David A. Rice feels like Mitt Romney wrote him off.
The 61-year-old has always been a values-based voter, generally votes Republican and could be a key vote in the swing state of Florida. But he's also among the 47% of Americans that Mitt Romney said don't pay income tax and rely on government support.
"There are 47% of the people who will vote for the president no matter what," Romney says in a clip from a secretly filmed private donor meeting in May, which was first posted on Monday afternoon. "There are 47% who are with him, who are dependent on government, who believe that, that they are victims, who believe that government has the responsibility to care for them. Who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing."
Romney's '47%' – Washington's tax-break obsession to blame
Rice says he is working part-time and doesn't pay taxes because he can't find a good job. And the fact that Romney wrote him off in those comments is frustrating.
"I am insulted. I support you and you just wrote me off with the 47% who pay no taxes. In that group are those who cry every time they use food stamps; people who would trade them in a minute for a real job. In that group are Christians who shudder at the thought of voting for abortion and gay rights," he wrote in an iReport. "You have strengths that appeal to the demographic you just wrote off ... use it! In the middle of rich supporters you cannot afford to write off a huge group with a careless word."
The 61-year-old said that he has been forced once or twice to take food stamps - and unlike what Romney contends in his comments - he maintains it was not something he was proud of or hopes to ever have to do again.
"It really hurt me," the iReporter told CNN. "It was not something that I wanted to do, I did it because I didn't have a job."
Rice says he didn't think it was right for Romney to lump every low-income person into the same group.
"Not everyone who takes food stamps is a food stamps junkie," Rice told CNN. "There are people who think the government owes them a living and that the government ought to take care of them and be their momma and daddy all their life. That doesn't apply to everyone."
It all left Rice a bit uneasy.
Which leads to the big questions swirling around the Romney campaign: How much damage will Romney's comments do to his chances for winning the election? Were his comments a big enough gaffe, combined with previous missteps, to really dent his campaign? Were his comments just the brutal truth others don't want to hear? Will it sway the votes of Republicans, independents or the undecided?
Rice says he'll still be voting for Romney because of the candidate's social views. But he knows it may not be the same for others.
"I think it was a mistake on his part because he insulted a lot of people who he needs to vote for him," he said.
CNN asked our readers on Facebook what they thought about the remarks and more than 71% said Romney was wrong and should apologize. Twenty-four percent of readers who answered our unscientific poll said he was right, and it was something someone needed to say. Just about 4.5% felt that Romney was right but shouldn't have phrased the remarks the way he did.
Nevin Sanli, from Los Angeles, California, said he is in the 47% and Romney's recent remarks, as well as other gaffes, have sealed his decision to vote for Obama.
"I never took a penny in help or government assistance money or otherwise. I own two businesses, and all I have been doing, along with my business partners, is creating jobs. I am not a victim," Sanli said in response to the CNN poll on Facebook. "I worked hard and built it all from scratch and I pay a lot of taxes. I am not as rich as Romney, but I sure pay a much bigger percentage of my income in taxes than he does. I find his remarks to be un-American, shocking and insulting."
And definitely unbecoming a president, he added.
"Elitism, silver-spoon arrogance and outright divisive statements, with undertones of racism, cannot be attributes of an American president," Sanli wrote.
For his part, Romney has stood behind the comments from the secretly recorded video. They were an honest reflection of his campaign's message, he said.
"This is a message I'm carrying day in and day out and will carry over the coming months," Romney said on Fox News. "This is a decision about the course of America, where we're going to head. We've seen the president's policies play out over the last four years."
Kristopher Daughtrey agreed with those tough words and took them to show that Romney won't shy away from the truth and will stick to his convictions.
"I applaud Romney for his remarks. He's the only one willing to not sugarcoat it. I'm not a huge supporter of either party, but at least Romney has the guts to speak out frankly about it, instead of Obama, Congress, and other politicians trying to justify their actions constantly or running away with their tail between their legs," Daughtrey said. "If you're going to be president then you need to have the backbone to walk the walk and not just talk about it."
Jason Asselin, an iReporter from Iron Mountain, Michigan, is an independent who says that he generally votes for the best candidate, despite their affiliation, though he likes the ideas and stances of the tea party.
