BOSTON - A senior Romney strategist offered no apologies this morning on behalf of the candidate who often holds closed-to-press meetings with voters as well as meetings with congressional leaders with which the traveling press is unaware until their conclusion.

Asked why the roundtable conversations Romney has prior to most of his public events with middle-class families or business owners are not open to the media, senior strategist Russ Schriefer responded bluntly, "Because they're private."

"I beg my forgiveness but having the media there doesn't really make it an open and honest conversation," said Schriefer, who held a briefing for the press at the campaign's Boston headquarters before the launch of a five-day, six-state bus tour across the battleground states.

Romney has started weaving the stories of those individuals he meets behind closed doors into his stump speech.

Pressed further on why Romney's meetings in the past few weeks with Speaker of the House John Boehner and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell were kept from the press until the politicians' offices on the Hill released details, Schriefer was similarly unapologetic.

"Gov. Romney is going to have a private meeting from time to time," Schriefer, adding that Boehner will join Romney Sunday for burgers at an Ohio campaign stop.

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