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Obama’s Third Attack: Romney’s Record in Massachusetts
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Obama camp broaden attacks on Romney record in Massachusetts.
- Duration 7:12
- Date May 30, 2012
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We'll be right.
And that is what it looked like win and Willard Mitt Romney then governor of Massachusetts signed into law.
His sweeping overhaul of the State's health care.
Program -- large expansion.
History making moment that has -- -- a great competition to its national ambitions.
And this is power play welcome back and today.
We are seeing from the Obama campaign.
The build out on the third phase of their opening salvo of attacks against Mitt Romney where they turn the focus.
On to his years as governor of Massachusetts in an effort -- they hope to remind.
Even some conservative minded independents of stuff that they didn't like about governor Romney when he was in Massachusetts that that that was kind of uncool.
And then so it goes.
And I can think of no person in American political life today.
Other than campaign Carl Cameron who can better put this into perspective for us welcome -- -- -- it.
-- -- The Obama campaign has had three different lines of attack in this opening in in this opening campaign of the of the campaign.
Where you start out in first they ran an ad where they said what do you expect from a guy with the Swiss bank.
Then they came out with an ad that said he was a vampire.
I am number two that was never -- now they're setting the table forces -- for around three -- which is they say he was a Swiss bank account having juror vampire who took those same principles to Massachusetts.
And ruin the poor people that come.
And it is it bears repeating that this is the first time that an incumbent president has ever started out his election campaign with two negative attack ads and mr.
Obama and the DNC and -- Obama for America have are all now running some positive spots to right.
But it and they're quick to say -- we're not abandoning the Bain Capital business that private equity criticisms.
Because it didn't cause a backlash with some Democrats and who called it among other things nauseating inaccurate and wrong headed.
But they're saying that that's not why they're doing that but other than that it just -- It's great there's just expanding it to look at the two things that Romney runs on his business record and his public record as -- -- it's just.
So open season on Massachusetts and what they'll do and what they're already citing his Labor Department statistics that show that when Romney was governor.
On Massachusetts had -- pretty slow job growth compared to the rest of the country now.
We're talking about period time where the economy was not doing particularly badly right and at that time job growth in Massachusetts was 47 out of fifty.
And they are going to bludgeon.
Willard Mitt Romney with -- -- -- until -- -- -- around the head and neck with bruises as the state -- Massachusetts.
However having said that.
-- the Romney camp will also say.
That that's only one way of looking at numbers can be -- in any -- you like.
And he'll point out that unemployment was at five point 6% when -- came in office and when he left it was a point lower and in fact there was net job creation.
In three of the forty years that he was governor of Massachusetts so they can say that they actually created jobs when Mitt Romney was governor of Massachusetts next.
Whereas President Obama.
Can't -- there has been job creation but there has been a net job loss.
The other than that that is it's not very net so for Romney -- part of the problem here is.
And I know that you are from new interest that you know a thing or two about this Massachusetts is -- -- super popular stage not Massachusetts.
Right now controls and full disclosure my family splits his time in both Massachusetts and a New Hampshire and we know the hundred years in New Hampshire and a lot less in Massachusetts.
On -- first -- they're really it's the little world where Brooklyn into the first century -- New Hampshire.
On and having said that Massachusetts has a reputation all over New England as Massachusetts right and there are all kinds of misuses of deliberation that -- can do with the folks from Massachusetts math and language yeah yes and so other fees that Mitt Romney.
Did raise when he was governor.
At one point had him nicknamed by his rivals -- -- -- in Massachusetts.
There were some there are a couple of organizations that are considered fairly.
Balanced in their assessment of what happened.
And they have suggested that when you out of the -- the closing of corporate loopholes that Mitt -- did undertaken Massachusetts.
Fees and close tax loopholes could easily total as much as three quarters of billion dollars.
Yeah that's a big -- cash.
So when Romney says that he'll balance the budget federally it will raise taxes Obama can say -- look what your record in Massachusetts and we're not gonna -- the last of this it's gonna be a steady thing all the way throughout.
But again his record in Massachusetts his record at -- whether he was a guy with a Swiss bank account or vampire is really all either either one -- all of this is is nothing more than a utility for bashing his character and in the end.
Both campaigns on both sides will take a look at President Obama and former governor Mitt Romney.
And trash their integrity and character based upon their records using the most partisan possible distillation of since they can.
Does it matter though and and here's the question so we -- Margie Romero a democratic pollster who was on here just before you we she made a very good point.
About the difference between the coincident causation and coincidence that we see the -- -- it was this that must be working and that it must be working this.
Salvo by the president is something that we've never seen before incumbent presidents don't do your turn the other day Bill Clinton didn't get to Bob Dole until July of 1996 and even then it was because Bob Dole had said something about in defensive smoking.
Again CAC -- to.
Is what Obama's doing now going to be and is it gonna move anything.
A little bit that the problem is the needles going to be moved have a lot more in the coming months by the economy and by external factors world and domestically.
Over which Obama and -- have little control that's just the history of presidential campaign something happens before October something happens right around October that's what -- gonna surprise.
These sorts of things attempted to attentive to really move the -- great deal is is is also important to note that the the spending.
The attacks -- -- -- are are all part of this definitional battle they're going to only get more aggressive and negative.
And the outside groups the interior groups etc.
Are confronted with -- no choice but to go absolutely negative because of the vast amount of money right it's gonna get harder and harder and harder to see where the positive messages.
That is a real 180 for President Obama candidate Obama.
-- -- focus on jobs and the economy and then it becomes circumstantial one of the external that ultimately determine presidential races jobs and the economy.
And beating up one another over what happened 1015.
Years ago is not going to be as successful as beating up over one another over the policies for what's happening.
More so -- wisdom from the Internet -- Palmer says this I believe the difference the biggest difference between Romney and Obama.
Is how each of them would spend money that is not bears the various is saying that is that is -- -- You -- the public equity vs private equity phraseology you know the press president's going after running for his private equity time.
The right has now gone back to let's talk about public equity what he's done -- tax dollars talking about stimulus etc.
etc.
It's gonna come around again and again we must -- we are great.
