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Brakes On: Mitt Romney’s ‘I Enjoy Being Able To Fire People’ Comment Part Of Larger Health Care Quote

Video

by Alex Alvarez | 3:22 pm, January 9th, 2012

» 34 comments

While much has been made online concerning a video showing presidential hopeful Mitt Romney saying he enjoys “being able to fire people” full stop, that admittedly sensational statement is actually part of a longer statement. And, with context added, it turns out that Romney isn’t quite expressing his great joy at being able to ruin someone’s day and/or life on a whim, but making a broader point about health care reform.

Here’s Romney’s full quote, for your reference:

I want people to be able to own insurance if they wish to, and to buy it for themselves and perhaps keep it for the rest of their life, and to choose among different policies offered from companies across the nation. I want individuals to have their own insurance. That means the insurance company will have an incentive to keep you 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.

And here’s a video of Romney’s speech — from YouTube account “DemRapidResponse,” originally from CNN — that’s been making its way around the web. As you can see, they have several videos devoted to covering Romney:

That particular “cut” of Romney’s full statement has made its way onto the likes of CBSNews.com, which does make sure to note that “[e]ven if the statement is essentially a commentary on the free market, the candidate is already taking heat for saying he likes to ‘fire people’ — a remark that, while unrelated to Romney’s record at Bain, will undoubtedly be used against him in light of the recent attacks and the scrutiny of the company’s record of hiring and firing employees.”

The Guardian‘s site referred to Romney’s statement as a “blunder,” adding that he “offered his political rivals a gift on Monday when he volunteered that he liked firing people.”

Rival candidate Jon Huntsman — who has been launching a bold defense campaign of sorts against Romney in New Hampshire — shot back that while “Governor Romney enjoys firing people,” “I enjoy creating jobs.”

The Atlantic, meanwhile, offers a look at what the impact full quote means for Romney:

But let’s be reasonable for a moment. It’s quite clear that what Romney was trying to say was that consumers like firing service-providing companies, not people. (It doesn’t make any sense, the other way. I can switch from Chase from Visa, but I don’t have the ability to fire a Chase service representative.) It’s a fitting gaffe for Romney, considering this is the candidate who claimed under different circumstances that companies and people are one and the same.

So, while the words “I enjoy being able to fire people” did leave Romney’s lips, perhaps ill-advisedly, it is unfair — as it always is, for any given candidate (no matter what Super PAC ads may want you to believe) — to use his words against him in a misleading manner. Without offering the context in which they were uttered, we lose the very context that gives Romney’s words their meaning and allows these to convey Romney’s actual message — gaffe or no gaffe.

What Romney is saying here, and what becomes lost when we choose to focus on a single, sensational-seeming phrase, is that he wants to give people the power to pick and change (or “fire”) their insurance providers without having a universal mandate in place.

Here is the video with full context:

h/t DemRapidResponse via The Washington Post

CNN, DemRapidResponse, firing, Mitt Romney

Pablo

Hey! You’re not playing along! SECURITY!!!!

/nicely done
Jardino

Romney’s ad took Obama’s quote out of context: “If we keep talking about the economy, we’re going to lose.” (Obama was quoting McCain.)

Looks like Mitt is slipping in New Hampshire. There’s still hope that Santorum or Gingrich are GOP’s (God’s Own Party) nominee. It will be more fun one to watch one of those clowns lose to Obama.
Anonymous

You are absolutely right that the quote was taken out of context. But it is hard for me to feel the slightest sympathy for the man who has done the exact same thing (taking quotes grossly out of context) time and again. Live by the sword, die by the sword.
Anonymous

Yes!
Anonymous

…and YES!
Anonymous

Clearly Willard can dish it out, but can’t take it.
The Real Royal Emperor

Willard needs to appreciate his reputation for being a mass job terminator and speak with greater care.
Pablo

Clearly? Where did you hear him complaining about it?
Pablo

He’s got a long way to go to catch up with Obama.
Anonymous

“Without offering the context in which they were uttered, we lose the very context that gives Romney’s words their meaning and allows these to convey Romney’s actual message — gaffe or no gaffe.”
Captain Obvious to the rescue!
Anonymous

Yes, but from what I understand- the ad the Romney took Obama out of context was from an Obama ad that was taking McCain out of context or outright misquoting something.

