Some prominent Mitt Romney supporters are saying the presidential hopeful's campaign should stop sending mixed messages about the Supreme Court's health care ruling.
Romney and his staffers have been going back and forth on whether to call it a tax as an attack on President Obama or not a tax, to preserve the argument that Romney never raised taxes in his state despite having a similar health care law.
Head spinning a bit? We'll backtrack.
On Wednesday, Romney, the presumptive GOP presidential nominee, said the federal health care reform mandate constitutes a "tax," contradicting the way his senior adviser Eric Fehrnstrom, of the Etch-a-Sketch gaffe fame, characterized his position earlier this week. But the similar individual mandate and fee he signed into law when governor of Massachusetts is not a tax, he said in a separate interview, citing the Supreme Court's decision last Thursday.
In March, Fehrnstrom made headlines for saying in a CNN interview that the transition from the primaries to the general election was "almost like an Etch-a-Sketch. You can kind of shake it up, and we start all over again."
Some people are calling the tax chatter another Romney flip-flop. Others are calling it the Etch-a-Sketch redux. Others, like editor of The Nation Katrina vanden Heuvel, are saying this incident makes the previous gaffe look like solid campaign strategy.
Romney now says health mandate is a tax. Making that Etch a Sketch look downright steady,stable and full of integrity.
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Katrina vandenHeuvel (@KatrinaNation) July 05, 2012And now, plenty of people, including his supporters, are hitting Romney on the issue and letting him know that either he needs to get himself aligned with his staff on these issues, or scrap some of the staff and get a new game plan as they charge into the general election.
Media baron Rupert Murdoch, never shy on his views, tweeted that while he supports the former Massachusetts governor he believes Romney needs to shake up his staff to have a chance to beat Obama's seasoned campaign staff.
Met Romney last week. Tough O Chicago pros will be hard to beat unless he drops old friends from team and hires some real pros. Doubtful.
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Rupert Murdoch (@rupertmurdoch) July 01, 2012And apparently, that tweet upset the Romney campaign, which prompted Murdoch to follow up with a tweet on Monday. He said he wants Romney to win, but instead of the campaign upset about the criticism they should heed some of the good advice Murdoch feels Romney is getting about trying to get his campaign in order.
Romney people upset at me! Of course I want him to win, save us from socialism, etc but should listen to good advice and get stuck in!
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Rupert Murdoch (@rupertmurdoch) July 02, 2012
Murdoch's tweets of fury were followed by agreement from Jack Welch, former CEO of General Electric, and then a blistering editorial from the Murdoch-owned Wall Street Journal.
Welch tweeted that he hoped Romney's camp would heed Murdoch's advice, noting that the Obama campaign staff is a well-oiled machine at this point.
Hope Mitt Romney is listening to Murdoch advice ont campaign staff..playing in league with Chicago pols..No room for amateurs
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Jack Welch (@jack_welch) July 02, 2012And the Wall Street Journal went further with an elaborate editorial that declared the tax or not a tax issue is indicative of larger campaign problems. The editorial says what could have easily been a choreographed way to attack Obama has essentially turned into a political defeat for Romney.
"Why make such an unforced error? Because it fits with Mr. Romney's fear of being labeled a flip-flopper, as if that is worse than confusing voters about the tax and health-care issues. Mr. Romney favored the individual mandate as part of his reform in Massachusetts, and as we've said from the beginning of his candidacy his failure to admit that mistake makes him less able to carry the anti-ObamaCare case to voters ...
His latest mistake is of a piece with the campaign's insular staff and strategy that are slowly squandering an historic opportunity. Mr. Obama is being hurt by an economic recovery that is weakening for the third time in three years. But Mr. Romney hasn't been able to take advantage, and if anything he is losing ground.
The Romney campaign thinks it can play it safe and coast to the White House by saying the economy stinks and it's Mr. Obama's fault. We're on its email list and the main daily message from the campaign is that "Obama isn't working." Thanks, guys, but Americans already know that. What they want to hear from the challenger is some understanding of why the President's policies aren't working and how Mr. Romney's policies will do better."
© 2012 Cable News Network. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
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It doesn't matter. People on the right will vote for Romney no matter what. They are ignorant enough to believe that "Obamacare" is different than "Romneycare," several are ignorant enough to think that Obama and the state of Hawaii worked together to fake several birth certificates, and even more are ignorant enough to believe the president is Muslim. Romney could poo his pants in the middle of a debate and they would still vote for him. The right has done such a successful smear job that Romney could sit at home and count his money and the ignorant masses will still vote for him.
