Spin Room: Romney Camp Insists $10K Bet Was No Gaffe
EmailABC News’ Michael Falcone, Jason Volack, David Muir and Russell Goldman report:
As tweeters, bloggers and commenters worldwide asked each other what $10,000 buys, Mitt Romney’s campaign insisted that the candidate’s bet was not a gaffe.
“Romney made that bet because he knew Rick Perry wouldn’t take it,” Romney strategist Eric Fehrnstrom said in the post-debate spin room.
Another top Romney adviser, Stuart Stevens, called the line “a very human thing to do to get someone to shut up when they’re not telling the truth.”
Mid-way through Saturday’s Iowa debate, Perry accused Romney of supporting an individual mandate to buy health insurance, saying that Romney wrote in his book that the Massachusetts mandate was a model for the nation.
Romney shot back with a bet: $10,000 that he does not and did not support a national individual mandate.
Romney’s GOP rivals were quick to characterize the comments as proof that Romney, a millionaire, is out of touch with middle class America.
“For someone to go and throw around a $10,000 bet, just goes to show even more that he’s not the same level as the people of Iowa or the country,” said Michele Bachmann’s spokeswoman Alice Stewart.
But Fehrnstrom said the dollar amount was high because Romney’s conviction was strong.
“I’ve had arguments with family members, with friends of mine and I’ve made million dollar bets,” Fehrnstrom said. “The sum of the bet goes up depending how strongly I feel about the rightness of my position. The reason Mitt Romney offered that bet is because he knew Rick Perry wouldn’t take it and by backing down, Rick Perry looked weak.”
Ron Paul’s campaign spokesman Jesse Benton agreed, saying the bet was an “interesting moment” and that he “thought Romney made Perry look quite weak.”
Benton said the debate was “very fair” and that Paul “got all of his points across.”
After a CBS News debate in November, Paul’s campaign accused the network of deliberately limiting the amount of speaking time Paul received, calling the debate “disgraceful” and claiming the network thought that “they can choose the next president.”
Bachmann also blasted CBS for limiting her talking time in that debate, as did Rick Santorum.
Santorum said Saturday night that the Iowa debate was “fair,” adding that ”we made a fair case in the time we had.”
Saturday night’s debate comes just 24 days before the Iowa caucus, and Santorum said ”we will spend 22 in Iowa.” The former Pennsylvania senator has basically set up camp in Iowa and is the only candidate to have visited each of the state’s 99 counties.
“People of Iowa have yet to make up their mind of who they are going to support,” Santorum said. ” I am confident the more they learn about all the candidates, the better we are going to do.”
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Perry looked terribly weak when he wouldn’t stand by his accusations. That’s what they call all hat and no cattle! Perry just got owned by Mitt AGAIN!
Posted by: Eldon | December 11, 2011, 12:55 am 12:55 am
I am sorry, but are these people for real. Is this where they throw anything out there to see if something sticks. What the heck, these people are very scary. I know we are being , PUNKED! OK Ashston come out, I am on to you.
Unforuntately very sincere,
Barbara D.
Missouri
Posted by: Barbara Dietrich | December 11, 2011, 1:01 am 1:01 am
Romney lost the election tonight. The optics on this (wall street guy from Bain Capital turning to Perry & betting $10K on a handshake) are just TERRIBLE. He might as well have said “let them eat cake”. Now he’ll face the guillotine. This was purely a self-inflicted wound. Media didn’t stick it to him. Either did any of the other candidates. Foolish, foolish man.
Posted by: Sandman | December 11, 2011, 1:28 am 1:28 am
Another point to be made is that Rick Perry said that he isn’t in the Betting Business.
Just how many wagers has he lost; that can be found through Google?
It makes sense that Romney would make a respectable wager. Too low and Perry would see it as chump change that he wouldn’t mind loosing; too high and Perry could say that he didn’t want to break Romney’s bank.
So it was the right amount to flush Perry out of his deceptive talking point. Not to mention that it made Perry out to be a liar about not being in the Betting Business.
Posted by: Wylie-Mike | December 11, 2011, 1:29 am 1:29 am
I was stunned that the first criticism after the debate was an unfavorable mention of Romney’s joke bet with Perry. It wasn’t even serious, Mormons don’t gamble. I thought all of Romney’s answers were impressive, gracious and with a solid temperament. What has become painfully obvious to me over the last two weeks is that the media in the tank for Osama has now jumped into the tank for Gringrich to help guarantee Obama will run against the absolutely worst possible candidate. Some of the compliments the lefties were paying Gringrich were
cringe worthy.
Posted by: gia howard | December 11, 2011, 2:04 am 2:04 am
This was a fantastic debate, and that ABC and others in the MSM now want to try and use Romney’s joke remark to Perry as a defining statement speaks much more about them than it does Romney.
