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
Just in case there is any doubt. 100% of the people in the United States rely on the government. We rely on it to keep our food safe, our streets safe, our health good, and some of us fall back on it during hard times. It is a government by the people for the people. Give and take. It is not here to serve corporate interests. Vote against the complete takeover of the government by corporations, the ultra wealthy, and the Christian Taliban, because make no mistake if you vote for Romney that's what you are voting for.
The point is a lot of people take no responsibility for their own future. A person making min wage for their entire life $15K could save $12.50/month (6 times less than payroll taxes) and have an extra $350/month of retirement income. The average social security benefit is 1250/month, so that is a big jump.
And this begs the question if someone who has worked a min wage job for his or her entire life, earns to retire at 67, maybe he/she should work longer until they can afford retirement? Retirement is a relatively new concept for the mass public, which is born out of prosperity of the US, social security and longer life expectancy.
christian taliban? really?
Mr Rice - you say you generally vote Republican. Don't you think they all have this same view as Romeny?
This man does not qualify to govern anyone. Regardless of how this was said, as a candidate for the top job, you just don`t lump any group and show, even as a joke, a total lack of respect and empathy. He is not even qualified to be a really good CEO. Just a guy who was lucky. Wouldn`t have lasted through basic training
you guys get it...slowly...it is 100% truth.....and the truth is the best....this is the way my parents and you parents used to tell us...so why is the media jumping??? i know ....the truth is not good for the president.....
Yeah, I did not vote for Obama in the last election but plan to now. While I make good money I dont agree with anyone that has that thought. Even if I was having a private dinner partywith friends I would not talk in that tone of voice. He has NO sense of reality or what is going on in the real world. I would pull him and replace him fast, this REALLY hurt him.
I bet people don't even know that there used to be a bad stigma when you required government assistance. Now it's becoming the norm.
It has become all to easy for Americans to take the money from other people as long as it's filtered through some federal bureaucracy.
People have to learn from their bad mistakes in life. That's what life is all about. The freedoms we enjoy come at a cost... that cost is the freedom to fail. And the prospect of failure is a strong motivator and learning incentive to people. Don't take that away.
The dependency people have on the government isn't just a monetary dependency... it's a psychological one. We have become accustomed to having government protect us from many of our failures. That expectation keeps people from planning for failure – and when it happens, they are dependent on a government that may not have their best interests in mind.
People need to learn from their bad mistakes in life? So the literally millions of people who were thrown out of otherwise stable, well paying jobs by the banking collapse should learn their lesson? And what lesson would that be?
The only lesson to be learned is that banks need to be regulated and Glass-Steagall reinstated. Otherwise we will be right back in the same edge-of-depression situation again within 15 years. Meanwhile, the financial sector guys will walk away whistling with their pockets stuffed with our cash.
First of all CNN/FOX both get your priorities straight. As news reporting organizations, you must stay nonpolitical. But once again the power of money has distorted the true nature of your business. Instead of leaning left or right, report the truth. But all this news reporting has turned into one huge ratings generating business. Purely pathetic.
the Romney/Ryan stiffnecked, unapologetic response to the middle class, white, republican electorate will be their undoing. They represent a devastating combination of ignorance and arrogance. When half of your own conservative base is railing against you and you are unapologetic, you are showing the world your ticket isn't going to win
It's about time we have a little truth in politics. It was refreshing to hear someone just be honest about how our voting system works and stand by his words. Where are all our serious journalists and reporters? It's amazing to me that this is even an issue. The muslim world is decalring death to americans over a stupid video, no one has jobs or savings, we can't afford to fill our gas tanks because gas is so high, no one can afford to buy a home or keep them for that fact, our justic department is selling guns to drug cartels BUT the biggest story out there is Mitt Romney explaining voter tactics? Is this 'Hope and Change'? Lets hope for change in November!
I read the comments on here, and I see a lot of immature name calling on the part of Obama supporters. I think you people need to grow up and quit acting like little school kids on the playground. Romney was correct in his statements. All you people heard were tid bits cut out of a video, They entire video was not played. and now we find out they lied and never had it. Once again misleading media reports. this is not a game people, this is our country, our future, and the future of our children and their children. Stop the misleading articles and news reports and tell the truth. I dont want a party leading my country that lies and misleads to get there.
Fact check: the entire video was released yesterday, with transcript
Romney simply told the truth. He knows the people that receive a handout from the government are going to vote for Oblame-O. He was not referring to the seniors on Medicare, the truly disabled or those Americans that truly need government assistance. He was referring to the percentage of the people who don't want to earn their way but wants to live off of others who do work and pay their own way. There are way too many people on disability who don't deserve it. There are way to many people that simply are too lazy to work and had rather for the government to take care of them. Romney/Ryan in November!!!
Directly from Money Boo Boo's (Romney's) Mother's mouth... Romney's DAD was on welfare... So Romney has just lumped his FATHER into the 47% that he hates so much.
How much deeper can Romney dig his hole????
I was undecided, but I'm voting for him now!
So it may not be 47%, but it's not a COMPLETE lie – there are some who game the system, who can deny that?
You can't deny that part of the argument, sure. But have you taken a good look at Romney's comments? They're more than inflammatory, as he was simply pandering to his affluent audience. He poked a joke at the severely divided state our country is in at the moment. When we need someone who will bring us together, not further apart.
It is true about 47% do not pay federal income taxes. This is due to the mess that is our tax code, not that most people want to be taken care of by the government. We have 6 levels of tax rates in the tax code Romney pays at the second lowests rate, Obama, Biden and Ryan pay at the 3rd lowest rate but based upon the incomes they report all four should pay at the highest rate. Most of the 47% do not pay Federal income taxes because they use the legal available deductions in the code. This is how Romney and the others can make millions but pay taxes at the rate of lower middle income people.
Conservatives who believe what Romney (and Limbaugh et al) says are deluded. Certainly, in America, as in ANY society, a small percentage of people will do all they can to avoid work, and try to get their needs met through government assistance. (These would be both Democrat AND Republican citizens.) But 47% of the populace? C'mon. And the claim that President Obama wants to ENCOURAGE that dependency? C'mon. Your insistence on this ridiculous fabrication marks you as unfit as a party, unfit to govern, unfit to hold ANY public office whatsoever. I wouldn't even vote for a conservative for dog catcher. The claims they're making about the President, and about policies, and about America's future ging forward, are just too stupid.
and I wouldn't vote for a liberal to hold political office