SUBSCRIBE NOW WELCOME BACK. Do you want to continue reading where you left off? New Republic subscribers can pick up where they left off no matter which device they were previously using. SUBSCRIBE NOW

Go Home Here’s The Unexpurgated Romney “47 Percent” Video

PLANK SEPTEMBER 18, 2012

Here’s The Unexpurgated Romney “47 Percent” Video

BY TIMOTHY NOAH

Mother Jones has now released a complete video of Romney’s remarks at a May 17 Boca Raton fundraiser. Rich Republicans had to pay $50,000 a plate to hear Romney say that people too poor to pay taxes will never “take personal responsibility and care for their lives”; mimic Henry Kissinger’s German accent; say the Palestinians have “no interest whatsoever in establishing peace”; get asked “why don’t you stick up for yourself? You should be so proud of your wealth!”; complain that “a highly intellectual discussion of a whole series of important topics typically doesn’t win elections”; say of disaffected Obama voters, “they love the phrase that he’s ‘over his head’”; explain why he turned down a Saturday Night Live gig (“you want to show that you’re fun and you’re a good person but you also want to be presidential. And Saturday Night Live has the potential of looking slapstick and not presidential”); maintain that after he appeared on The ViewWhoopi Goldberg told him, “you know what? I think I could vote for you!”; joke, “you know, I’m poor as a church mouse”; say, “we use Ann sparingly right now so that people don’t get tired of her or start attacking”; and more. Now you can watch it free of charge. Incidentally, the video is not entirely complete; there’s a gap between the end of part one and the start of part two.

SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS

Show all 15 comments

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

15 comments

so sorry Tim. Am too busy wondering why the Democratic Party is so clueless that they still reject the fact that Jerusalem really is the capital of Israel. And wondering why Bill Clinton is lying about Obama's economic "policies" in the current Obama campaign ad. Is this what America has come to? The most absurd method of choosing candidates for political office in the world? Romney got one point 100% correct: "...the Palestinians have “no interest whatsoever in establishing peace”.

- K2K

September 18, 2012 at 5:37pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

I'd say Mitt has done an appalling job of "being proud of his wealth" in the context of this election at least.

- ironyroad

September 18, 2012 at 6:21pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

Romney is toast. Good riddance. K2K will just have to dream of what might have been, if only . . .

- roidubouloi

September 18, 2012 at 6:30pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

Romney did not say anything in this video that has not been a theme amongst some GOP factions - they have been pounding away at those who pay zero federal income tax for two years. well roid, whilst I try to avoid your venom (your rants about Israel as a "rogue state" are hate speech, and absurd), I have never been a fan of Romney and still have no idea why he thought he should run for the presidency. Obama is a case study in failed leadership on every issue, especially his failure to lead the Democratic Party. But, this past week? Obama looks like George Orwell's nightmare come to real life. Tossing the Bill of Rights under the bus, as they say. The only reason I am now considering a vote for Romney is because of demo-rats like roid - too many of you make it clear my vote is not wanted. I only have nightmares since 1995. Not even daydreams of what might be.

- K2K

September 18, 2012 at 7:13pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

"...Barack Obama took office in January 2009 as the most pro-Palestinian president in U.S. history. He offered to give the Palestinians the most and Israel the least. It was a dream situation if the PA and Palestinians wanted to make peace on the best possible terms. Yet what happened? The PA leadership shafted Obama. When Abbas arrived in Washington for their first meeting, he made clear in a Washington Post interview that he had no intention of negotiating and reaching a deal. When Obama announced in late 2010 that he was about to launch intensive negotiations at Camp David, Abbas refused the invitation. And when Obama pressed Israel into an unprecedented nine-month-long construction freeze on the West Bank, the PA refused to talk at all until just before the expiration of that period, and then only to demand an extension. So, of course, Romney was correct in what he said. Indeed, he was merely stating the obvious. In the current upside-down era, telling the truth is heresy, or at least there are powerful establishment figures who try to make it seem so. What’s most important here, though, is not just this specific statement or this particular issue but a basic principle absolutely vital to the survival of the United States: If we are barred from recognizing the nature of our problems we will surely find no solutions." http://pjmedia.com/barryrubin/2012/09/18/romney-tells-the-key-truth-needed-to-comprehend-the-israel-palestinian-conflict/?singlepage=true

- K2K

September 18, 2012 at 8:13pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

"Increasing America's strenght. Everything is about strength. The President speaks loudly and carries a tiny stick". Draft dodger says what?