Forget which.

Also, ads by politicians and PACs taking people out of context are sort of expected.

What should not be acceptable is the news media reporting out of context quotes as facts to prove some point not related to the actual quote.
Anonymous

How dare they do the exact same thing to Romney that he did to Obama!
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_45S32GWGDRUJIL6E2U4HOZW4BM Bob

Republicans wrote the book on chopping quotes for attack purposes – John Kerry could tell you all about that.
Anonymous

Did you happen to see that Romney claimed today that he was worried about getting a pink slip?

Guess that’s why Bain Capital bought AmPad.
david r

It will be more fun one to watch one of those clowns lose to Obama.

You’ll be laughing out your ass after Obama gets re-elected and ruins the economy for good. I’ve already had my career. You’ll be working for peanuts.
david r

Tell me King, you don’t support the big slowdown in Gulf drilling do you? We need to put those cajuns to work! And that Canadian pipeline. Are you worried about some salamanders? And why can’t those people in S. Carolina have their own Boeing plant ? Aren’t those union and justice department meanies killing jobs in S. C. ?
http://mediamatters.org/ Leedog

Republicans will come to Romney’s defense saying “his words were taken out of context”, while continuing to take Obama’s words out of context!!
Anonymous

And then it’ll be a real blast watching Obama turn what’s left of the nation into sh-t.
Hout Bosques

These are minor gaffes. Just wait until the fall, when Mittens Inc. rolls out it’s new line:
the All Gnu Mittens 2012 Model 2.0 Job Creationist Moderate Pragmatic, With Aloe Butter (Batteries & Personality Sold Separately).”The only unappealing aspects of Mitt Romney are the things he says and does.”https://twitter.com/BorowitzReport
Hout Bosques

Absolutely right: after the Mittens 2.0 is sworn in, it’ll get right onto implementing the Bain Capital Corpse Wealth Management Program.

First it’ll cut the fat, by hiving off those pesky large unproductive divisions of excess Americans (maybe as a food source for biofuel micro-organisms – energy independence problem solved! – & as mulch for America’s booming new industry in banana production), then it’ll bring about a permanent solution to the anxiety of our precious pool of Job Creationists by privatizing the federal government’s responsibilities in economic & social amelioration, as well as easing private sponsorship of the judicial system.
Anonymous

Karma is a bitch.
Hout Bosques

On that “Canadian pipeline”, I’m not saying the Canucks are laughing behind our backs about this, but right now the fat cat owners of the western Canadian tar sand industry production companies are desperate to export as much of that guck into the U.S. as quick as possible, because they’re facing two huge domestic legal challenges from indigenous people’s groups, both of which are likely to succeed in shutting down Pacific zone market options & domestic refining.

As to the first, there’s a consortium of west coast indian bands that’s standiong in the way of the filthy guck being piped across the Rocky Mountains for tanker shipment to China, Japan & the Korean peninsula. The other one is by a different consortium of plains indian bands just east of the open pit production, with the native bands complaining about major rivers being polluted & the ecology around them being killed off by the liquid goop from the massive tailings pools seeping into the aquifers & river basins.

If you think those challenges might be unrealistically optimistic, consider that the one & only previous comparable indian band legal challenge succeeded in completely shutting down industry plans to build a pipeline to ship Arctic & Alaska production down south through the McKenzie Valley. The various lawsuits that considered that project went on for two decades, & every time the pipeline companies manage to get a friendly set of governments into office & re-apply for permits (like they have now), the process starts all over again, with the indigenous native bands insisting on compliance with environmental impact studies that themselves take years.
The Real Royal Emperor

No, I am for vigorous drilling, but I always want us to be developing new energy sources simultaneously.
The Real Royal Emperor

As for Boeing, I was in favor of the Carolina plant, but I didn’t want to see the Wichita closure. Boeing could well have kept both going.
Anonymous

This Mediaite post offers great context and perspective about the media scrum over Mitt Romney’s statement that he likes “being able to fire people.” We at ”The Bottom 99%” go even further: suggesting the primary focus of most of this coverage misses the larger – and more important – points about Romney’s healthcare policy.

No question: this latest inarticulate gaffe makes for a great controversy during a single news cycle, renewing perceptions that Romney is a ruthless job-cutter, hopelessly out of touch with the everyday concerns of most Americans.

