no visual associations between the rioters and the President please!), but the press circled his hiding place to provide him cover.

    Like any practiced debater, Obama almost never weakens his arguments with justifications. The left wing is not wary about declaring that they are right. The primary way that the MSM hobbles our candidates is by continually leading them on to waste airtime defending themselves as if they are being cross-examined in some Kafkaesque courtroom. It’s about time that Republicans hold Democrats to account for their crimes.

  • tnfriendofcoal101368

    Please stay over at DKos…your ideas will be more appreciated there.

  • deltawing

    “who authored ObamaCare?”
    Ummm……….Obama?

  • golffan1963

    No, it’s a real world alert.

  • warrior300

    First, go back to the old format. Second, GO BACK TO THE OLD FORMAT. Third, as others have stated Romney hasn’t got it in him to go for the jugular, and I mean attack with truthful statements. There is no need to negatively obfuscate the actions of this administration, let alone deliberately lie. Why has the campaign not hammered away at “Fast and Furious”, at the multiple Solyndra scandals, at Obama’s handling of the Middle East, at Obama Care, at the lack of jobs, jobs, jobs, the lack of energy independence, and the role Goldman Sachs and Wall Street have played in this administration, while it poses itself as the party of poor and working man. (Oh sorry about that last one, the GOP would love to win and continue playing the same Wall Street games, since they were the party that passed the repeal of Glass-Stegall with Clinton’s signature in the first place.)

    Yes, by all means take on the media, but Romney is no Newt. The GOP once again even agreed to all the debates not having one conservative commentator. How stupid is that? Is the GOP so stupid that they don’t realize or just don’t care that whoever ask the questions, also frames the way the questions are asked. The GOP has given credence to the left wing harange that “FAUX NEWS” is not a real news network. Not even a conservative not associated with Fox News like George Will was invited to ask questions at the debates.

    Romney loses this election and there will definitely be an abandonment of the GOP by conservatives into a third party running candidates at every level in 2014. Too bad it won’t do any good. Four more years of Obama and you have to be living in ya-ya land to think there will be any more constitutional elections. Romey needs to call Obama out right for what he and his party is, the Marxist Party, instead of worrying about damage caused by a truthful statement Romney made about a dependency culture.

    We better hope the election isn’t close if Romney is leading. Once the democrats starting counting the absentee ballots, you can bet whatever narrow lead Romney had in a given state like Ohio will suddenly evaporate. Also, watch how late the vote tallies will come out of areas like Cleveland as well.

  • commonsenseobserver

    I think these comments would be easier to defend without the 47% figure, or seeming to attack people, including the poor, sick, young and old. I understand that he let his guard down at a fundraiser, but he’ll have to find a way to hit the politics and policies of dependency without appearing to attack those who are dependent, some out of their own choice, others because they have paid into Social Security and Medicare all their lives, and others who simply had no option because of the Obama economy.
    If successful, he can capitalise on the welfare reform issue. If not, he would have wasted his money on those previous ads.

  • commonsenseobserver

    “Republican tax cuts are the great source of the 47% not paying taxes”
    You really wanna try hitting Romney with that? While accusing him of wanting to raise taxes on the middle class?
    And you forget something esle- the awful reality of the Obama economy.
    It’s still about helping to create more jobs, and better jobs.

  • bk

    In retrospect, Bush cutting many people’s taxes to zero was a huge mistake. That helped create the monster we have today, where half the people can put those in power who can take more and more and more from the other half.

  • bk

    Romney could really nail it with that – people who really need the safety net are endangered because there are other people who abuse the system. And Obama has done everything possible to get more people on the dole by any means necessary.

  • bk

    But if he manages to get elected, he needs to stay away from Sununu when it comes to Supreme Court recommendations, right?

  • bk

    A parallel just struck me. Republicans think the press will like them if they continually cave to them. Democrats think the Muslim world will like them if they continually cave to them. Both are equally wrong.

  • bk

    I’ve felt all along that the basic problem with the Romney campaign is that they gave the people way too much credit for intelligence – Obama is such an obviously dreadful president they thought it would be a gimme for whoever won the GOP nomination. Their game was to take out all the other GOP hopefuls, which they did a great job of. They did a woeful job of preparing to take out Obama and his lemmings.