- dubyadoubte

September 18, 2012 at 8:38pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

Excuse me K2K but how exactly did Obama throw the Bill of Rights under the bus? And what about Romney ignoring a chance for peace did you not get? How could that POSSIBLY be good for Israel?

- Sophia

September 18, 2012 at 10:03pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

Also - please spare us the anti-Palestinian stereotyping. That's like saying all Israelis are pro-settlement Likudniks with no interest in making peace with the Palestinians. Clear?

- Sophia

September 18, 2012 at 10:04pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

Nope, K2K, your vote is not wanted. Why should anyone care who you vote for? I certainly don't. You wanna be a Republican, be a Republican. You have plenty of company. And just to rub it in, Israel IS a rogue state, because it is in open defiance of a multitude of UNSC resolutions that it is bound by the UN Charter to honor. That the UNSC does not act to enforce its resolutions against Israeli expropriation of occupied territory is only because the US interposes or threatens to interpose its veto. However, the American hypocrisy necessitated by our policy of protecting Israel from the consequences of its defiance make it much more difficult for the UNSC to function successfully. Why should Russia and China permit meaningful sanctions against nations where their interests are adversely affected if the US will not? There is, therefore, a cost borne by us and the world as a result of Israel's defiance. In particular, we are not terribly well positioned to obtain strong sanctions against Iran, strong enough to make it bend, in response to its defiance while not permitting UNSC in response to Israeli defiance. What do you care? You don't. None-the-less, due to Obama's leadership on the issue, there is progress. The construction freeze was "unprecedented" only because Israel has ignored all its promises to desist and its obligations under international law to desist. What do you care? You don't. You have a pretty odd view of what constitutes a rant, K2K. Have you read yourself here lately?

- roidubouloi

September 18, 2012 at 10:19pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

Romney's attempt at damage control over this tape is very telling. Today he's backpedaling by saying he meant to say Obama supporters are "“more European than American” instead of calling them deadbeats. How's that going to play in the European press tomorrow? He acts as though everything he says is said in one of his "quiet rooms", where the adults (the wealthy and powerful) can talk behind peoples' backs and they'll never know. He's spent his life talking in these quiet rooms. At this point in the campaign he's so desperate he doesn't even seem to be able to tell the difference in his audience anymore.

- Attrill

September 19, 2012 at 1:14am

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

No Sophia: you are the one here who thinks MSNBC is a news source. Your badgering me just reveals how ignorant you are of anything beyond DNC talking points. Of course, I appreciate that you actually ask for my vote, first rule in politics: ask for my vote. Both parties have been destroying America since 1978. I am considering a write-in for Clint Eastwood, who always comes in under budget, and always HAS a budget.

- K2K

September 19, 2012 at 7:21am

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

K2K, your propensity for grudge holding is really remarkable. Your claim that the Dems actively reject that jerusalem is the capital is just insane.

- miceelf

September 19, 2012 at 7:50am

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

Excellent idea, K2K. I think you should definitely vote for Clint Eastwood. That will really show the rest of us.

- roidubouloi

September 19, 2012 at 8:06am

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

The World According to K2K: To Disagree Is To Badger

- ironyroad

September 19, 2012 at 1:33pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

I'll bet Romney said "Ok while the recording's off I'll let you know what I'm really going to do as president: devote funding to education, renewable energy, universal health care, and smart growth -- pretty much what I did in Massachusetts but I can't let the Tea Party nutbags know that!"

- ironyroad

September 19, 2012 at 5:16pm

You must be a subscriber to post comments. Subscribe today.

SHARE HIGHLIGHT

0 CHARACTERS SELECTED

TWEET THIS

POST TO TUMBLR

SHARE ON FACEBOOK

Close