TPM: Romney, Who Says He Didn’t Fully Understand Medicaid, Bought A Hospital Company At Bain
On December 16, 2011, Talking Points Memo reported:
Mitt Romney took a turn for the folksy in Iowa on Friday, telling an audience that, like many people, he didn’t fully understand what Medicaid did until late in life. “You know, I have to admit, I didn’t know the differences between all these things until I got into government,” Romney said. “Then I got into it and I understood that Medicaid is the health care program for the poor, by and large.” It’s a bit of an odd claim considering that Romney, while at Bain Capital, led a $311 million buyout of a huge hospital business that drew its income primarily from health care entitlements.
Huffington Post: The Contract With America Comes Back To Haunt Romney
On December 14, 2011, the Huffington Post reported:
In an interview with the Washington Post on Tuesday, Mitt Romney acknowledged that he was "wrong" not to sign Newt Gingrich's Contract with America when he was running for the Senate in 1994.
Washington Monthly: Romney gambles on Freddie Mac attack
On December 12, 2011, Washington Monthly's Steve Benen reported:
There is, however, a problem: Romney has some Freddie Mac troubles of his own. [...] It leads to a pretty straightforward question: if Gingrich should return the money he made by working for Freddie Mac, should Romney return the money he made by investing in Freddie Mac?
USA Today: Romney jabs Gingrich for 'erratic outspokenness'
On December 12, 2011, USA Today reported:
Romney, speaking to Fox News this morning, also said the former House speaker should return the money he received from Freddie Mac. Gingrich made at least $1.6 million from the mortgage giant, providing what he called "strategic advice." Gingrich responded by suggesting Romney should return money he earned while leading Bain Capital, a venture capital firm. Romney has been criticized for his work at Bain, whose leveraged buyouts of companies sometimes led to layoffs. [...] he Democratic group, American Bridge, is reminding reporters that Romney made money from his investments in Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae.
Mediaite: Christmas Warrior Rick Perry Has ‘Happy Holiday’ Skeletons In His Closet
On December 7, 2011, Mediaite reported:
Texas Governor and fallen former presidential frontrunner Rick Perry continues to revive his campaign by picking culture war fights with President Obama, releasing an ad that decries, among other things, that ” our kids can’t openly celebrate Christmas or pray in school.” As American Bridge PAC points out, though, Gov. Perry is a “Happy Holidays” hipster who took the “Christ” out of Christmas way before it was cool.
Las Vegas Review-Journal: A bridge to somewhere
On December 7, 2011, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported:
That interview former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney did with Fox News’s Bret Baier is really coming back to haunt him. Now, the David Brock-founded progressive group American Bridge 21st Century is questioning something Romney told Baier when the subject turned to Newt Gingrich.
Mediaite: Oppo Tracking Video Shows Just How Epic Jon Huntsman’s Climate Change Flip Is
On December 7, 2011, Mediaite reported:
Republican bubble candidate Jon Huntsman nullified two of the things that set him apart from frontrunners Newt Gingrich and Mitt Romney yesterday when he told a group at the Heritage Foundation that “the scientific community owes us more” on climate change, and that “there’s not enough information right now to be able to formulate policies.” He staked out the “sane candidate” territory in August, and as a tracking video shot by American Bridge PAC in late October shows, Huntsman has no wiggle room on this flip.
POLITICO: Mitt Romney and Scott Brown: Too close for comfort
On December 2, 2011, POLITICO reported:
Mitt Romney and Scott Brown have plenty in common, most notably that they’re Republicans from Massachusetts. But they also like to tell similar jokes about how the other one is cuter and more popular.
Mediaite: Wait, What? OJ Simpson Featured In New Anti Mitt Romney Ad
On December 2, 2011, Mediaite reported:
With the ascension of Newt Gingrich to the top of the GOP presidential field, perennial silver medalistMitt Romney has recently sought to contrast himself with the former House Speaker by casting himself as a political outsider, resurrecting a long-running theme. A new ad from American Bridge PAC torpedoes that notion, in hilarious fashion, with a Proustian collection of clips from the start of Romney’s political career, including that iconic slow-speed chase.
iWatch News: K Street, Wall Street line up behind Sen. Scott Brown in his race against Elizabeth Warren
On December 2, 2011, iWatch News reported:
Financial service lobbyists and other K Street advocates have for weeks been working hard to help the freshman senator win his high-stakes battle for re-election against Elizabeth Warren, a liberal Harvard law professor. Warren is anathema for many finance-sector lobbyists and Wall Street leaders who abhor the newly created Consumer Financial Protection Bureau— a centerpiece of the financial services overhaul—of which Warren was the intellectual architect.