I don't know Piers, I was thinking since the polls say the opinion of the congress was at an all time low, the dems could maybe take back the house. Maybe we could get some economic and debt relief. The Bush tax for the wealthy did not seem to create all the jobs they promised. And Michelle "Nutjob" Bachmann has been spreading her no-truths around.
Perhaps you could say that Romney's stance on the Affordable Care Act is...evolving?
Oh sure. Yeah, saying the healthcare plan that Romney developed is BAD because the black man touched it, but ROMNEY's is STILL OK, and going back and forth from saying "it's a tax, it's not a tax, well HIS is a tax, but my exact same plan wasn't a tax" is exactly the same thing as saying "i am still thinking about it," right?
Yeah, no. It's totally different. Not that I expect you to believe anything other than the lies from Fox news or Rush Limpberger.
These republicans can't get a decent candidate to save their political lives!!!
On line 39a of the IRS form 1040 there are two similar taxes (or penalties if you wish). One is a "sighted person" tax that everyone that is not legally blind pays and the other is a "young person" tax that everyone under age 65 pays. Last year each of these taxes were about $1,450. If you were neither blind nor 65 or over you paid $2,900 more in taxes than you would have otherwise. Why hasn't anybody complained about these taxes? At least with the "freeloader" tax you have a choice to avoid the tax by purchasing health insurance.
I need to correct myself on my last post. Those line 39a items are deductions from your adjusted gross income so the "tax" on them would be those figures times your tax rate.
Romney's problem is also rooted in the lack of backbone. He is timid, anxious because he's been running for president for eight years, unsure and just outright not up for the job of POTUS! His campaign can raise as much money as they want and pour all of it into negative adds, it won't stop people for voting their conscience. People are intelligent and know what the deal is. Money cannot buy The Electorate!
Can a state be liable by not offering Health Care through Medicaid expansion? This would expose those who desire health care through Medicaid to the penalty or "tax". Hmmmmm, just a thought.
No,just enlarge Medicaid till it won't be financially viable for states to carry it,then government steps in like the ACA plan and wahla,everyone is happily covered insurance wise and hypocrital republican governors are told hit the door like they've should have been told in the first place,easy ha!!That's just how it'll go ,mark my words and insurance corporations and lobbyist will hate it because they can't screw ya anymore,plain and simple!!
Look you can change views in a lifetime but this guy wants to be president so bad he says anything and that's scary, changing views in months and lying to your base on a ton of issues not presidential
Among the three GOP Presidential Candidate: "Yesterday Mitt Romney", "Today Mitt Romney", and Congressman Ron Paul, I'm cheering the Congressman
Its funny... angry people with no solution to a failed and corrupt health care system. Many rightwing types said the same things about social security and medicare when these laws were passed...only to be the first in line to go collect these benifits well beyond what they paid in...lol. We now have socialized medicine now through default... people with insurance pay high prices to make up for those who do not...special interest groups want to maintain status quo since they are profiting from such. Roman had a system to control their plebeans (populas) beig: keep the divided into two parties..dopey.. overly entertained... and well fed... 'bread and circuses"...compare that to today.. America is a good country and we need a whole new group of people to run it... republcratz are all corrupt. The staus quo must go!" this will help usher in the coming of mosiach...Shalom. James Ainoris
Romney is one of those rare politicians who can talk from three sides of his mouth! Unfortunately this is the best the Republicans an do. Disgraceful!
"Money can.'t buy me love"- but i bet Romney has never heard of the Beatles, takes advice from those pathetic conmen around him!
All of the net profit save 4% for insurance costs goto big fat doctors and big fat pharma execs, and a few million obese citizens with big fat pharma stock portfolios, not to mention those in shape.
BACKFIRE! You folks who know the OJ, Zimmerman, Tiger Woods, etc DETAILS missed ANOTHER big one:
Obamacare strips Big-Pharma of rights to newly developed meds...rights they've enjoyed for decades. (and it shows around your waist [waste] and on your official national report card)
Did you know?...
...that one 25mg tablet of Seroquel, if prescribed to one of 20 million Americans on some form of gov. assistance, it costs the taxpayer 40 bucks.
I know several of these millions, one on California State compensation, is prescribed 4 per day. Plus Abilify, oxycodone, acetamenophen, etc. (for decades) It has cost the US TAXPAYER about 10 million dollars to keep my brother stoned out of his ghord. His drug of choice was heroin. Now, it's oxycodone and oxycotin...seroquel? He, like dozens of his friends, trade them for booze. MILLIONS just like them.
War on Pharma Drugs. Adopt laws that allow the CIA to use foreign tactics on domestic citizens defrauding and using our healthcare system...some using it to get stoned legally and cheaply, others using it to become filthy rich at the cost of human health.
Waterboard Dr. Moneyscription. He WILL rat out Nurse Lardanax.