But this speech also reveals Romney’s inconsistencies and misleading claims about his policies and ObamaCare. Is it really, “repeal and replace” – or just ”Rename and Claim”?

Don’t be distracted – find out what you’re missing about Mitt’s healthcare policies. Click here:

http://thebottom99percent.com/mitt-on-health-insurance-youre-fired/
Чёрт Возьми

Well said! So much meaning in those three words!
Denise Landry

Let’s be reasonable here…The guy is ignorant! I can’t believe that someone who people are looking at for the possible Presidency would even use the word “fired” during this time (as an example..dumb at even doing that) Can’t even articulate without sounding like a complete A—–

What I can’t believe even more are the MORONS not Mormons MORONS that keep voting for him! That is an embarrassment and disgrace to this country!I can’t believe he is still in this race..has anyone been actually listening to him..100% USED CAR SALESMAN! He grosses me out! UGH! Anyone who votes or has voted for him is just plain lazy they never really looked over his record or any other candidate…They just saw him on TV once and said ”Oh he is tall and slicked back and sounds good! Let’s vote for him!”
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_3KJTYF3WO4F5TS7E274TUGU7I4 Jon

It is out of context but he did make a lot of money by firing people so it is probably something he likes to be able to do. I am all for capitalism, but I don’t think you could run a country the way Romney ran Bain. It’s very similar to how Obama is running the country right now.
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_3KJTYF3WO4F5TS7E274TUGU7I4 Jon

We’re being forced to support the same candidate. Obama and Romney are basically identical. I’m having a great deal of difficulty in distinguishing between the 2 besides rhetoric. I believe that this is a very sad situation for American democracy and we need some 3rd party pretense pronto.
Anonymous

No, Obama and Romney are far from identical. Romney is tied now to so many crazy right wing positions (so he could get enough votes this time to get the GOP nomination), that he is not recognizable as a moderate. But I agree that a third party would be cool this time. Ron Paul is 75. He has been dealt out by the republican insiders and fox news. This is his last go round for President so he better take a shot. Paul could win in a three party race.:-;
http://games-survival.com Justplaythegame

kinda nice seeing him called out on his own words and what he did for a life time destroying jobs…
And actually from their OWN mouth! He seems SO PROUD to fire people!

Not like the soundbites and made up stuff NEWS and candidates have done to Ron Paul..

Another out of context or flat out LIE from Candidates and NEWS is that Paul is for isolationism.

Paul, his supporters and those smart enough to read and ‘listen” know he is for non interventionism.

Mitt is a twitt.. GingRICH a lobbist.. Perry a Cowboy who fell off a horse to many times.. Santorum a Washington ear marker and war monger that never been in service.. Huntsman I havent a clue about… he likes to ride motorcyles and speak chinese?

And the only honest, smart and sound guy in the WHOLE crowd is Ron Paul without a doubt. Yet Republicans and Democrats in Washington “FEAR” him…because he wants to take away their meal ticket! You go Paul.. and thanks for showing your stripes even more Mittycare!

Ron Paul 2012 and beyond..
http://www.facebook.com/jas7751 Jay Aubrey

The Soetoro camp is nervous. As they ramp up their Alinsky attack strategy campaign expect more lies and distortions aimed at their opponents. Barry has a record of failure and as a result all he can do is attack. Its the Street Agitator in him. That is who he is.
Anonymous

Like anyone with a brain needs this clarification? Of course they were taken out of context. So while idiots run around yammering that Romney rubs his hands together in glee while passing out pink slips, everyone else just watches the news with disgust and asks themselves why they even bother to.

I have no candidate so it’s not like I’m this giant Romney fan, but once again, the Obama supporters grab whatever they can in order to demonize another Rep candidate to try to keep the almighty in office. Business as usual.

Only sheep would believe this, but then again, there are a lot of sheep out there. If only they knew what they really look like doing this, they might be a trifle embarrassed.
Anonymous

Looks like Romney will be explaining this one over, and over, and over. I wonder if he’ll double down and refuse to admit that he shouldn’t have said it, even though everyone knows that he wishes he hadn’t.
Now he’s playing defense, never a good place to be in a political campaign.
What an amateur.