While Asselin is normally a critic of Obama, he said Romney's comments really angered him because he doesn't pay taxes, but it isn't because he doesn't want to.
"I try paying taxes each year and every year they say we don't make enough, it isn't that I don't want to pay my taxes - they won't take them," he says. "Our government put rules and regulations in place for the lower class of people. It isn't our fault for falling under that. I don't like being called the 47%, I'd like to be called American."
Asselin said he is frustrated that Romney makes assumptions about how he will vote. And he is not alone.
Jeff Zicker, 21, might have been a candidate for the 47% category. He's college-aged, but left college because he landed a job performing with a national Broadway tour. He worked two jobs all through college, and these days he pays all his taxes, which puts him in the 53% category.
“For (Romney) to say his plan only appeals to those who don’t victimize themselves just further proves how out of touch he is with the rest of the American public,” he said.
Zicker is a moderate Democrat who will be voting for Obama this fall.
“I honestly believe that somebody that would say that a large of a portion of Americans, that this group victimizes themselves and tries to appeal to voters in that way, I don’t think that shows that they would be fit in any way to be president," he said.
But others say that Romney is merely beginning a dialogue that many Americans refuse to have. Steven Evans said that he thinks the discussion is an important one as the country moves forward.
"It is time to start a national dialogue on whether we are creating a major dependency class," he said on Facebook. "I am glad to see him tell the truth. Let's decide whether we are going the way of Greece or the traditional USA."
But some believe that having that conversation with only half of the country is problematic.
“It’s not in touch with what America’s values are and what we should be in a country," Zicker said of Romney's comments. "At the end of the day, we’re all connected. What I do affects you economically and socially. We shouldn’t see it as an one-for-all system.”
© 2012 Cable News Network. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
| Advertising practices | Advertise with us | About us | Work for us | Help
@David Rice. I'm sorry it all makes you feel uneasy. And everybody, including Romney, knows that the safety net is there for a reason. But face it, you are in the minority of those that receive food stamp/government assistance. Too many make living off of the government their long-term livelihood. So ask yourself the question - whom do you dislike more: The man whose policies are actually hurting your chances of earning a living wage (That would be Obama). Or the man who has a track record of turning around troubled businesses, committees (US Olympic Committees) and states (the state of Massachusetts) - that would be Romney. You might feel "uneasy" or "insulted" for being lumped in (the same way I feel when I get lumped in as being racist because I am white or hating women because I a male), but the the one who is causing daily pain is Barack Obama. But you -should- vote for Obama, because you want to need to feel more pain.
Signed. Atheist for Romney.
Actually, he's the norm. The cheat and lazy slacker, they are the exceptions. Do your homework.
What proportion of the 47% do you are long-term livelihood folks? Figures I have seen range from 8% to as high as 15%.
Romney doesn't have the temperament to be president. Beyond that he is a closet moderate which makes him a liar.
Better to stick with the devil one knows...
I may be off base, but I do remember reading somewhere about the Mormon practice of charity towards the church's members who suffered some sort of disaster. The members assist the afflicted with goods, services and/or money, and this is done with the understanding that the person receiving such will repay the amount given when things are better. It may not be true in every case, but if the expectation is that the recipient of charity is to repay the donation, then it's not a free gift at all. Has nothing to do with being liberal or conservative; it's just how things are.
Dude, you need to do some fact checking (I Republicans don't like to do that
The 47% are retirees, working poor and people with disabilities. Yes there are some that ride the governments coat tails, but to stereotype people that are getting government checks (Social Security they worked for, Medicare that they worked for) is wrong. To say that 47% are not taking responsibility for their own lives is wrong. At one time I was only working part time and there were days I ate nothing but spaghetti noodles with soy sauce... I refused to get food stamps, because of the stereotype associated with folks that do. Having received an education since then I realized that the stereotype is perpetuated by people who crunch numbers without ethics. You should do more reading. Find out who's on welfare. Find out who the true 47% are. Have a nice day.