  • commonsenseobserver

    Okay, full comments:
    I liked his emphasis on a government-centred society in the press conference. Now he’ll have to give the alternative: an opportunity society.
    The only real problems in the original statement were the overly-broad 47% statistic, which includes many people who are far from welfare queens, the failure to note that Obama’s policies have created an increase in dependency, by forcing people from work to welfare, and the inelegant phrasing which seemed harsh and caustic. But if he can refine this into a compelling narrative of a choice between a government-take-all society built on envy and dependency, and an opportunity society based on freedom, responsibility, and REAL fairness, he can win this thing. It’s all about believing in the American dream.
    (And to the possible trolls: The only party that can legitimately claim to have fought for an America with opportunity for the able and the willing, and security for the old and the sick, has a name that starts with “R”. Dependent on Washington or not, you’d have a better chance of being better off under Republicans. Note the word “chance”.)

  • http://patriotpowerplay.blogspot.com/ mirac777

    I’ll play your simple game. Name the 5 major taxes the career fatherless welfare families pay,and that are a huge part of Obama’s base? Since they have NO INCOME, the **ONLY** major tax is one they do not pay. ( income tax) So… even when welfare families do pay any taxes, just what would those taxes be on, and whose money do they pay those taxes with? They pay no food tax, no medicaid or FICA tax, no housing/property taxes, no insurance taxes, no energy/utility taxes,no school taxes,… so lets hear it from the great Liberal Libation (pjp) on just WHAT major taxes Obama-loving career welfare parasites pay today in America? Now STHU.

    You fake democrats try to lump the lower class working folks with the career welfare parasites at every turn. Just like you lump said parasites with hard working Seniors who paid into SSI for 40 years, with the perversion of the term “entitlements.” This country wasn’t built by parasitic freeloaders begging for more handouts, ( Barack Obama clan) who will simply vote for what will be the economic collapse of America, by buying into the wealth redistribution inherent in Socialism.
    Please raise your commenting game by explaining just how Mitt Romney authored Obamacare. That’s akin to saying that one person wrote the Declaration of Independence and The Bill of Rights. You are only fooling yourself pjp, or whatever your hiding behind today.

  • http://patriotpowerplay.blogspot.com/ mirac777

    ***Not true.*** Yes at the start of his Presidency,GW Bush made mistakes on taxation and corrected them in 2003. From 2004-2007, when GWB lowered capital gains taxes, the U.S. treasury set the record for increased tax revenues. By 2003, Mr. Bush grasped this lesson. In that year, he cut the dividend and capital gains rates to 15 percent each, and the economy responded. In two years, stocks rose 20 percent. In three years, $15 trillion of new wealth was created. The U.S. economy added 8 million new jobs from mid-2003 to early 2007, and ***the median household increased its wealth by $20,000 in real terms.*** Barack Obama? In last 4 years the median househole income has declined by almost 5 grand. OUCH.

    But the real jolt for tax-cutting opponents was that the 03 Bush tax cuts also generated a massive increase in federal tax receipts. From 2004 to 2007, federal tax revenues increased by $785 billion, the largest four-year increase in American history. According to the Treasury Department, individual and corporate income tax receipts were up 40 percent in the three years following the Bush tax cuts. And (bonus) the rich paid an even higher percentage of the total tax burden than they had at any time in at least the previous 40 years. This was news to theNew York Times, whose astonished editorial board could only describe the gains as a “surprise windfall.”

    Read more: DWYER: Bush tax cuts boosted federal revenue – Washington Times http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/feb/3/bush-tax-cuts-boosted-federal-revenue/#ixzz26oR4CfGZ

  • http://patriotpowerplay.blogspot.com/ mirac777

    Ummm North Dakota RECEIVES far more than they pay in? So the State with the lowest Unemployment rate in the country, which means MORE workers paying taxes and not on the government dole btw, is somehow resulting in that state receiving more government welfare handouts? Reality check.

