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TOLEDO, OH -- Mitt Romney on Wednesday pointed to the health care reform law he enacted as governor of Massachusetts as proof of his empathy and care for the American people.
In an interview with NBC News, Romney referenced an element of his record he almost never invokes on the campaign trail to answer a question about how he can better connect with Americans and prove he understands the lives and trials of middle class Americans.
"I think throughout this campaign as well, we talked about my record in Massachusetts, don't forget -- I got everybody in my state insured," Romney told NBC's Ron Allen in an interview before his rally here tonight. "One hundred percent of the kids in our state had health insurance. I don't think there's anything that shows more empathy and care about the people of this country than that kind of record."
A new CBS/New York Times poll shows Obama leading in Florida, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Meanwhile, Romney is focused on wooing the swing state of Ohio which has been won by every Republican who ever became president. NBC's Ron Allen reports.
Romney's health care law in Massachusetts has long been a lightning rod issue for conservatives, who unfavorably compare it to President Barack Obama's own federal law and as a damning reflection on Romney's conservative bonafides.
The former Massachusetts governor also touched on another portion of his biography that he seldom discusses to connect with average Americans: his time as a Mormon pastor.
"I think people have the chance, who watched our Republican convention, to see the lives that I've had a chance to touch during my life, to understand that as I served as a pastor of a congregation with people of all different backgrounds and economic circumstances that I care very deeply about the American people, people of different socio-economic circumstances," Romney told Allen.
Taking the stage for the final rally of his two-day Ohio bus tour moments later, Romney also spoke about the importance of compassion in his speech and said his interactions with Americans from all lots in life have shown him the greatness of America -- and that everyone has challenges of their own.
"You look around, you see everybody, they look happy, and you think everybody else is doing just fine, and you're the only one with problems. But the truth is, most people that you see have some real challenges in their life of one kind or another. I understand that," Romney said. "And I've seen that inside the heart of the American people, despite our challenges, is a conviction that this nation is the greatest nation in the history of the earth."
Reuters, Getty Images
In the final push in the 2012 presidential election, candidates Mitt Romney and Barack Obama make their last appeals to voters.
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So, Mittens, either you lied to your supporters when you said it was your "job" to ignore 47% of the country, or you're lying now. Which lie is it?
Oops, guess your magic underwear can't protect you from yourself.
Golly, I guess Romneycare is good again.
flip flop
flip flop
That's when he was a fake moderate. Now that he is a fake right wing zealot it's not good for the rest of the country. What would happen if he was elected a fake president? Who knows? Rule by etch-a -sketch I presume.
Unbelievable !
The latest Romney news has it that the stress of being on the campaign trail is causing Mitt to becoming unusually gassy,....and he has taken to openly ripping one and then attempting to walk away from it.
This practice,...known as "crop dusting" has become a great source of comic relief between the running mates.
When Paul Ryan was asked about his boss's 'signature move' he just smiled and shook his head and laughed,..."that ol' wind bag",...his comically large ears audibly waving in the wind.
Paul Ryan L-I-T-E-R-A-L-L-Y calls Mitt Romney "Stench". Think I am kidding ? I am not.
Look it up on FOX NEWS' website.
Those two are a couple of cards,...a couple of embarrassingly unelectable elitist cards.
Really,...these are 'your guys' ?
Ol' Stench Romney is REALLY hitting bottom,...pun intended.
Okay I loathe Romney, but good god do you think anybody is buying this ridiculous nonsense? You look very foolish posting such childish drivel.
tell stench i'm eating finger sandwiches
Romney with his 47% remark is trying to regain some ground he lost from putting his foot in his mouth. He is going to try and show that he really does care about people, especially in Mass. where he got everyone insured. Up until that 47% remark he figured that the other 49 states should be on their own and the people in those states should be on their own. Romney really cares about the people in Mass., now he just has to see if he can win that state.
How do all you Husein Obama hating socialist Obamacare people fell about your boy Romney now, supporting Obamacare. Don't worry though tomorrow he won't again.
Is Obama's team running both campaigns?
Touche'
Which healthcare law? The one he has not mentioned ONCE in 6 months? The one he vowed to repeal the day he hoped to get elected? The one he liked a couple of the parts? The healthcare that sends everyone to the emergency room from their apartments? Exactly what healthcare is he talking about? This man can not be trusted. He is a puppet for the big money guys dangling him in front of us.
I am begining to consider the possibility that Romney ,considering that he has a snowballs chance in hell of getting the top job,is now collecting the money to have it join the rest of his loot. His campaign certainly isn't being run in a normal way. I realise that he has a problem. He is a creature of the far right and yet to run a successful attempt to win the majority vote he must prove that he is a moderate right wing conservative,whatever that may be. He must ,at some time in the near future ,tell the voters what his platform is but that would destroy his financial base. The greedy rich have their problems too!
Let it be said that all of you Obamacare supporters, I want you to shell out the $750 fine that Poor people will be forced to pay and still not have insurance. If you are living paycheck to paycheck, barely making ends meet, how are you gonna pay a $750 fine?
Poor and low income families will be subsidised by the government. Trying to scare people into thinking they will be penalized for being poor or you really just don't know?
onermailliw: BS BS BS BS BS BS BS BS BS! Why in HELL can you poorly educated, far, right wing, extremist, fanatics not tell the truth??!!?? Your entire damned mindset is nothing more than one conspiracy theory after another. The American voter realizes it and the good people of this country will respond in overwhelming numbers against the wild, conspiracy theories of the far right wing.
