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Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images
Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney greets supporters and signs autographs Tuesday during a rally at the Hotel Blackhawk in Davenport, Iowa.
DAVENPORT, IA -- Opening his final push toward next week's Iowa caucus, Mitt Romney on Tuesday night delivered a more polished version of his so-called "closing argument" speech, in which he ignored his GOP rivals for the nomination and focused on drawing stark contrasts with President Barack Obama.
Harkening back to a speech by then-candidate Obama in Davenport in 2007, Romney said the president has failed to deliver on his campaign promises to bring people together and to fix Washington.
"Gone is the 'hope and change' candidate of Davenport. Gone is the candidate who would heal the nation. Instead, the campaigner in chief divides Americans, engages in class warfare and resorts to distortion and demagoguery," Romney said. "Once, Barack Obama appealed to our better angels; today he demonizes fellow Americans."
The former Massachusetts governor begins a three-day bus tour of the Hawkeye state Wednesday, when he will be joined by top surrogates. Recent polls show the on-again-off-again front runner battling for the top spot in the state -- which Romney's campaign has long argued he does not have to win to secure the nomination -- with Texas Rep. Ron Paul, and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich.
In previous visits, Romney has drawn respectful crowds if little enthusiasm. Tuesday night he drew cheers from an overflow crowd, which spilled out of the ballroom and into the adjoining hallway, when he laid out a dramatic vision for the 2012 general election to come.
"This is an election not only to replace a president. It is an election to save the soul of America," Romney said. "It is a choice between two destinies."
Those dueling destinies -- a so-called "opportunity society" versus an "entitlement society" has been a recurring theme of Romney's for weeks on the stump. Tonight he further defined the two possible futures for the United States.
Romney said president Obama's healthcare plan, his National Labor Relations Board appointees battling Boeing, and his administration's support for companies like Solyndra were all examples of an entitlement society's governmental abuses.
"Now we know how an entitlement society works -- those in government control the resources and make the rules. And while the rest of us stand still, they make sure that their friends get ahead," Romney said.
Democrats were quick to respond.
"Governor Romney didn’t learn the lessons of the economic crisis -- instead, he has proposed a return to the same policies that caused it, letting Wall Street write its own rules again and making middle-class families pay for tax cuts for millionaires, billionaires, and corporations," Ben LaBolt, Obama's campaign spokesman, said in a statement released just as the speech concluded. "While President Obama is fighting for an economy that rewards hard work and responsibility and provides every American with a fair shake, Mitt Romney believes in skewing the playing field toward those at the top while leaving Americans facing a challenge on their own."
Romney -- who spent $10 million in the Hawkeye state four years ago only to be dealt a devastating second-place finish -- localized his speech with a brief nod to the pioneer spirit of Iowans.
"Iowa was built by men and women who pursued their dreams. Pioneers came here for a better life. They tilled the land and planted crops. They took prairie and turned it into community," Romney said.
Toward the end of the speech, Romney also took a swipe at Joe Biden for an op-ed piece the vice president wrote last week in the Des Moines Register.
"You have to feel sorry for Joe Biden. Four years ago, he warned us about Barack Obama. It turns out he was right," Romney said, with the crowd laughing as soon as he mentioned Biden's name. "Now, every day, he has to keep quiet about that. And you know how hard that is for Joe.
"So he wrote a column in the Des Moines Register. He says Republicans don't care," Romney continued. "No, Mr. Biden, we do care that under your policies more Americans have lost their jobs, more Americans are on food stamps, and more Americans have lost their homes. Blaming others is not a plan to get America working. On January 3, Iowa will start our plan to get America working."
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Why do I picture the ONLY thing Willard doing is - pushing to drop the Cosby kids off at the pool?
This dude is so FULL of it - I can smell his stench all the way over here in IL!
*got a life saver*?
Exporting fudge to Mexico.
