Mitt Romney Tells Protester: ‘America’s Right And You’re Wrong’
EmailCHARLESTON, S.C. — Mitt Romney campaign aides have been all a-Twitter today about an exchange their candidate had with an protester who confronted Romney as he was shaking hands after an event outside his campaign headquarters Thursday morning in Charleston, S.C.
“What will you do to support the 99 percent seeing as how you are part of the 1 percent?” the protester asked Romney.
The former Massachusetts governor replied: “Those who try and divide the nation, as you’re trying to do here and as our President is doing, are hurting this country,” he said, adding: “America’s right and you’re wrong.”
Romney strategist Eric Fehrnstrom tweeted out a link to the video earlier today, writing “GREAT VIDEO,” and communications director Gail Gitcho did the same a few hours later. The Romney team even posted a link to the clip on their YouTube site.
“This is Mitt Romney at his best,” Fehrnstrom told ABC News. “I don’t think I’ve heard a better argued indictment of President Obama’s class warfare rhetoric. The fact it came in an unrehearsed moment while Mitt was being heckled on a rope line adds to the power of it.”
It’s not the first time Romney has dealt with Occupy Wall Street protesters at his events. He and campaign surrogate New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie had a spirited run-in with a group of them at a campaign event ahead of the New Hampshire primary.
Here’s the full exchange:
PROTESTER: “What will you do to support the 99 percent seeing as how you are part of the 1 percent?”
MITT ROMNEY: “Let me tell you something: America is a great nation because we’re a united nation. And those who try and divide the nation, as you’re trying to do here and as our President is doing, are hurting this country seriously. The right course for America is not to divide America and try and divide us between one and another. It’s to come together as a nation. And if you’ve got a better model, if you think China’s better, or Russia’s better, or Cuba’s better, or North Korea’s better, I’m glad to hear all about it. But you know what, you know what, America’s right and you’re wrong.”
Republicans Duke it Out in Arizona 
Rick Santorum Defends Earmarks
OWS who??
Posted by: ginny | January 19, 2012, 8:03 pm 8:03 pm
In other words, nothing.
Posted by: MassOrange | January 19, 2012, 9:10 pm 9:10 pm
Idiot – that 99% IS America.
Posted by: Katherine | January 19, 2012, 9:28 pm 9:28 pm
Mittens is getting testy
Posted by: LogicRules | January 19, 2012, 9:48 pm 9:48 pm
Mitt you DON’T! speak for America.
Posted by: dan | January 19, 2012, 9:58 pm 9:58 pm
Soooo. the 99% is wrong in wanting the 1% to help the 99% because America is the 1% that is unified and the 99% is the divided. Um, I do believe that pretty much explains why OWS is protesting and why most all Americans are upset with the 1%ers. Romney doesn’t realize he failed in that answer.
Posted by: Wayne | January 19, 2012, 10:02 pm 10:02 pm
Pure sophistry . Romney never answered the question , he just changed the subject altogether and then framed the the questioner as a convenient Un-American villain for even asking the question to begin with . Very very weak . Obama will tear this corporate flim-flamster into little pieces in short order , bring him on !
Posted by: dwiaghtwatson | January 19, 2012, 10:17 pm 10:17 pm
Next thing you know he’ll be saying “Let them eat cake.”
Posted by: Jess Dewitt | January 19, 2012, 11:36 pm 11:36 pm
Unreal. This is all Romney can come up with? Bait the protester with faux patriotic rhetoric? Very telling. Is this how he will deal with foreign leaders? American is right and you are wrong! He’s saying in this crowd that the very freedoms we have, such as the right to protest, are wrong? In other words we the people should just be quiet? What message is Romney giving to the world when he calls Obama a divider. Thank goodness most in the world are too smart to fall for his junk talk.
Posted by: Jacq | January 20, 2012, 12:15 am 12:15 am
Mitt’s the one comitting class warfare! If not he would have addressed poverty and unemployment in America not attack an American Citizen and Activist! That activist is a thousand times more patriotic than Mitt 1% Romney could ever lie about being.
Posted by: DavidofNH | January 20, 2012, 12:32 am 12:32 am
There’s a name for the theory that all the classes should put aside their antagonisms and work together for the sake of buttressing the health of the nation state: Fascism
Posted by: Charlie | January 20, 2012, 1:56 am 1:56 am
The 1% speaks for the 99% get it right people ! It’s not rocket science ! Washington shouldn’t tell you what to do … rich people do that ! So if Mr. 250 Million says American is right just nod and agree, it won’t kill you to applaud as well while you’re at it, after-all rich folk like Mitt accidentally create jobs while they’re busy commandeering wealth. It’s like going to heaven, you first must die to live eternally same-same … you must get fired to get hired ! Mitt likes to be able to fire people !
Posted by: Dude | January 20, 2012, 3:06 am 3:06 am
This, as he refuses to release his taxes and has off shore investments to reduce taxable income. What a hypocrite.
Posted by: Matt8265 | January 22, 2012, 12:33 pm 12:33 pm