  • http://patriotpowerplay.blogspot.com/ mirac777

    Correct. It is the fake democrat’s policy of Socialist government depencency vs. the GOP family values, personal responsibility and work ethic-demanding policies that made this country great. I’d run an ad showing the ghettos with graffiti and broken windows with a “sponsored by the DNC” banner on top, then show true working class housing developments with a banner that reads: GOP sponsored economic growth and sane fiscal policy gave the folks living here the opportunity to build this, and They DID build it.”

  • anjinconsulting

    The So Called Unbiased Media (SCUM) manufactured, packaged and sold Obama as the personification of every failed policy they have promulgated since the 60′s. The fact that at Romney verbalized the end results of their policies, in conjunction with yet another glaring and and breathtaking failure of their miscreant creation has them scared beyond belief.
    The amout of flak Mitt is taking should be indication enough that he is close to the target; he simply needs to maintain good fire discipline and keep putting the rounds downrange.

  • CarolT

    You can’t predict how the SCOTUS recommendations will turn out, look at Judge Roberts. We thought he was a conservative, but look what he did on the Obamacare ruling.

  • http://patriotpowerplay.blogspot.com/ mirac777

    Well now that we have heard the DNC talking points propaganda memo from golffan1963.. lets talk reality. Just how many people watch the National Buffoons Communist (NBC, MSNBC) channels today? How many believe in them? How does he recover? OMG, the sky is falling! There is nothing TO recover from IMO.
    The all time record debt-spending Barack Hussein Obama will be defeated by a solid margin come November. $4 gas, persistently high U/E, lower wages, skyrocketing energy and grocery prices are what Americans will be voting against.

  • commonsenseobserver

    If Obama really cared about the vulnerable in society, why is he strangling the job opportunities and career choices for them by attacking businesses, piling more debt, making healthcare more expensive, and, ultimately, destroying the social safety net? Obama just wants to spend money, Romney actually wants to make a difference in people’s lives, like he has always done before.
    Really, anyone who still views Romney as “heartless” or “soulless” is going to look really foolish if those stories about his good deeds are widely spread.

  • commonsenseobserver

    Well, the Chief of Staff will be important when it comes to a wide range of decisions, including SCOTUS appointments, and I’d really trust Beth Myers alot more than either Mike Leavitt or John Sununu (returning to his old job).
    Paul Clement is almost a lock when it comes to the next GOP SCOTUS appointment.

  • SoFiMil

    When is the press going to show Obama toasting Rashid Khalidi?

  • jbritterjr

    Now this IS intriguing. Did Mother Jones actually dig upon the Romney footage by a rare stroke of old-school investigative journalism or could this have been “leaked” by team Romney-Ryan? If it’s possibly the latter, what a way to get a message out through a liberal press, who is bent on setting narratives rather than objectively reporting anything anymore.

  • trutexan

    YES! OWN IT!! When I saw the headline on Drudge, I thought, “YES, the Romney campaign is finally taking it to them and telling it like it is.” I agree Erick, double down.

  • elayman

    I would agree with maybe 20 percent of the country being nothing but freeloaders who spend their days depending on Big Government and in no way was he insulting the Americans who have been forced to accept temporary aid due to job loss under this administration. Taxes are at least a safer way to approach the issue and more relateable talking point to most voters than feeding into the stereotype of welfare queen bashing. Now Romney needs to start getting specific on eliminating loopholes for upper income taxpayers and corporations who also do everything in their power to get out of paying an effective rate or it will look for good reason like he is always happy to focus on the lower rungs of society.

  • michaelbowler

    I cannot honestly say I disagree with a single word of this post…not one.
    Romney should OWN his comments, on national television.
    Those of us carping Romney’s failure to connect are being shushed for our comments.
    The MSM are the enemy.
    Obama is no leader…just a demagogue.

