Posted on 09/26/2012 9:16:59 PM PDT by WilliamIII
The best defense of Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney’s instantly notorious “47 percent” remarks at a May fundraiser is that he made a bad point badly.
Romney mixed up three separate groups: the roughly half the country that will inevitably support President Barack Obama, the half that doesn’t pay federal income taxes, and the half that receives government benefits. Then he declared them all a collective lost cause. He will never win them over, or convince them to take responsibility for their lives. Next question.
In reality, these are distinct categories. Many Obama supporters are rich. We can be certain the attendees at the president’s fundraiser with Beyoncé and Jay-Z in New York City the other day have hefty tax bills. Meanwhile, many of Romney’s supporters — especially the elderly — don’t pay federal income taxes and receive government benefits.
As a political scientist, Romney is an excellent former governor of Massachusetts.
On taxes, he was repeating a conservative talking point about the perils of 47 percent of people not paying federal income taxes. (To be precise, 46.4 percent of “tax units” don’t pay income taxes, according to the Tax Policy Center.) Romney took this line of argument and blundered his way through it, although it’s not very convincing in the best rendering.
The contention is that if people aren’t paying federal income taxes, they are essentially freeloaders who will vote themselves more government benefits knowing that they don’t have to pay for them.
As National Review’s Ramesh Ponnuru has pointed out, there’s no evidence for this dynamic.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailyadvance.com ...
You can always count on Lowry to pack a bug-out bag.
“To take from one, because it is thought his own industry and that of his fathers has acquired too much, in order to spare to others, who, or whose fathers, have not exercised equal industry and skill, is to violate arbitrarily the first principle of association, the guarantee to everyone the free exercise of his industry and the fruits acquired by it.” — Thomas Jefferson
The founders were right Mr. Lowry.
Romney was right Mr. Lowry
*””Romney mixed up three separate groups: the roughly half the country that will inevitably support President Barack Obama, the half that doesn’t pay federal income taxes, and the half that receives government benefits. Then he declared them all a collective lost cause.””*
Romney didn’t have any idea of what he was saying, that is why so much energy is being expended to explain it and defend it, and so many conflicting and contradictory explanations exist and are being promoted.
The 53% of America that voted for Obama did not consist of some neatly packaged ‘other’, or ‘they’.
Obama easily won the $200,000 income and above, by a 52 to 46 margin!
Obama lost the $50,000-$75,000 income group by a single point!
Obama won the $75,000 to $100,000 income group by a solid 51 to 48 margin.
Obama lost hugely from those 65 and older all of them collecting SS, and tons of them not owing taxes. They were the ONLY age group that voted against Obama.
There is no neat little package of 47% of Americans for a President to write off because they don’t vote for him.
And how many of 0bama’s fundraiser comments are on video?? Conservatives aren’t as willing to lie about themselves or their motives to sneak into one and tape him speaking Ebonics to his brothas and sistas. I would imagine there’s a fair percentage of those on entitlements who absolutely despise 0bama and they know what Romney was talking about. They understand that FOR THE LAST FOUR YEARS OBAMA’S GOAL HAS BEEN TO FORCE AMERICANS OUT OF THEIR JOBS AND INTO RECEIVING ENTITLEMENTS TO GARNER MORE VOTES. Just because someone ends up there doesn’t mean they suddenly love 0bama for it. Unemployment compensation doesn’t last forever.
Lowry, forget the damn 47% comment. It means nothing.
Start writing about how Obama has been dismantling our economy and our military on every available front.
Just stfu Lowry. Seriously. This ()*# happened almost two weeks ago. Move on.
NEXT —————>
Amen! It was a secretly recorded pep speech to donors. Stop acting like Romney came out with some big economical plan based on that comment.
Damn.
oh just shut up already....geez the nattering nabobs are out in force this season
It doesn't matter who the 47% ARE. It only matters what the voters THINK.
Here's the math: 80% of VOTERS believe they pay taxes. And they resent the 47% of the population that doesn't.
Liberal pundits (and Rich Lowry) aren't going to change that calculation no matter how much they blather on and on about it.
Lowry is a weasel. Sounds like Brooks.
Leave it to Lowry to bring this back up as an issue as it’s dying down. Geesh.
He stated facts. I am on SS and OWE income taxes each and every tax season.
It’s OK for the Left to use class-warfare, but not a hint must come from anybody on the right.
What fact did he state?
Social Security check collectors were the only anti-Obama voting age group in 2008, and most probably don’t pay income tax, I won’t be.
Rich Lowery needs to join the other side or STFU!
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