Go look at the data. Stats can tell you how many people live off of government assistance for years on end versus the ones that need it to help them get to a better place. The reason you don't hear the statistics is because it pulls away from the fictional narrative that all people on assistance are "dependent" on government and want to be that way. It is no different than the Republican argument that there is a huge voter fraud problem. Facts are getting in the way again for our friends on the right. Sure there are a few people that take advantage of the system and are dependent on government aid, those people are going to lie and cheat no matter what the system is. So is the answer to pull government aid from all people who need it?? Just so many simplistic arguments coming from the right its no wonder that they cannot beat Obama in our current economic environment.
The right needs to watch out, if they lose this election it could be a long long long time before they gets their hands on the presidency again.
You prove your ignorance in many ways. Most of those in the 47% are either SS on social security, which is not taxed, or people who work, but make less than the minimum ($50k for a family of 5 for instance) due to Republican tax cuts. Lets not forget many of those that work still get "taxed" through payroll taxes, and there are plenty of other taxes like sales tax and property tax. And the you make comments about turning the Olympics around. Funny, considering he did so with $1.3 billion from the government. Oh, and Bain Capital, yeah, he saved that with loan and tax breaks from the government in something akin to a "Bailout". But hey, don't worry about facts. Oh, and lets not forget Romney's own father was on welfare when he moved to this country. But I guess he was just a freeloader too. The only freeloader in this equation is Romney, who had everything paid for for him his whole early life, but thinks those who aren't as fortunate should just suffer.
Atheist for Romney!!!
Awesome as a campaign slogan!!!
I think that says it all.
And explains alot.
As you should vote for Romney, Mr./Mrs. Atheist! Because you can never see the good in Pres. Obama! He loves GOD, and that's why your candidate is losing...There's NO GOD in Romney!!
Adam, you hit the nail on the head. A family of 4 earning 50K pays zero federal income tax. "payroll tax" is not a tax, it is medicare or SS... Do you really think a family of 4 earning 50K is in poverty? Then why don't they pay anything? In fact, they get money back that they never paid in in the first place. Fact remains, that all of these so called 47% ers, will vote for Obama in droves.... simple fact. In California, we have the same situation nearly half of the voters pay no state tax so everytime an initiative comes up to raise more money for public sector unions... they vote for it... It is simple, someone else is paying for it so sure why not... Nobody is deamonizing people, it is simple truth. As for the guy who says I want to pay taxes but they won't take it... well, you didn't try to hard anyone can write the government a check... But like Warren Buffet and other Libs, they don't like paying themselves, they just want others to pay more.... and more... and more.... and it never ends to the point where we are 1.5 trillion more in debt each and every year... over 1 trillion of that added by Obama.
First, of the last 36 years, Republicans took the Presidency for 20 years and Democrats 16 years, and there had been more jobs created under a Democratic president than Republican.
Second, the Republican platform has always been reducing taxes for the rich and hoping the economy will benefit from the so call triggering down effect – it did not work under Regean, Bush 1 and Bush 2, so how on earth that we should believe the same old tricks would work this time.
Third, running a country is NOT like running a business, yes Romney might be able to save a business, but the way he did could just let the company go bankrupt, re-structuring it, sending the jobs oversea to take advantage of lower labor cost there and just keep the top managerial jobs in US, so that might have saved the company but would it lead to more jobs in US? The fact that Romney could turn the economy around is a made belief talking point employed by the Right wing propaganda machine.
Fourth, the secret video really does reveal the truth – the truth about who Romney is as a person, not the 47% population he referred as lazy and don't want to take care of themselves. Do you really want to vote for someone who outright have written you off? What Romney had said in that video is for sure music to the ears to those white utlra-rich business owners who had absolutely no connections with the average Americans or empathy to the lower income families, so are you the top 1% in wealth/income? if not why do you think you will be benefiting from this guy being the president?
Fifth, Romney has taken the word hypocrisy to a new level – if he is so concerned about people not paying taxes, why did he not reveal the last 10 years income tax returns and let us know how much taxes he really had paid and what kind of loopholes and write offs that he has enjoyed and taken advantage of. Remember Paul Ryan had to provide 10 years of income tax returns to Romney's team for the VP candidate vetting process.
