New TV ad Mocking Romney "I like to be able to fire people"

this ad (4.00 / 1)

is stupid, because it distorts what Romney was saying.

Here's what he was trying to say, and it's even more damning:

Governor Romney is getting a lot of heat for a line that appears to have been taken out of context. I'd like to talk about it in context. I think that's much more illuminating:
   

"I want individuals to have their own insurance. That means the insurance company will have an incentive to keep people healthy. It also means if you don't like what they do, you can fire them. I like being able to fire people who provide services to me. If someone doesn't give me the good service I need, I'm going to go get somebody else to provide that service to me."

Gov. Romney is not saying that he enjoys telling people that they no longer have a job. He's saying that, when it comes to health insurance, if a company is doing a bad job, he would enjoy telling them to take a hike. Who wouldn't? [...]

The real issue, unfortunately, is that very, very few people have the luxury that Gov. Romney is endorsing. Let's say that you are self-employed, and lucky enough to have found a company to provide you with health insurance. Then, let's say you develop cancer. You suddenly find out that your insurance company stinks. So you fire them, right?

Of course not. You're screwed. Now you have a pre-existing condition. There's not an insurance company out there that wants to cover you. So you don't fire them. You scream, and curse, and cry, but you're stuck. Only healthy people have the luxury of picking and choosing.

Let's also not forget that most people don't find out that they're not getting "good service" until they're sick. Healthy people don't make much use of their insurance, so they don't know how bad it is. They only find out after they're ill, and then it's too late. It's only fun to fire the insurance company if you're sure you can go to another company to get what you need. Almost no one can.

Invite other Iowa political junkies to join us at Bleeding Heartland.

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by: desmoinesdem @ Tue Jan 10, 2012 at 18:36:58 PM UTC

It goes way beyond self-employed (4.00 / 1)

I agree with Desmoinesdem 100%. Despite the outcry about the unfortunate word choice about firing people, the context here is really the issue that shows how detached from reality Romney is. But, it's not just self-employed who can't fire their insurance company. The vast majority of Americans have their insurance through their job. You are stuck with whatever insurance options your company offers. In my case, I have exactly one option for health coverage. Of course you could try to get a policy on your own, but that is a realistic option for only those who are both wealthy AND healthy.

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by: RF @ Tue Jan 10, 2012 at 19:26:12 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Romney (0.00 / 0)

My concern with Romney is not the comment itself.  It is my worry that the man, who acts wooden a lot of the time,  cannot go off speech at all, because he inserts foot into mouth.  He has difficulty with just talking,  he has to have a prepared speech to be successful.  No, not like everybody likes to pick on Obama about his teleprompter.  but romney has difficulty with interactions, back and forth.  Imagine Romney attempting through an interpreter, talking to a foreign dignitary, and screwing it up royally, due to his difficulty with normal speech.  

My brother has similar speech and difficulties.  He has to think carefully about what he wants to say before he says it,  in fear of screwing things up.  By the time he has carefully thought it over,  the conversation has moved on to something else.  He also has the stuttering, breathy speech when he is trying to comment,  and talks fast, as Romney does.  And my brother,  like Romney's family says of him,  is a loving care husband and father.  but in public,  he does not do well talking 1 on 1 with someone other than his family.  And I wouldn't want him as POTUS either.  Compromising, talking, attempting humor, sarcasm, whatever.  neither my brother, or Mitt Romney are good at speaking off the cuff.  

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by: wahela @ Thu Jan 12, 2012 at 14:02:35 PM UTC