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DENVER – Mitt Romney used his final scheduled public appearance before Wednesday's first presidential debate to dismiss the expectations game played by both campaigns in recent weeks and to rally supporters with retooled economic rhetoric geared towards middle class voters.
"People want to know who’s going to win," Romney said of the debate at the nearby University of Denver. "Who’s going to score the punches and who’s going to make the biggest difference in the arguments they make."
"There’s going to be all the scoring of winning and losing, and you know, in my view, it’s not so much winning and losing or even the people themselves — the president and myself — it’s about something bigger than that," Romney continued, dismissing the parlor game of expectations-setting that has defined much of the political discourse in recent days.
In his own form of spin, Romney said he was "delighted" about the chance to debate President Obama three times in the next month and declared that the debates, taken in sum, would "be conversation with the American people that will span almost an entire month."
Before a raucous crowd of more than 5,000 supporters, Romney infused his economic talking points with a middle-class focus that perhaps spoke to the recent debate prep designed to refine his message to best appeal to undecided voters.
"Income is down some $ 4,300 dollars a family and with a median income of about $50,000 dollars that means things are really tough for the American people," Romney said. "The middle class squeeze has been unbearable. Gasoline prices way up; food prices up; electricity prices up; health insurance prices up. The American middle class is struggling under this president."
In interviews before the event, Colorado supporters uniformly told NBC News that if Romney needed to show more of a personal understanding of middle class life on Wednesday if he wanted to siphon support from the president
"I really think that Mitt needs to be more personal with the American people," said Renee Salza, a Realtor and Republican who is supporting Romney. "I think a lot of people feel he's somewhat aloof and disconnected from everyday Americans."
Romney, who referenced Colorado's defense community at NORAD and the Air Force Academy, was also joined by a state icon of a different sort, NFL Hall of Fame quarterback John Elway, who endorsed Romney in a brief on-stage appearance.
“I must say today has been a very good day, not only because of what happened yesterday," Elway said, referencing the Broncos' thrashing of rival Oakland yesterday, "because I get the opportunity to introduce to you the next president of the United States, Governor Mitt Romney.”
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"In final public event before debate, Romney plays down expectations."
Impossible! My expectations for Citizen Romney couldn't possibly be any lower.
So now the Republicans are resorting to "lower expectations"? What a mess! However, it's still not too late to ask Tabatha Coffey of "Salon Takeover", to step in.
:)
The problem that is not being spoken about is the current management philosophy of profit over everything else. The current business philosophy (aside from the slightly crazy idea that corporations are people) is that company's are beholden to the shareholder; basically shareholders should expect to make a greater return on their investment every year. With this philosophy, those running major corporations and banks have forgotten that the business has a symbiotic relationship with consumers, workers, and the environment. To this end consumers have been exposed to products that are not safe nor healthy or of k quality, all while paying higher prices for products made for much less. Worker wages have remained stagnant or worse been lost to outsourcing; all the while the work day has become longer and stress levels have increased with the introduction/expansion of the global business world, mobile devices and laptops. The environment has and continues to pay for our inability and disability to give any thought to how what we do today may affect the world tomorrow. Further complicating the above is that education and healthcare have fallen to the bottom rungs of the ladder instead of being driving forces are the top of the ladder. And both have to continually deal with bureaucratic red tape that hinder the process of innovation and quality results and actually cost tax payers more.
Americans must once again understand that their is a saturation point inbusiness at which you can no longer make a greater return without either a)new innovation or b) change to the status quo/ improvement of one of the above symbiotic relationships. Repeatedly selecting option b is what got us into the mess we see now. What we have bared witness to is of our own creating as "American values" of true innovation and job growth have been replaced by greed and the ideal of making a quick buck.
In short we must once again realize that shareholders, workers, and consumers are all "investors" in business. If we want to lower tax rates and have less regulation the American public must trust that they are an important part of the business and not something that can idly be tossed aside as the expense of greater profit for a few. And as I'm sure most of learned during our youth, " Trust is earned not given" and " To whom much is given much is required"
jaikw - To put it mildly - you're full of crap. You're buying the Obama lie, speaking in sweeping generalities, are to far indoctrinated into Obamanomics to understand, and it's obvious you've never run a corporation, just like Obama.
In the employee owned corporation I work for, EVERY employee shares the corporate profit, and I must say hansomely rewarded.
Go back to school and take economics 101 and learn something.
So it doesn't matter if you win or lose, it's how you play the game? Do we really want this man as president?
All Romney needs to do is ask Obama about his great Obamacare Program.
From a video posted on you tube that shows Dr. Barbara Bellar speaking at a Women for Romney/Ryan rally last month:
"So let me get this straight. This is a long sentence.
We are going to be gifted with a healthcare plan that we are forced to purchase, and fined if we don't, which reportedly covers ten million more people without adding a single new doctor, but provides for sixteen thousand new IRS agents,written by a committee whose chairman doesn't understand it, passed by congress, that didn't read it, but exempted themselves from it, and signed by a president who smokes, with funding administered by a treasury chief,who didn't pay those taxes, for which we will be taxed for four years before any benifits take effect, by a government which has bankrupted Social Security and Medicare, all to be overseen by a surgeon general who is obese and financed by a country that is broke.
So what the blank could possibly go wrong?"
What a terrible article. The headline is completely misdleading. The narrative the past few days has been how the Obama admin has downplayed expectations (Obama even said Romney was a great debator and that he himself was just ok). Now NBC tries to spin it that Romney is doing the same thing even though no where in this article does it quote Romney downplaying expectations? He doesn't say he isn't going to win, or that he isn't going to handle his own, he simply says that this is part of a month long discussion to settle this election. What a terrible headline NBC, just plaing pathetic.
This is one of the worst political articles in recent days. In no way did the article reflect the headline. Whatever you think of Romney or Obama couldn't possibly be changed by this amateurish piece. This is an insult to journalism.
Romney....a chamelion?....more disguises than Artemus Gordon of Wild Wild West?....more ways to hide his evil Mr Hyde side than Dr. Jekyll? ...more ways to stick a knife in your back than Benedict Arnold? so many ways to describe the humanoid/suspect human being, so many.
Romney can win. All he has to do is convince people 47 is the new 46.
THIS IS MY PREDICTION:
The President will maintain a very "cool" composure and prove to be very articulate and suave. His even temper will absolutely rattle Romney, who in turn will will be become very aggressive which will only show he is a hothead and is desperate for the power the office holds. As the evening progresses Romney will come completely unglued, while the President remains articulate and displays his presidential polish. President Obama will prevail as the wiser while Romney continues to dig. ANY THOUGHTS FOLKS?
LOL! I have no expectations for Mittens save more gaffes. The guy McSame over looked in favor of Palin is trying to lower expectations - from what, not making a gaffe every time he opens his stupid mouth? Palin is a Fulbright Scholar compared to both Mittens and Ryan combined!