He will only continue to let the United States pay interest on it's loans with more loans; not unlike your hero ;o)
Yep. Mittens will do for the country what he did for all the companies he helped buy out over the years, self any useful assets, lay off all the workers, ship the rest of the business overseas, and, I almost forgot, steal the employee pension funds.
Yes sir, that's the man to run the country, a lame version of Prof Harold Hill.
Mitt will never be conservative enough or mainline Christian enough for Iowa--he'll win New Hampshire, but then, per usual, the Republican nomination will be decided in South Carolina. Remember Perry? He will stop being the undead and revive his chances there. Pro-military S.C. can't find room in its hawkish heart for Paul.
Mitts will never be conservative enough for mainline America, much less Iowa. To secure his only election to office, he had to declare himself more liberal than the democrat in the election.
That really makes him a question mark for the Republican base, and kills him with real conservatives. If he is nominated, without a doubt he will lose. Why? do you ask? we conservatives prefer our liberalism clean and cold, without the base issue of hypocrisy. We respect honesty more than ideology and with Obama, we know what we are dealing with.
There is only one true conservative running in this race and that is Dr Paul.
ABC:
After a round of hugs and while posing for a photo with the waitresses, he sprang forward as if someone had grabbed his rear end. He later clarified that no one had squeezed his butt, but the photo op reminded him of an experience during a previous campaign when someone had.
It was an odd moment in the retail politics of the day.
How pathetic is that?
John Hawkins, TownHall.com
Seven Reasons Why Romney's Electability Is A Myth:
1. People just don't like Mitt
2. He's a proven political loser
3. Running weak in the southern states
4. His advantages disappear in a general election
5. Bain Capital
6. The Mormon Factor
7. He's a flip flopper
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Go ahead Romney, be the nominee. We're gonna eat you alive.
Wiping out your hard drives ain't gonna help you. Representing the 1% ain't gonna help you. Lying ain't gonna help you, whether it be about Iraq, health care, regulations, Osama bin Laden, Libya...
Romney does have a better job creation record than Obama.
He has created more jobs in China and India than anybody in fact.
mitt (not willard), "the embodiment of an unemployed middle class american", is hitting prez obama on his policies of helping unemployed and middle class americans...
i'm confused....
The reality is that the candidates from any one party are essentially the same. The two parties in power in the United States have become so entrenched and have amassed so much excessive power that they essentially can no longer be removed from government. And, as that has occurred, the two parties have moved increasingly far from the center, becoming diametrically opposed on essentially every issue. Because most Americans actually reside rather close to the center, this forces Americans to simply vote for the candidate that they dislike the least as opposed to the candidate that they actually feel represents their interests and ideals. This is true in both primary and general elections.
The excessive power and overentrenchment of the Reps and Dems is due in large part to the campaign finance system and balloting rules that these parties have installed for themselves, which 1) keeps these parties in power, 2) ensures that no third party can ever become a legitimate option, and 3) causes elected representatives to focus only on the needs and desires of the party with which they affiliate and the few large organizational contributors to those parties, so that the representative can ensure that he or she has sufficient funding for the next reelection campaign.
This is not how a democracy is supposed to operate. Our representatives are supposed to focus on the needs of their constituents and not the party itself. I encourage everyone to check out the American Overhaul Act at www.americanoverhaulact.org, which proposes a set of Constitutional amendments designed to correct the systemic deficiencies that are allowing these problems to persist. The Act is focused on six areas of concern: Congressional Term Limits, Federal Election Campaign Reform, Congressional Size Limits, Congressional Compensation Limits, Elimination of Party Favoritism, and Federal Budget-Deficit Reform. Please check it out, and, if you agree with the proposals, show your support for the Act, and also share it with your friends and family so that we may continue to gain the support needed to cause our government officials to take notice of this Act.
dang! the last time i checked, if not for my vote or anyone's vote or party affiliation, there would be no political party... reps or dems exists because of us, the people of this great country...