Posted by: GozieBoy | December 11, 2011, 3:15 am 3:15 am
I saw a rich man throw down 75% of my yearly pay on a bet.
Posted by: unitas | December 11, 2011, 4:04 am 4:04 am
Really??? This is what you are talking about. Someone joked around about a bet because it was the last thing he could think of to get people to stop saying that he supports something that he obviously does not. I’ve made billion dollar bets before, only because I know I’ll never have to pay it and the other person won’t accept it because it’s NOT TRUE….
Posted by: Taylor | December 11, 2011, 4:40 am 4:40 am
Unbelievable that the most important thing to so many people is a bet…. What about the issues? What about where the cantidates stand? What about the economy? What about warships off the coast of Syria? WAKE UP AMERICA! Once again, Ron Paul was the only cantidate who consistently made any sense, whatsoever.
Posted by: Mike | December 11, 2011, 7:19 am 7:19 am
What a pathetic group the GOP has offered up.
Posted by: David | December 11, 2011, 7:23 am 7:23 am
Gia Howard: You need to do your homework. It wasn’t the main stream media but the public who responded with disgust at Rommey’s wager. Twiitter and other outlets were swamped with people disgusted with the wager. The media is only reporting that response. Come out of your Koch-head fog.
Posted by: David | December 11, 2011, 7:26 am 7:26 am
I’m not rich but I bet my mother-in-law $10,000 that Obama would lose in 2012. I am banking on the fact that moderates and Independents (enough of them) have learned what a disastrous Leftist Obama is……..and that he’s 180 degrees the wrong mindset for the economic trouble our nation is in. ANY of the Republicans would be a VASTLY superior President, to help us with our economy by freeing up businesses to PERFORM in our country!!!!! Period. Obama is an economic-disaster. He learned his brand of capitalist-hating from his mother, father, Frank Marshall Davis, social-science profs at Occidental (see his book — he ‘hung out with marxist profs soph year) and Columbia, and on and on…..he thinks more income redistribution and more shackles on businesses by the federal govt……will actually help our country. That’s who he is.
Posted by: steveOh | December 11, 2011, 7:28 am 7:28 am
Romney did pretty good — and I like him — he ‘s a moderate that is what America needs. We don’t need radical leftists and rightist. They are the ones who screw the country all the time. But this being a primary, everybody has to pretend like he/she is a far right nut. That’s the deal with priamries all the time whether it’s a Demorcratic or Republican primary. One has to pretend he/she is a radical leftist or far right cook!!
What’s the big deal with betting 10,000 — I don’t see that as gaff and the American people are not stupid. They know all these guys are millionaires. For anyone to pretend like ther are not is an insult to the intelligence of the American people. And Romney can just say Perry took the bet, he would have given the winning to his farvorite charity.
Posted by: Not A Gaff | December 11, 2011, 7:29 am 7:29 am
Ron Paul was fantastic. I would be proud to call him my President!!
Posted by: Erin C | December 11, 2011, 7:43 am 7:43 am
This is becoming some sort of parallel universe situation. I am a lifelong Republican and most of my friends and family are as well. Over 90% of them have made up their minds to vote for Ron Paul. He is the prohibitive front-runner, and it’s like Jon Stuart said, “When did Ron Paul become the 13th Floor of a building?” I now purposefully turn to Fox to watch the uncomfortable moments and facial ticks occur randomly, as the pundits force themselves to lie on the air.
Posted by: m-4- | December 11, 2011, 8:04 am 8:04 am
Obama bet $ 500 million on Solyndra, WE, the taxpayers paid up. Obama bet almost $ 800 BILLION on a false stimulus and again, WE, the taxpayers have to pay up.
Posted by: Obeserver On The Hill | December 11, 2011, 8:05 am 8:05 am
What a collection of empty suits!!! Is this truly the best the U.S. has to offer? This country is probably in worse shape than we all thought.
Posted by: Rick | December 11, 2011, 8:17 am 8:17 am
what about newt bragging that ha ngets 50,000 for a speech
Posted by: guy nolan | December 11, 2011, 8:19 am 8:19 am
No commentary is complete without the mythical “let them eat cake” analogy.
Posted by: John | December 11, 2011, 8:22 am 8:22 am
It was quite apparent which candidate ABC is backing and not just from this debate but also from their coverage on ABC Evening News. I thought news organizations were supposed to keep their opinions out of their coverage and just report but apparently I am wrong.
Posted by: Jill | December 11, 2011, 8:23 am 8:23 am
we gave businesses plenty of tax breaks and write offs.what did they turn around and do but send millions of jobs out of the country
Posted by: guy nolan | December 11, 2011, 8:27 am 8:27 am
Ron Paul always comes across to me as somebody’s crazy uncle, and his ideas on foreign policy are beyond stupid. The only thing worse is his rabid supporters.
