.
Hallelujah.
Corporations are people, my friend. Mitt Romney
As Michael Kinsley observed," a gaffe is when a politician tells the truth". And so Mitt Romney inadvertently-- and unapologetically-- spoke the truth. The truth about what he believes, that is. This election is about dumping the 47% out onto the streets. It's about getting rid of the old ball and chain. It's about traveling light, free and easy, without being dragged down by losers and weaklings. And that's why Ann Romney can't understand why people don't think her husband is the nicest guy there is.
Ann Romney thinks people would change their opinion of Mitt Romney if they only knew about the very nice things he has done for families and friends within his social and professional class. And indeed, by most accounts, Romney has been an exceptionally nice guy. But he reminds me of Ronald Reagen, of whom it was said, he would give you the shirt off your back, and then sit down at his desk in the Oval Office and sign a law that took away school lunches for two million poor children.
Nice guy.
What Romney and Ryan probably are not going to tell you is that they don't even believe in Medicare or Social Security, or Medicaid. When you hear so-called moderate Republicans like David Brooks declare that the U.S.-- unlike every other developed country-- can't afford Medicare, can't afford Medicaid, and can't afford Social Security, you relize that there may not be any thing as a "moderate" Republican any more.
What Brooks really means, of course, is that the rich don't want pay taxes for anything other than ensuring our ability to kill other people, presumably to take their oil, if ncessary.
If Romney wins, I suspect he will actually turn out to be a bit of a pragmatist. Confronted with a budget crisis in Massachusetts in 2003, due largely to unfunded medical costs for people who did not carry insurance, Romney hired some smart people from MIT and analyzed the problem and came to a rational conclusion. And thus Obamacare was born. If this is a model for what he would do as president it would be interesting. But even more interesting is the fact that the Tea Party wing of the party will be expecting marvelous things from Mr. Romney and he will, I'm sure, consider long and hard the costs of gratifying them balanced against the possibility of a second term.