Obama Diagnoses "Romnesia"

pic via crocktees

More on Romnesia at Snark Amendment



Obama at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, October 19, 2012

(My Transcript)

The choice between going backward and going forward has never been so clear.

But now that we're 18 days out from the election, Mr. Severely Conservative wants you to think he was severely kidding about everything he said over the last year.

He told folks he was the 'ideal candidate' for the Tea Party. Now suddenly he is saying, 'What? Who me?'

He's forgetting what his own positions are. And he's bettin' that you are too.

I mean, he's changing up so much and he's backtracking, and side-steppin' -

We've gotta name this condition that he's going through.

I think it's called "Romnesia."

(Cheers from the Crowd)

I think that's what he's going through. I'm not a medical doctor, but I do want to go over some of the symptoms with you because I want to make sure no one else catches it.

(Clapping)

If you say you're for equal pay for equal work, but you keep refusing to say whether or not you'd sign a bill that protects equal pay for equal work, you might have Romnesia.

(Laughter and Cheers)

If you say women should have access to contraceptive care but you support legislation that would let your employer deny you contraceptive care, you might have a case of Romnesia.

If you say you'll protect a woman's right to choose, but you stand up at a primary debate and you said you'd be 'delighted' to sign a law outlawing that right to choose in all cases, man, you've definitely got Romnesia.

(Laughter and Cheers)

Now, this extends to other issues. If you say earlier in the year 'I'm going to give a tax cut to the top 1%, and then in a debate he says 'I don't know anything about giving tax cuts to the rich folks.' That - that - you need to get a thermometer and take a temperature, 'cause you've probably got Romnesia.

(Clapping and Cheers)

If you say that you're a champion of the coal industry, when while you were governor you stood in front of a coal plant and said 'This plant will kill you,' . . .

(Crowd Shouts "You Could Have Romnesia!)

That's the Romnesia.

So, I think you're becoming able to identify these symptoms. And if you come down with a case of Romnesia . . .

(President laughs, crowd laughs)

. . . and you can't seem to remember the policies that are still on your website, or the promises you've made over the six years you've been running for President, here's the Good News!

Obamacare covers pre-existing conditions!!!

(Crowd Roars)

We can fix you up!!! We've got a cure!!! We can make you well, Virginia. This is a curable disease. Ha ha.

Women! Men! All of you! These are family issues, these are economic issues. I want my daughters to have the same opportunities as anybody's sons. I believe America does better, the economy does better grows more and we create more jobs when everybody participates. When everyone's getting a fair shot. Everybody's getting a fair shake. Everybody's playing by the same rules. Everybody's doing their fair share.

That's why I'm running for a second term for President of the United States. I need you to help me finish the job!

(Crowd roars)

Mitt Romney Debates . . . Mitt Romney

Hilarious but also maddening! I am really tired of the etch-a-sketch thing.

Romney Flip-Flops Aimlessly Over Pre-Existing Conditions

What is the point of doing Sunay interviews if you say one thing on Sunday Morning, and then take it all back on Sunday afternoon?

It's all about information, Mr. Romney, and you are confusing the voters! Plus you are living up to your reputation as King of the Etch-A-Sketch! This must be some new plan from Eric Fehrnstrom, no doubt.

On the NBC Meet the Press website, under the video of David Gregory interviewing Mitt Romney, the title reads: "Romney clarifies policy stances." Ummm . . . not so much. This is not a "forced error" because even though Gregory asked him about healthcare, his question was vague and Mitt was the one who specifically mentioned pre-existing conditions without a prompt.

From the NBC Transcript

GREGORY: Well, let me ask you about a couple of specific areas. On healthcare, you say that you would rescind the president’s healthcare plan on day one. Does that mean that you’re prepared to say to Americans, young adults and those with pre-existing conditions, that they would no longer be guaranteed healthcare?

MR. ROMNEY: Well, of course not. I say we're going to replace Obamacare. And I'm replacing it with my own plan. And, you know, even in Massachusetts where I was governor, our plan there deals with pre-existing conditions and with young people. Everybody…

GREGORY: So you'd keep that part of the federal plan?