Romney:
Roosevelt believed that government should level the playing field to create equal opportunities. President Obama believes that government should create equal outcomes. {What an interesting comment.}
Andrew Sullivan:
I hereby challenge Romney to cite a single case or action in which president Obama has said he believes that government should enforce equal outcomes in the workplace or the economy or anywhere else. His signature policy in education is called "Race To The Top", for Pete's sake. He chose to extend the Bush tax cuts. He has actually cut Medicare and taxes on a majority of Americans. The idea that at a time when the debt is soaring the wealthy might be asked to contribute their fair share to balancing the buget is not Marxist. It's something the most right-wing economic government in the West, Britain's Conservative Party, has insisted upon.
Romney:
This is a president who fundamentally believes that the next century is the post-American century. Perhaps it will be the Chinese century. He is wrong.
Andrew Sullivan:
Again, I hereby demand from the Romney campaign direct evidence that the president has ever said or done something that can back up this ludicrous assertion of backing a foreign country over one's own. It's a lie. And, by the way, here is the president in this year's State of the Union:
You see, Washington has been telling us to wait for decades, even as the problems have grown worse. Meanwhile, China is not waiting to revamp its economy. Germany is not waiting. India is not waiting. These nations -- they're not standing still. These nations aren't playing for second place. They're putting more emphasis on math and science. They're rebuilding their infrastructure. They're making serious investments in clean energy because they want those jobs. Well, I do not accept second place for the United States of America.
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Sounds to me like Romney is very much in the 1% camp. He has zero vision for the future. He's only concerned about the welfare of his & his rich friends' $$$$.
He has no vision for the country's future. None.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3U1vRyJQntw
Andrew Sullivan must be the typical liberal. Uninformed and no clue how to get there.
Perhaps Andrew can explain how Obama believes he can achieve "fairness"? A central theme with the Big O lately.
Rock On, Pat... Rock On... This is the crap negative commercials can be made of. Unfortunately, our POTUS didn't go negative... Well, maybe this year. Too damn much at stake to trust to the grabbers.
Well pat, I have to respectfully disagree with you...
Sounds to me like Mitts and the president are two sides of the same card.
Actually Willard, Joe Biden's article last week was terrific. Everybody I know commented on it. They liked it because they felt that Mr. Biden did a good job explaining the differences between his America and Romney's America. We all felt that Vice President Biden's life as a child was very much in line with most of what we all experienced as a child with struggling parents:
Vice President Biden:
When I was a child, my father had to ask my grandfather to take care of my mom, my brother, sister and I while he moved away to find a better job in Wilmington, Del. My dad had a saying: “A job is about more than a paycheck. It’s about dignity. It’s about respect.”
He never believed he was owed anything, but he did believe if you worked hard and played by the rules, you were entitled to be treated with dignity and respect and a fair shake.
Romney appears satisfied to settle for an economy in which fewer people succeed, while the majority of Americans are left to tread water or fall behind. His proposal would actually double down on the policies that caused the greatest economic calamity since the Great Depression and accelerated a decades-long assault on the middle class.
Romney also misleadingly suggests that the president and I are creating an “Entitlement Society,” whereby government provides everything for its people without regard to merit, as opposed to what he calls an “Opportunity Society,” where everything is merit-based and every man is left to fend for himself.
The only entitlement we believe in is an America where if you work hard, you can get ahead.
The president and I firmly believe, like my father, that every man and woman is entitled to basic dignity. And we believe deeply in opportunity — that if you work hard and play by the rules, no opportunity should be out of reach. That is a fundamentally different vision than what the other side has proposed.
*****************
Sorry Romney. We can relate to Mr. Biden's story. What we can't relate to is you. Never could.
No most reasonable people and the knowledgeable historians credit FDR with creating the "Entitlement" side of society. The same selection of people and historians credit the founding fathers with creating the society called the "Opportunity Society" Interesting that he uses that term in that way, historically it has been democrats that like to call their social platforms "Society" The NEW Deal, the great society, etc, etc.