No one can stop you from voting this guy but make sure you know who Romney really is & what you are voting for.
too many make their living off the gov't....and yet so many get gov't assistance because they truly need it,and don't necessarily want it,but need it to survive.But,rich folks,and many middle class like to group everyone together and fuel their prejudice and political party pride.
Well we know Romney will be better at killing jobs in America than Obama had been.
In fact he's a Natural at it, outsourcing jobs oversea that effectively layoff Athiest workers here for God fearing ones in China.
You gotta admit, he's on to something
It is real simple. Are we better off than we were 4 years ago? If so vote so. If not you need a new direction. Same thing with the debt. Is it less than than 4 years ago? If so we are going in the right direction. If not better change course. All this is simple and the news bias is easily seen thorugh if all just ask if we are better off now than 4 years ago.
Page bradley, mormons do not give services and expect to be repaid for any of it, we knowingly give goods, money, service or anything we can knowing that we wont see that money again. And as far as romney he gave 16% of his income to the church, much more then i think your obama or biden have ever given to anything.
i can hear the crying of liberals . not wanting the truth to be told.
We're not hearing any truths. Do you REALLY think all the seniors on SS and ALL the troops are cheats? Do your homework.
it is pretty clear that you would not recognize the truth if it slapped you in the face, not that you don't deserve it.
Really, it would seem that you are part of the 47% that your puppet master mentioned...WELCOME oh wait. I work for a living and have done so for 27 years straight, paying my 22% tax base. HE"S TALKING ABOUT U!!!! hahahahaha and you will still VOTE for him. WOW u people are DUMB!!!
HERE HERE!!! It's not "politically correct" to speak the truth. The mentally challenged can't deal with it at all,
Rush NO senior lives off SS only with no other assitance! That is complete BS if you think so. Most get some other type of assistance. Whether that be medicaid or medicare, section 8, etc. Also, active veterans receiving assistance is not a large percentage of the problem either. Not ALL veterans came home and went on government assistance. There are seniors who get SS and then need foodstamps or can't afford their healthcare. This is a pretty good sign they shouldn't have retired if they are physically capable of working. The point Romney was making is this part of our government HAS to change. People benefiting from these programs wont want ANY changes because they won't want it to be HARDER to cash in!
The media must not be getting the response that they want to see, they keep posting this in various ways. But the facts are the facts if you live off the government hand downs you're going to vote for the party that is in power that lives for taxing and taking away from those that go out and earn their daily bread. Like that NFL commercial states, "a free man" well nothing is entirely free.
Fact: many people receiving food stamps/welfare normally vote GOP. Perhaps fewer will support Romney, but that says more about him than about them.
Incoherent argument where the poorest people live in Red states and typically vote for Republicans. Those people are obviously voting against their self interest.
What I want to know is how are the polls still so close? R is not for the average person. It becomes more and more clear as time goes by.
That may be true, but he can fix the economy. He has the background in business to create more jobs. His policies are the way to go to boost your economy.
Comes down to what you want for the next 4 years, more of the same, or a better economy.
Classy, when you look at actual GDP and growth numbers, the United States has the highest growth of any of nation in the G8. The reality is our economy is doing very, VERY good compared to everyone else.
There's what he says.. and what he did as governor.. and the two aren't even close to the same thing.
I don't see anything wrong with what Mitt said. He is stating the facts, which are true facts.
One guy will fix your economy, the other will do more of the same, it is really up to the American people what they want to happen.
Classy, the problem is that Romney was insinuating that 47 percent of Americans don't pay taxes and are reliant on the government. What's more, he insinuated that those 47 percent are all voting for Obama. That's absurd. The majority of states that receive government aid are red states and, what's more, virtually everyone pays taxes. Income tax is only one type of tax. You have capital gains tax, payroll tax, commodities tax, sales tax, to just name a few.
When Romney insinuates that 47 percent of Americans aren't contributing to the coffers of the Federal Government, he is dead wrong.
Facts? You're nuts. Keep your nose in your own politics.
ClassyCanada, Mitt said 47% American receive some kind of government assistance. I wonder what % Canadian recevieve some kind of government assistance? I bet it is more than 47%.