In other words I have to pay thier fine and thier health care. Whats the differance? Even before Obama I had to do that. I paid it through my taxes supporting the state run hospitals where people without insurance went to get healthcare and say they didn't have the money to get the state to pay for it, and through the higher prices at other religious ran hospitals that would take care of all people no matter whether they could pay or not. I don't mind helping those that can not afford healthcare, I do mind paying for those that are just using the system to pay thier bills so they can prioritize thier money to thier wants and not thier needs. Your needs come first not your cell phone or tablet or eating at McDonalds.
Andy w./The problems of the poor are not because of tax paying.They are of not having Medical coverage. The aim of the Democratic Party and our P.O.T.U.S. is to have a National Health Care coverage as all of the other Industrial Nations. Paying for that is not a problem.That is fear tactics from the Rep.T.P. We must all be in the system for it to be affordable. If it were to be as you fear then that means that all of the countries that now have it are fully employed and that they have no poor. We must start thinking realistically and dismiss the fear smears from the right wing of the Republican Party. They are totally involved in defeating our President who is from a minority group,even though he is not of such a minority group as they.
Romney is the best thing to happen to late night comedy for a long long time. Thanks and keep up the good work!
So what is it proof of that you NOW are trying to take away insurance for over 30 million americans, including children? that you are trying to reduce funding for seniors who are in nursing homes, food stamps for kids, health care for those who have preexisting problems, take away Pell grants for college kids, housing programs for the poor? Ok, Mitt, you USED to have empathy and now you don't. Or your actions in Mass were totally self serving designed to give you something to brag about in your next bid adventure. Unbelievable, Mitt, unflippingbelievable!
Are you f'ing kidding me?
This is how this clown thinks he's going to win an election.
Hey Willard, if you're so f'ing compassionate, you and and your assclown of a VP pick wouldn't be running around the country bragging about how he's going to repeal the EXACT same bill on a national stage.
Lyin Ryan was bragging about repealing Obamacare and continued while Seniors openly boo'ed him.
These blacksouled, morally bereft, fascist Elitists will literally do or say ANYTHING to get elected. They stand for nothing.
Seriously Republicans?!? THIS is your candidate????
You should be ashamed of yourselves. How can you teatards bear to look in the mirror anymore..you're disgusting. You have no integrity and it shows in the people you idolize.
But Mittens, You don't call, you don't write and you never send flowers anymore. I don't think that you really care! Signed, The 47 Percent.
Mitt is really clueless. Hey Mitt, if you have to tell everyone how empathic you are, then you are not empathic-just pathetic. Jeez, is this the best the Republicans have!
Exactly!
Well, Lady Buckeye, and the rest of you died-in-the-wool far leftists.... Romney is probably not the best the republicans have, but he is who has been selected, at this time, to replace Obama. But, even though he may not be the best candidate that could have been selected, he is 100% better than the ineffective non-leader Obamanation of a president we have been stuck with, and lied to by, for the past 4 years. At least with Romney, we can accomplish some non-pasrtisan politics and get something positive done in governemnt.
If he does well, we can keep him for eight years. If he doesn't do well enough, we can replace him with someone better in 2016. But for now, he is far better than the lying, deceiptful, Obamanation man we have who is driving our country to ruin.
Watching Willard-The-Loser's campaign is akin to watching that scene in I Love Lucy when she's trying to stuff chocolates into her shirt.
Looking at how he's running his campaign, despite the millions upon millions handed to him by the Koch brothers....how could anyone trust this assmunch to run a country.
I actually thought the repiglicans could never get someone as stupid as GW Bush. Palin got close but Willard takes the teatard trophy.
Snooki could run a more intelligent and thoughtful campaign than this teatard.
Etch-a-sketch has morphed into etch-a-stench!
I beleive that the late Senator Ted Kennedy would disagree with Romney's assertion that he is responsible for the healthcare laws in Mass. Ted fought his whole career to get healthcare not just for Mass but for all citizens of the US.
The facts won't stop Willard from saying whatever he has to say to get elected.
Romney was a Mormon Pastor which means in his mind he will be god.
Imagine the caos Romney would cause around the world by first insulting other countries but then lying to their faces and switching his story once he leaves again making them angry. Romney is an insult in himself.
chaos*
Same team.
that's is a first, he rung against his/obama universal health since he start running for president, now all the certain he did an egg-sketch, this guy Romney is the biggest liar of all time i was going to vote for him now i will never vote for him, he will lie to just about anything to try to get votes. i am a senior citizen i guess now i am part of that 47% American bums according to Romney.
egg-sketch Romney
We love you, Franky! You are not a bum in my book!
This is what a Romney transparency campaign looks like, folks! Does he really take Americans for fools? Does he really think that he can pull the wool over people's eyes? We can see right through you, Romney! That is how transparent you are!
Oh, one more thing! TAX RETURNS! TAX RETURNS! TAX RETURNS!
Obama/Biden 2012
i am no fan of Obama or our Govt. but what I don't understand is..after all Mitt has said to contradict, disgrace himself and...oh, throw half of the country under the bus...who are the idiots that cheer for him and give him campaign contributions?
its ppl like that that scare me. We need a new president and a new gov't. Obama isn't my ideal choice and Mittens is the epitome of a RWNJ!
sad, very sad.
I understand that Obama is not your ideal choice, but do you really want to take the chance of Romney getting elected by possibly not even voting in November? I say that because it sounds as if you may just not vote. I am not trying to sway you, but we must vote, and by at least voting for Obama you have a better chance of not having that RWNJ sitting in the oval office doing God only knows what to this country and its people. Anyway, just some food for thought. Peace.
Wow! Mitt has flipped off the poorly educated, far, right wing, extremist, fanatics with his comments on his contribution to health care in Massachusetts. The GOP civil war rages on! George W. Bush said it best about the GOP when he said, "It's not my enemies that I have to watch behind my back. It's my friends." Well, that's what draws those kinds of minds to the GOP.