Sounds to me that he talks like a democrat, acts like a democrat, runs a campaign like a democrat, governs like a democrat, why doesn't he just skip all the theatrics and jump over there to the party he really admires and believes in?
At the end of the day he is still creepy as hell ...I go with my gut feelings about people ...he is evil !
"Newt is a Principled Conservative...." per the ad embedded in the article.
The meaning of the word - Principle
a. A rule or standard, especially of good behavior: a man of principle.
b. The collectivity of moral or ethical standards or judgments: a decision based on principle rather than expediency.
I defy anyone to convince me a man who would server divorce papers on his wife while she is laying in bed dying of cancer a "man of principle" on any level.
As to the part B meaning the exact opposite of this defines the sitting US Congress!
There you have the bastardized version of what the founding fathers meant for this nation to be -God Bless (oops sorry -HELP) America!!!!
Willard reminds me of the character in a movie I once saw with Robert Redford (the name escapes me this morning, not much sleep). The lead character was running for office, and he was totally a creation of his handlers. He believed only in what the latest poll numbers and focus groups said people wanted. Sound familar Willard?
BTW, if someone remembers the name of the movie, I would appreciate it.
phine,
The Candidate.. 1972
Here is a url....
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Candidate_%281972_film%29
And IMDB....
www.imdb.com/title/tt0068334/
It actually won an Oscar for best screenplay on a factual subject.
And it was a good movie not one of Redford's best but still a good one. There is one movie that starred Henry Fonda and Cliff Robertson that is an even better movie...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Best_Man_%281964_film%29
One of the best political movies ever made IMHO....
Haven't there been 2.5 million jobs created on President Obama's watch?
And the movie is The Candidate. :)
The US Air Force is also targeting "Romulian Romney's" Bird Of Prey flying over Iowa like a poltical vulture. So the "Romulian" likes to target things. Well there are a few things that will be targeted concerning the "flip-flopping" of the "Romulian." Now the "Romulian" was for Health Care Reform. Now he is against it. "Romulian Romney" wants to bomb Iran. Then he claims he was taken out context. The "Romulian" says he knows what the Middle Class is going through economically. Then he is for NOT ending the Bush Tax Cuts, and not extending Unemployment Insurance. The "Romulian" says he understands what it means to be homeless. How does the "Romulian" know??? Since he owns more than one home. What a joke America!
"The Ugly American" is a 1958, bestseller that takes place in a fictionalized country in Asia. In the novel, "the ugly American" refers to a physically plain looking engineer named Homer Atkins, living among the people in "Burma", who understands their culture and their needs and offers genuinely useful assistance with small projects, such as the development of simple bicycle powered water pumps.
The irony of the situation is that the ugly American is not the physically plain looking, but rather the loud and ostentations American visitor who isolates himself from the native people. Thus, the term "ugly American" came to be used to refer as the loud and pretentious type visitor to another country, rather than the "plain looking folks, who are not afraid to get their hands dirty, like Homer Atkins.
Now the "ugly American" is the so called "patriot" like Newt Gingrich and the present Republicans in congress who would rather like to see the country go down the drain in order to defeat our real Patriot and beloved President Obama in the next elections. The Republican objective is to create economic chaos and then Blame Obama for it in barrage of dirty campaign adds backed by corporate America, the real Ugly Americans.
There is really no need for Romney or anyone else to target Obama.
Obama targets himself. Every week. His failed "supercommitee", his 2-month extension of the payroll tax cut, his opposition to the keystone pipeline project and it's 20,000 good paying jobs, now it's his luxury Hawaiian vacation at $4 million of our borrowed money, and soon the battle over raising the debt ceiling again, with another credit downgrade as a result.
How much has he cut in government spending?? Zilch, Nada, zip. What will he do to eliminate the constant deficit spending?? Zero, nada, zilch. Pay down the towering National debt?? Zip, nada, Bush's fault, call me after the next election, let's "talk", laser focus on jobs, tax the evil rich, summer of recovery, green shoots,......... Yawn.