Mitt Romney: ‘I’m not concerned about the very poor’
GOP frontrunner continues to struggle with tone-deaf comments
By Meena Hart Duerson / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Wednesday, February 1, 2012, 1:13 PM
Tim Sloan/AFP/Getty Images
Mitt Romney told CNN’s Soledad O’Brien that he’s ‘not concerned about the very poor.’
Take our Poll
Romney's Rollercoaster
Should presidential candidates be focused on the 'very poor'?Related Stories
- Mitt Romney: I’ll give a $1.6 MILLION ‘reward’ for Newt Gingrich’s Freddie Mac papers
- Mitt Romney's campaign says he has millions invested in Caribbean tax havens
- Mitt Romney’s rivals pounce on GOP prez candidate’s acknowledgement his tax rate is around 15%
- For Ron Paul, Age Is Not an Issue
- Romney Asserts Himself in Latest Florida Debate
- Mitt Romney Tops Latest Florida Polls
Mitt Romney won big in Florida on Monday night, but by Tuesday he was back to putting his foot in his mouth.
"I'm not concerned about the very poor," he told CNN's Soledad O'Brien in an interview the morning after beating rival Newt Gingrich.
"I’m in this race because I care about Americans," Romney said. "I’m not concerned about the very poor. We have a safety net there. If it needs a repair, I’ll fix it."
The GOP frontrunner did make a point to note that he also does not care about the wealthy — and that his target audience are the people in the middle of those two extremes.
"I’m not concerned about the very rich — they’re doing just fine," he said. "I’m concerned about the very heart of America, the 90-95% of Americans who right now are struggling. I’ll continue to take that message across the nation."
When challenged on his statement, Romney defended his words and said he had no plans to devote his attention to the very poor — or the very rich.
“I said I’m not concerned about the very poor that have a safety net, but if it has holes in it, I will repair them," he said.
"You can choose where to focus. You can focus on the rich. That’s not my focus. You can focus on the very poor. That’s not my focus," he said.
"My focus is on middle income Americans, retirees living on social security, people who cannot find work, folks who have kids that are getting ready to go to college. That — these are the people who’ve been most badly hurt during the Obama years.”
The interview was just the latest in a string of tone-deaf comments Romney has made along the campaign trail as he struggles to shed his rich CEO image.
Last week he took heat after finally releasing his tax returns, when he revealed he paid a rate of only 14% on the $21.7 million dollars he earned in 2010.
He has also been lampooned for casually making a $10,000 bet against Rick Perry and for a photograph that surfaced from his days at investment firm Bain capital where he posed under the header "Greed is Good."
"I'm not concerned about the very poor," he told CNN's Soledad O'Brien in an interview the morning after beating rival Newt Gingrich.
"I’m in this race because I care about Americans," Romney said. "I’m not concerned about the very poor. We have a safety net there. If it needs a repair, I’ll fix it."
The GOP frontrunner did make a point to note that he also does not care about the wealthy — and that his target audience are the people in the middle of those two extremes.
"I’m not concerned about the very rich — they’re doing just fine," he said. "I’m concerned about the very heart of America, the 90-95% of Americans who right now are struggling. I’ll continue to take that message across the nation."
When challenged on his statement, Romney defended his words and said he had no plans to devote his attention to the very poor — or the very rich.
“I said I’m not concerned about the very poor that have a safety net, but if it has holes in it, I will repair them," he said.
"You can choose where to focus. You can focus on the rich. That’s not my focus. You can focus on the very poor. That’s not my focus," he said.
"My focus is on middle income Americans, retirees living on social security, people who cannot find work, folks who have kids that are getting ready to go to college. That — these are the people who’ve been most badly hurt during the Obama years.”
The interview was just the latest in a string of tone-deaf comments Romney has made along the campaign trail as he struggles to shed his rich CEO image.
Last week he took heat after finally releasing his tax returns, when he revealed he paid a rate of only 14% on the $21.7 million dollars he earned in 2010.
He has also been lampooned for casually making a $10,000 bet against Rick Perry and for a photograph that surfaced from his days at investment firm Bain capital where he posed under the header "Greed is Good."
No comments:
Post a Comment