MR. ROMNEY: Well, I'm not getting rid of all of healthcare reform. Of course, there are a number of things that I like in healthcare reform that I'm going to put in place. One is to make sure that those with pre-existing conditions can get coverage. Two is to assure that the marketplace allows for individuals to have policies that cover their-- their family up to whatever age they might like. I also want individuals to be able to buy insurance, health insurance, on their own as opposed to only being able to get it on a tax advantage basis through their company.

Unfortunately, just a few hours later an "aide" of Romney's clarified the clarification for the National Review, then had to clarify that! Whew - Gov. Romney sure is high maintenance!

In reference to how Romney would deal with those with young adults who want to remain on their parents’ plans, a Romney aide responded that there had been no change in Romney’s position and that “in a competitive environment, the marketplace will make available plans that include coverage for what there is demand for. He was not proposing a federal mandate to require insurance plans to offer those particular features.”

UPDATE: In reference to pre-existing conditions, a Romney aide responds, “Governor Romney will ensure that discrimination against individuals with pre-existing conditions who maintain continuous coverage is prohibited,” and refers me to these remarks Romney made in Florida in June:

I also want to make sure that people can’t get dropped if they have a preexisting condition. . . . So let’s say someone has been continuously insured and they develop a serious condition and let’s say they lose their job or they change jobs, they move and they go to a new place. I don’t want them to be denied insurance because they’ve got some preexisting condition. So we’re going to have to make sure that the law we replace Obamacare with assures that people who have a preexisting condition, who’ve been insured in the past are able to get insurance in the future so they don’t have to worry about that condition keeping them from getting the kind of health care they deserve.

Okay ~ so just forget David Gregory's over-hyped interview. Nothing was "clarified" after all, and Romney's "stance" is what it was back in June. No need for new interviews whatsoever.

They tried to get it right again, as reported by Buzzfeed:

After Mitt Romney said on NBC's "Meet the Press" Sunday that there were certain parts of Obamacare that he liked, a campaign aide confirmed to BuzzFeed that one of the elements that a Romney health care overhaul would be a guarantee that people with pre-existing conditions can't get kicked off their health insurance plans.

"Gov. Romney will ensure that discrimination against individuals with pre-existing conditions who maintain continuous coverage is prohibited," the aide said. But the 2010 health care law goes much further: It bars discrimination against people with pre-existing conditions who are applying for health care. The new statement appears to amend a report in National Review Online earlier Sunday, which quoted an anonymous aide saying Romney would allow "the martketplace" to sort out coverage for such people.

Confused now? Even reading all these articles doesn't clarify anything. How is this type of explanation going to work in the debates? How many aides does Romney need to explain a simple position on Health Care? Geesh!

Retro Romney in Retroactive Mode

Hmmm, just what can we believe about Romney? Not much. He changes from year to year, day to day. Even if you believe him today, just wait a few hours.

Romney Cancels Orlando Campaign Stop

Via therehastobeaway on Daily Kos

Story from The Orlando Sentinal

Although Mitt Romney was supposed to visit Orlando on Monday, the campaign announced late Sunday that the presumed Republican presidential nominee was too exhausted to make the trip.

The news came after Romney spent what one campaign official said was an exhausting 48 hours of championing his new vice presidential pick.

But wait . . . Etch-That-Sketch!!! His surrogates want us to know he is "not exhausted," even though the newspaper used that word several times, presumably because a source also used that word. LOL


From ABC News

A top adviser to Mitt Romney is pushing back on an Orlando Sentinel report that the presumptive Republican nominee canceled an event there today because of "exhaustion."
Romney had been set to hold an economic roundtable there as part of his day-long bus tour through the state. But the Romney campaign canceled that event last night, choosing instead to stick with rallies here and in Miami later today.

The paper cited an unnamed campaign official saying Romney was exhausted after 48 hours of intense campaigning with his new running mate, Rep. Paul Ryan. But Romney adviser Kevin Madden called that report "not accurate."
"The governor has a packed day, schedule wise," Madden told Yahoo News.