  • riverwood

    Actually, that’s true. Unless you are talking about just welfare and food stamps, ND receives about $1.20 for every dollar sent in. It’s allow population, and lots of farm subsidies, federal highway dollars (lots of miles of roads, and few taxpayers to pay for the upkeep), two military bases, 7 Indian reservations, and a large senior population (SS and Medicare). Yes, unemployment is low, but remember, ND has only 740,000 residents. We used to joke that ND isn’t a state, but just a small city with really long streets.
    All of those factors are the reason that ND kept electing senators like Conrad and Dorgan for so many years..they kept the taps flowing.

  • gwalt

    Erick,
    Sounds like you may want to (finally) have someone at RS start an ad campaign putting names and faces of “news anchors” aka DNC operatives in ads accusing them straight out of lies and bias. Hit the top names— Stepphie and Liar to start. We will contribute. Alinsky them. The country depends on it.

  • renl57

    But what Romney said is not true.

    A lot of folks who lost their jobs under Obama are now receiving unemployment insurance. Are they so happy for the unemployment check that they’ll vote for Obama? Or will they blame Obama for the bad state of the economy that caused them to lose their jobs in the first place?

    I suggest the latter. The idea that receiving a government check makes you vote liberal is just false. Seniors are the most pro-GOP age group, even though they receive Social Security and Medicare.

  • rabun1016

    The fact that we have a bunch of people who would vote your comment down, when it contains nothing but your personal choices, is evidence of the toleration of some for personal liberty.

  • celador2

    Its not new. I have posted the similar observation many times that under Obama entitlements like diisability, food stamps and other handouts have grown and he has bought their votes. And a thriving economy that has a free market drive will create job.Government needs get out of the way.
    Obama prefers a new stimulus
    Romney is set up by media in eyes of viewers or positioned, addressed , as an outsider looking in to a structure held by Obama. He is positioned an an intruder.
    Did John Kerry get the intruder treatment, did Mrs Heinz his second heiress wife get that out of touch, unfit treatment by press?
    Romney must cut off personal contact with press unless trusted as he has allowed them to set the agenda, ask the questions and frame the issues. They are the enemy and they are political assassins who mean business.

  • tnfriendofcoal101368

    I’d also point out that Barack Obama wants to take Mitt Romney’s money that he has used to help feed poor people, pay for college education, buy homes for people who couldn’t afford them, etc. Barack Obama wants to take his money to fund Solyndra and government dependency…Romney is correct to object.

  • tnfriendofcoal101368

    I’d also point out Mitt Romney paid more in taxes last year than Barack Obama has paid in his life and managed to do more charity both as a percentage of his wealth and his time than Obama and Biden combined in their lifetimes. Romney ought to say – 47% of the country pay no taxes – either we have a large percentage of the population not doing their fair share or there is too much poverty in this country. Either way it is Obama’s fault – the last 4 years George Bush has lived on a ranch in Crawford, TX…Barack Obama has lived in the White House.

  • celador2

    TIME White House reporter left after 2008 and worked for VP Biden before he took over as White House press Secretary. Jay Carney. One of their own moves from back of bus in press seats 2008 to higher up on the plane as asdministration spokesperson.

  • celador2

    Why is this video offensive? Is it on the level of Obama disparaging ‘those who cling to guns and religion’ in 2008 on a secret tape in San Ferancisco?

  • APA Guy

    Yes…your ilk…did I stutter? Get lost, troll.

  • gretchenstreetman

    Seems so. Hope the mods are popping the blamstick on these Kos Kidz :)

  • Common_Cents

    exactly, letting them frame the issues so terribly just enables them to do it more and gives them credibility. Their sources need to be challenged “some people say”, their premise needs to be challenged, their credibility needs to be challenged, they need to be alinsky’ed. The only two that do it are Sununu and Gingrich, that’s it. Time for Republican propaganda media war boot camp.

  • http://www.neoavatara.com/blog neoavatara

    If Romney doesn’t stand by these comments, and show why liberals are completely wrong on the entitlement vision of America….it isn’t worth electing him in the first place.

    He should own this because it is the right thing to do. Simple as that.

  • APA Guy

    There hasn’t been a credible poll done in over a month, but my sources tell me that Dems are not interested in pouring large amounts of money into this race given that Romney is leading by 15-20 points over Obama and Mike Pence is set to replace another popular GOP governor very soon. The enthusiasm drag among Dems (and enthusiasm among conservatives) here are Donnelly’s kisses of death. In the end, this is a Republican state and it will vote that way in this race.