I’ll be SO happy when I don’t have to see him anymore.
Posted by: GulfFrit | December 11, 2011, 8:48 am 8:48 am
Who cares what these two Bilderberg sycophants bet each other? What relevance does that have to the issues or us? These two could bet their lives, and one can only hope they’d both lose.
Ron Paul ~ 2012 ~
Posted by: MrCoto | December 11, 2011, 8:49 am 8:49 am
___”Obama bet $ 500 million on Solyndra, WE, the taxpayers paid up. Obama bet almost $ 800 BILLION on a false stimulus and again, WE, the taxpayers have to pay up.
POSTED BY: OBESERVER ON THE HILL | DECEMBER 11, 2011, 8:05 AM 8:05 AM___________Where did you read that Obama bet 800 billion dollars on a false stimulus? Why do Republicans seems to have such poor memory? It was Bush and Henry Paulson who masterminded that obscene reward for wall street corrupt crooks. This obsession to say anything to make Obama looks bad just make some people stupid.
Posted by: NoFlyZone2 | December 11, 2011, 9:00 am 9:00 am
Everyone on that stage is filthy rich. Pretending they are not is just lying to the American people. There are only two reasons they would not take the bet: (1) They knew they’d lose or (2) they are just too cheap.
Posted by: Tyrone | December 11, 2011, 9:01 am 9:01 am
Newt won. He was feisty without being petty or nasty. Santorum looked very good. Perry has good moments that helped he. He was the most articulate he has been. Bachman looked small-minded with OK performance. Romney looked OK but then arrogant with his $10k bet.
Now his campaign doubles down on that stupidity. They do not even see it: What looked to a rich man betting a middle-class guy ( which is what Perry is- hei s not rich) with so much money, the other fellow will not possible take it. That’s not proving your right…just that you have a lot of money and are too detached to understand the really desperate straits some people are in. What an idiotic move.
Romney also looked stupid snipping at Newt over his Palestinian comments.
Posted by: Nick099 | December 11, 2011, 9:03 am 9:03 am
Michelle Backmann is just going along for the ride. She, Perry, Newt, Santorium, and Ron Paul will never win the nomination or the white house.
Posted by: NoFlyZone2 | December 11, 2011, 9:05 am 9:05 am
Romney was by far the most presidential of all the candidates on the stage! He has so much knowledge and experience when it comes to the economy and jobs! If it weren’t for Newt’s affairs and dealings with Freddie Mac, he seems to have some good ideas, but I just simply don’t trust him! I really believe that if given a chance Mitt can get this country back on track! People please give Romney a closer look and don’t miss this opportunity to make America Great again!
Posted by: Monica | December 11, 2011, 9:06 am 9:06 am
Ron Paul and Michele Bachman looked pretty good at last night’s debate. I never thought I’d say that in a million years! Guy Nolan….what are Ron Pauls ideas on foreign policy and why are they beyond stupid? Back it up, man! You aren’t doing yourself any favors when YOU make strong accusations, but don’t expand on it. That sort of makes YOU look ‘beyond stupid.’
Posted by: DebateWatcher2011 | December 11, 2011, 9:06 am 9:06 am
With millions of people out of work and trying to survive their monthly bills and putting food on the table, Romney needs to work in a soup kitchen for a week and throw the 10K in the pockets of people who need it. He will never get my vote!
Posted by: Fred Williams | December 11, 2011, 9:15 am 9:15 am
I am a Democrat who watched the debate and with the comments made after the debate found it so obvious the ABC commentators were trying to knock Romney out. Supposedly Obama will have a more difficult time beating Romney over Gingrich and it didn’t make ABC look good. They did report of comments being made on Twitter, but then again they were most likely be supporters of the other candidates. I didn’t take away anything from the high bet other than Romney was 100% sure he was correct. Don’t we all try to make a large bet when we know we are right?
Posted by: Lois | December 11, 2011, 9:20 am 9:20 am
Obama bet 500M dollars on green technology like Solyndra? The oil in the Gulf of Mexico killed 11 people and with an estimated total clean-up cost at least $12.5 billion.
Posted by: threeriverscrossing | December 11, 2011, 9:20 am 9:20 am
Oh, so Mitt admits he violated state and federal law on gaming, not to mention violating FCC and, possibly, FEC regulations. I hope this rich, smug media magnate gets a huge fine and is forced to sell off his media holdings over this.
Posted by: Robert Fallin | December 11, 2011, 9:24 am 9:24 am
If Romney was betting $10,000 on a future ball game then it would have looked bad. He was showing his conviction on a past event. I would love to bet someone $10,000,000,0000 that 2+2 = 4; Perry showed that he knew that he was lying or he would have taken the money. Romney was not gambling, he knew what he had written and wanted to shut Perry up or make the liar pay $10,000.