And just how is Romney going to "fix the economy", Classy. He's given absolutely NO policy or economic plan details of any kind. And in that same meeting, he stated that if he's elected, "capital will come back",and he
"absolutely won't have to do anything". Apparently he believes in magic. Romney has a great many staffers from the Bush2 administration who led the economy over the cliff with their policies. No thank you! We know trickle-down doesn't work. We also know that only a very small percentage of our population receives welfare as a cash benefit. Many food stamp recipients are working poor and the elderly, and most of them can't wait to get off food stamps. What Americans need are jobs, lots and lots of jobs. This will not happen as long as the 1% hide their money overseas, dismantle companies and send the jobs overseas. These people, and the banks and corporations they represent, are as unAmerican as they come because they refuse to invest their hoarded billions in America, in jobs for American workers. And our tax code rewards people like Mitt Romney who stash their wealth overseas. We can only expect more of the same from Romney since he clearly knows nothing at all about the population that's too poor to pay income taxes or whose miserly few tax loopholes and rebates prevent them from paying taxes. I'm sure Mitt has made ample use of his tax loopholes, since he pays a lower effective tax rate than most working Americans. Romney is not the solution unless we want more of the same.
Dana:
Oh really, most of the people receiving aid are in red states? Is that something you just pulled out of your hat (or the other end).? Why are people stating so much BS as fact on this board? If you say something so assertively as if its fact, please reference it...all of you please. Where do you really get this information? If its not referenced its made up, and that's a fact!
Romney spoke the truth–how he really feels-since he assumed he was talking to a room full of fat cat donors.
Don't be fooled, Independents! Romney/Ryan DO want to redistribute wealth:
*Cut taxes for millionaires while the middle class pays more.
*Take $ out of education, healthcare, and environmental protection, so private schools and corporations increase their bottom line.
*Move jobs out of America so companies based in China and India can prosper (and to be fair, their American CEO's).
*Take $ out of Medicare for voucher system
*Take $ out of Soc. Security for privatization
Since Mitt won't really state his position on much else, we have no choice to believe a vote for him is a dangerous roll of the dice–espeically, if you're a senior, unhealthy, belong to a union, or you make less than $200,000 per year.
You drank the koolaid dude. Move jobs overseas? You think any companies will be left here after Obama gets done taxing them to death? Tax millionaires? They will never pay, you will end up paying since they will raise their prices.
Actually, rolling the dice was electing a community organizer who had zero experience with economic policy, foreign policy or any other experience for that matter. He had no experience at all with running anything. He's never been a Mayor or a Governor. And look where that inexperience has gotten us. Pundits can preach about how he "inherited" this mess, but by the same token, he has not accomplished ANYTHING to straighten up the mess.
"""You drank the koolaid dude"""
Oh, for heaven's sake! Do you have "witty" bumper stickers on your car, too, to give the impression you have a thought?
Drink the cool aid! – I hear that phrase parroted a lot by conservatives. It's a phrase from 1978! Do you still have a mullet dude?
Geez, if you can't come up with an original thought, can you at least parrot something more timely?
Both. Nominating Romney was a mistake. That is the truth.
Obama has been buying votes at a break neck pace from the the very people who his policies have ruined over his term. He has made them unemployed, he has made them NEED government assistance and they should hold him responsible. Mitt Romney will improve the economy and create jobs and people won't have to take the assistance to survive. FACT.
You have an interesting point.
You're hilarious. Your entire post is your opinion, and then you end it by stating "FACT". You have learned well from your Republican leaders. Make stuff up, repeat it over and over again, and then call it fact.
FALSE
The Republicans drive our economy into the dirt and then they treat down-and-out Americans like dirt because they are suffering from the economy. Romney wants more taxes from the poor, tax-breaks for the wealthy, all the while crowing how he hates wealth redistribution, all the while knowing that taxes are wealth redistribuion. It is apalling to see a presidential candidate write off American citizens like this, promoting the dependent class fallacy. Romney is counting on the American people to be as dumb as he regards them to be.
Question for you. Do you get a check from the gubment?