  • gretchenstreetman

    I’m pretty sure it’s offensive because the sound byte will be that Gov. Romney doesn’t care about 47% of the country. This is a problem of optics and Conservatives from Kristol to Ponnuru are recognizing this. However, will it swing the swing voters? I doubt it. It just reinforces an image of Romney that will delight his detractors. Meh.

  • 40love

    If the Right had an ounce of sense, they’d boycott the STATE-RUN media that has become Pravda West! They do not need to go on their propaganda shows only to be made to look lke fools. I suppose they really are fools because they keep showing up on these talk shows only to be set up and lambasted! Everywhere you look nowadays, you see nothing but fear and stupidity. When are the Right going to start questioning this Muslim’s allegiance? As for me, I already know, as he had assured with a comment that he had made in the past that it rest’s with his Muslim Brotherhood! The new Hitler is on the scene and most everybody is in a state of denial or paralyzed with fear from the thought of it! The left, liberals, ACLU and other anti-Amercans were up in arms over G. Bush for intruding on the citizens privacy. Well, I got news for you, a whistleblower, T. Drake came forward because of the surveilance of Amercan citizens that has increased ten fold by this despotic regime. He could not stand for this totalitarian technology being used on the American people and was brave enough to come forward; for that, he was hounded for four years, made to step down and was to be tried under the laws for treason! When his case finally came before a judge, it was thrown out for the insidious ploy that it was! Where are the forementioned bastions of freedom on this one? The left, the communists that they are, like the media have fooled most of America into thinking that they indeed are out to look after the best interests of the dumb-downed sheeple when that couldn’t be farther from the truth and in fact they are conspiring to bring about an Orwellian Society! I can not believe how stupid this country’s sheeple have become! They are getting the “Third World Totalitarian Oligarchy” that they deserve!

  • APA Guy

    No, the sound byte will be that Romney accurately pointed out that 47% of the country has no skin in the tax game while Obama pines for the taxes of those who actually DO pay taxes. It’s Class Warfare 101…pity it is being leveled at a large segment of the population that historically sits on their arses come Election Day.

  • shakazulu2012

    You’re totally wrong. The media is fair. Why I saw at least 16 headlines this morning talking about a new poll in FL where Romney leads by 1…..in a D+6 sample. Oh wait, no I didn’t see any headlines about that at all.

  • http://gardenslegal.com morstar150

    The quote talks about the 47% of Obama voters which would be about 23% of all voters. Read it again! The second 47% talks about those who pay taxes.

  • tnguy

    We have to stop accepting their premise. We can’t accept their rules and win the argument. We have to start saying that those “poor” that squishy republicans seem so upset that Mitt Romney mentioned are the responsibility of their states, not the federal government. If we keep playing on the democrats field, we can’t win. And this is part of the huge fallout from “conservative in the primary, republican in the general.” If we had practiced “conservative in the primary, conservative in the general” for the last 25 years, this would be a much different country, for the better.
    It doesn’t even require a tax increase. Just eliminate credits like the one for child care and the earned income credit and that would change a lot of things. People need to be told things like those credits are welfare.
    People are a lot more comfortable taking “tax credits” than if it were called what it really is. I’d wager a significant portion, if not a majority, of those getting those credits have never considered that they are receiving welfare, or worse, aren’t even aware what is on their return. They go to HR Block and know nothing other than how much their refund is.

  • vehoc1953

    Blaming the press is a sign of weakness. Certainly some reporters are partisan. But others work very hard at achieving a high level of professionalism. And still others do both: Erik, in your own appearances on CNN, you and your not-conservative discussion colleagues teach the rest of us about how we can express ourselves in a responsible and civil way, and how to focus on the actual issues, rather than resorting to ad hominem attacks on one group or another (in this case, the press).

  • demztaters

    Two words: Tony Snow

  • demztaters

    LOL too late!

  • demztaters

    Bring it on! No one appeals to independents like Gingrich.