Posted by: Intrigued | December 11, 2011, 9:25 am 9:25 am
Making bets? I remember doing this in grade school!!!
Posted by: Man | December 11, 2011, 9:44 am 9:44 am
I haven’t heard that “Wanna bet?” term since the grammar school play yard. Right or wrong, I think he made himself look like a jerk. With 16 grandchildren, it’s time to grow up, Romney.
Posted by: POGMO | December 11, 2011, 9:48 am 9:48 am
I guess you have never been to Vegas, Atlantic City, Kentucky Downs, Charlestown, etc..
Posted by: william | December 11, 2011, 10:01 am 10:01 am
I thought the idea of these ‘dog and pony shows’ was to ‘connect’ with the voter. Since I don’t have cable or satellite this is my first watched debate. I did notice that the moderators were giving Newt and Mitt plenty of time and allowing them to go after each other only to bring ‘other opinions’ with ‘please stay within the rules’. No rules for Mitt, Newt? Anywho…if I am telling the truth I can bet $5 because that is what I’d like to win. And a ‘crack head’ will bet $5. Mitt plays a bigger game. It wasn’t a gaffe but to him $10K is like a ‘sawbuck’ to me. I wish it was other than that but then “I groo up a puuur smaul wite chil’.
Posted by: gazinya | December 11, 2011, 10:19 am 10:19 am
Hopefully it is by now blatantly obvious that msm’s (Mega Spin Media) only agenda is, and has always been, to the degree possible, to SET A TONE that best detracts, fractures and marginalizes the group on the stage. They (msm) are the ‘enabling’ vehicle, and their success is determined by the degree to which they can coax or otherwise assist the participants in playing to their perceived (real or suspected) weaknesses. Much in the same manner, although with the exact opposite agenda, they (msm) ‘assisted’ in the campaign to elect the current sitting President, which of course demonstrates the incredible power they wield.
Posted by: wildoo | December 11, 2011, 10:40 am 10:40 am
Actually, $10k is a very small bet in relationship to Romney’s wealth.
Posted by: Kenneth the VI of Minneapolis | December 11, 2011, 11:15 am 11:15 am
mormons are forbidden to gamble. this guy is such a sellout, but don’t worry he will never be president, but salamander gingrich might and if you think gw and obamarama and bubba were scary be ready for the slimy one.
Posted by: bertaggle | December 11, 2011, 12:02 pm 12:02 pm
Perry, not a betting man?
He like Obama is with other people’s money.
Do a web search of.
Rick Perry bet big on tax grants to subprime mortage lenders
Posted by: Wylie-Mike | December 11, 2011, 12:13 pm 12:13 pm
Obama bet 500 million dollars on Solyndra. How did that work out??
Posted by: whining liberal | December 11, 2011, 12:17 pm 12:17 pm
Does anyone really think that Romney believed that Perry would accept the bet?
Perry knew he couldn’t since his talking point was a falsehood.
The bet wasn’t intended to be accepted; it was to flush out Perry’s deception.
So the hypocrisy is that Perry was bearing false witness. Romney was appealing to Perry’s level of comprehension to make his point.
Posted by: Mike-Bell | December 11, 2011, 12:25 pm 12:25 pm
“I’ve made million dollar bets,” (Romney aide) Fehrnstrom said. Whoa! Nothing like upping the ante when public opinion is already stacked against you. These people have not clue one about what life is like for the majority of Americans. Perry could’ve knocked that softball out of the park: “Sorry, Mitt, but I don’t have ten grand to wager and neither do more voters.” That he didn’t do it makes me think he, too, could probably afford that bet but knew better than to do it in front of a national audience. I’m tired of rich men in the White House. Bachmann, Santorum and Paul are looking better by the day.
Posted by: creeper | December 11, 2011, 1:48 pm 1:48 pm
The majority of the media certainly did not miss an opportunity to re-ignite CLASS WARFARE! Wow.. A light-hearted moment when Romney was showing confidence during a debate somehow became the main theme of the debate???
I am not surprised by this at all. Obama has already decided that his re-election campaign is going to be based on class warfare.
The American people deserve better than this president, his media supporters, and the politics of division, class warfare, and hate.
Posted by: JD | December 11, 2011, 2:17 pm 2:17 pm
This is so over-blown, and a sign of the media driving the conversation. (1) To have made a smaller bet, say $100, might sound like Romney wasn’t sure of himself. (2) The NY Times has an article about how – although raised as a governor and businessman’s son – Mitt Romney has always been a very thrifty person. (3) Compared to Newt Gingrich, a notorious spendthrift, who had trouble with his own household budgets and the tab at Tiffany’s.
Posted by: AnnieG | December 11, 2011, 2:40 pm 2:40 pm