@Tom. I get a government check at least once every month. Its for the 20+ years I did in the military. Any questions?
Yes, who are you voting for Greg?
@ Tom I get two government checks being 100% disabled veteran injured during Desert Storm. I have earned every single cent. I am a woman, democrat and proud to say it! My grandfather told me when I was a little girl republicans are for rich people and democrats are for WORKING people. If hasn't come to roost this election cycle. You have a guy richer than god who (according to his religion) lives in Independence Missouri. I bet you his bizillion dollars that he hasn't paid one cent in taxes. That is retribution of wealth, when the fat cats don't pay their fair share. And Ann Romney looks like she just step out of the Stepford Wives screaming "We love women" Yeah right!
Yeah, Greg. Who are you voting for? Either way, you make the point of the Democrats. If you're voting for Romney, he was obviously wrong that the 47% that is dependent on government programs automatically vote for Obama. And if you say you are voting for Romney–then he is obviously wrong about who makes up that 47%......
I'm so sick of articles asking if Romney was right or people like one of the above comments saying liberals can't handle the truth. Romney was 100% wrong because he grouped the whole 47% of people as citizens will vote for Obama when a lot of them are actually Romney supporters. So instead of using a built in excuse for when he loses, he ended up just making people mad who were going to vote for him in the first place. So was he right? NO!!!
Jeff, I agree. I also want to note that many of the 47% don't pay taxes/have jobs because the businesses like the ones Romney built and sold are sending the jobs overseas. The President, no matter the party, can really control how the CEOs send jobs away. They are doing it simply for the extra profits for stockholders AND for their own bonuses.
In other words, a lot of them were racist whites that only considered it negative when they could talk about minorities on assistance. Now they got called out and they're throwing a fit. Hilarious. Bunch of hypocrites.
"Mistake or truth" To paraphrase the classic Certs breath mint commercial: It's both – Truth because Romney was speaking to his base, the rich. Mistake because the rest of us found out what he said. Romney is actually on record as stating if he told voters what he planned to do if elected, they wouldn't vote for him.
Romney was talking about those that BY CHOICE expect that government check. He is looking to help those that are willing to help themselves. Teach man to fish. Those he was talking about wants somebody else to fish for them. problem there is once we have enough people under the government payout, do we become government property. ISSUES
I'm not rich, or anywhere close to it. I am also a woman, and I support Romney 100%.
Mr. Romney spoke the truth, and sometimes the truth hurts, doesn't it?!
And what does BY CHOICE mean? The difference beween choosing to eat or starving? The long-term people who do this generationally are NOT 47%, and yet he just dismissed an entire group of people because he is an elitest.
You want more gubment, more handouts, more of your taxes "redistributed"? Then vote Obama. You want to be told what to drive and what to eat then vote Obama.
Romney was not, in general, talking about people like Mr. Rice, and most people know that.
He was talking about the people who, year after year, live off of the rest of us. Social programs are there for temporary help – not for generation after generation or a lifetime, unless you are permanently disabled.
And that percentage is nowhere near 47%, more like 5% or less. Still agree with Romney?
Hillcreter, post your source for that 5% number you just pulled out of your hind end..
You nail it , but people are blind to see that it really comes to just that.
And that amounts to 47%? Really? I get a military retirement check. Come get it, jealous boy.
But his policies will hurt those of us who are permanently disabled and/or retired.
I am a disabled veteran and I pay attention to votes concerning soldiers and veterans. Romney's party has been downright hostile to the needs of us soldiers. It's not that they hate us, it is because the proposed laws came from the Democrats. The Republicans are too busy with controlling women's bodies to think of the soldier, so it is up to the Democrats to remind them there are other issues.
Anyone else think the "shudder at the thought of voting for gay rights" comments was messed up? Does he shudder at the thought of equal rights for blacks too?
He didn't shudder at that thought years ago, when he said he was pro gay marriage. He only changed his mind when he saw he had a shot at the Presidency. He is a liar.
so did Obama, he just change his stand on gay marriage cause he needs the votes, same with the Dream Act, did he ever mentioned this during his 4 years of government, no he is a liar a smart one but a liar nonetheless