1. Mediaite
  2. Gossip Cop
  3. Geekosystem
  4. Styleite
  5. SportsGrid
  6. The Mary Sue
  7. The Jane Dough
  8. The Braiser
Advertisement

Bill O’Reilly Grills Mitt Romney On His ‘Massachusetts’ Conservatism

video
» 53 comments

From the moment Mitt Romney agreed to sit down for an interview with Bill O’Reilly, no one could have expected that interview to be a cakewalk for Romney. Nonetheless, Romney stood his ground tonight as O’Reilly questioned whether he was a conservative of convenience, how he explained having implemented Romneycare, and what he thought of his latest close rival, Newt Gingrich.

RELATED: Mitt Romney Takes Three Positions On Iraq In Fox News Sunday Interview

O’Reilly started off the interview from the bottom up for Romney, forcing to identify and defend the “thing you were most wrong about” off the bat. Romney answered that it was “the issue of life and abortion,” as he had noted last week during the Fox News presidential debate, explaining that it took the experience of being in office to understand how abortion was an unacceptable attack on human life to him.

After the conversation on abortion expired, O’Reilly asked Romney whether he considered himself conservative at all, and why. “I’m a conservative– I’ve become more conservative over time,’ Romney replied, adding that he believed his governing record was “pretty conservative” and that his most-attacked liberal position, his health care mandate, “came from conservatives at the Heritage Foundation.” “I’m trying to figure out why a guy like you… with a lot of policy experience is going to the right,” O’Reilly replied, adding that many voters are wondering that if Romney wins the primary, “you’ll go back to being a Massachusetts guy.”

Romney replied that he had “the same posture and same views in my last presidential run,” and that as governor he “cut taxes 19 times”– there was more than enough conservative record there to work with, he contended. As for his opponent, answering to the claim he made that Gingrich was “zany,” he noted the latest from the Ideas Man: an idea to arrest justices if they pass down holdings that the president doesn’t agree with. “That’s not exactly a practical idea or a conservative idea.”

RELATED: Bill O’Reilly: Ron Paul’s Foreign Policy ‘Disqualifies Him’ To Be President

The first half of O’Reilly’s interview with Romney via Fox News below:

Follow us on Twitter.

Sign up for Mediaite's daily newsletter.

Email Twitter Facebook Digg Reddit Stumble Upon Yahoo Buzz LinkedIn Tumblr Delicious
  • Gloves A. Donahue

    Excellent answers by the next President.

  • Anonymous

    I think your right… Black people have it so easy.   it is a testament to the competence and determination of the white man that they have been able to be elected president for the past 200 years when it has been easier for black men to be president

  • Anonymous

    “I’m a conservative– I’ve become more conservative over time,’ Romney replied…”

    Yeah, that’s not going to go over well with the teabaggers.  They don’t believe in evolution.  You have to be a dyed-in-the-wool conservative from the time your daddy put his peewee in your momma’s vajayjay.

  • Anonymous

    How the f* does “being in office” help you see that you were “wrong” on abortion? That is a non sequitur if I have ever heard of one. Geez…make up a story and have a more convincing argument like say — talking to a woman once who had had an abortion and the regrets she relayed to you, something you read in the paper about a woman who had one that really pulled your heartstrings etc. Something REAL that will make you look EMPATHETIC, non-robotic and not make you look disingenuous like you do when giving such a flaccid response. This just feeds the narrative that he’s a windvane. Even his responses are not convincing. 

  • Anonymous

    Saw Romneys interview with the Des Moines register which was broadcast on C-Span,which meant most voters did not see it…It was detailed and went on for over an hour and half…he was steady,answered all questions with an intelligence rarely seen or heard lately…Especially his knowledge of business and how it works…Something our current President knows nothing of…He came across warm as well as knowledgable….as for O.Reilly,nothing I havent heard before in other interviews except his(O’Reillly) attitude was annoying,certainly he treated Obama with more respect..Had I been Romaney,once off camera,I would have deflated that windbag….

  • Anonymous

    Gloves you are a crotchety old coot and you are projecting.  Please re-apply Preparation H as your last application has obviously worn off.

  • Anonymous

    You do know the story behind his tenure at Bain Capital right?  Please read it and enlighten us as to how that experience will benefit the country.  Please spare us the talking points.

  • Anonymous

    The Tea Party patriots have supported overwhelmingly for Chris Christis, Niki Haley, Kelly Ayote and even Christisn O’Donnell and many others…..All these tea party heroes have all rallied behind Mitt Romney….It’s time for the tea party movement to stand up for Mitt Romney.

    “All these tea party idiots are so cheap and so gullible. They wasted all their time, money and resources pimping for my GOP cronies who are now pimping for me…..No wonder they are widely ridiculed as teabaggers….What a bunch of SUCKERS…..Now suck for me !” – Mitt Romney

    Tea Party People : Con me once shame on you, con me twice shame on me.

    It’s time for tea party people to stay home in 2012 election and not be snookered by these GOP frauds yet again.   

  • Anonymous
  • Anonymous

    Rasta is still aroused after seeing Barney’s picture earlier in the day.

  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_45S32GWGDRUJIL6E2U4HOZW4BM Bob

    Every time Romney gets flustered, he turns into William H. Macy’s sleazy car dealer from “Fargo.” I half expect to see him run out of the room, pursued by a Francis McDormand screaming “He’s fleeing the interview!”

  • Anonymous

    i think it is congress that makes laws right?
    can you please post what laws the president has vetoed???

    or are you just talking out of your ass again?

  • Anonymous

    LOL.  BTW, I watched a movie with William H. Macy as a psychotic serial killer. Really wild.

  • Anonymous

    Mitt has a snowballs chance in hell of becoming president..
    AMERICA WILL NOT MAKE THE SAME MITTtake–AGAIN~

  • Anonymous

     My best friend ,she just has announced her wedding with a millionaire manRonald who

    is the CEO of a MNC !they met via —–Success’ful ming le.C/0/M——- ..it is the largest

    and best club for wealthy people and their admirers to chat online. …you don’t have to be

    rich there ,but you can meet one , It’s worthy a try. You do not have to be rich or famous.

    !——-but you can mee one, the most important is you can find your** true l-o-v-e**!

    right?

  • Timothy Rosenvall

    I’m a California based tea party member.  I have followed Romney for several months now and have decided that i will support him.  He makes sense, seems sincere and has been effective in the past.

  • Scott Root

    Have any of you considered that if Romney gets the nomination that none
    of the millions of Ron Paul supporters will vote for him or Obama.  The
    very fact that they won’t vote will surely marginalize his chances
    against Obama.  If Romney gets the nomination we will have four more
    years of Obama.  I suggest everyone go buy a copy of Ron Paul’s book –
    Revolution – so that you can get acquainted with who he actually is
    instead of the MSM’s opinion.   Either rule your own opinion or someone
    else will. 

  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_4NTISS6Q3Y55OGQQBSJ6MAJ6CQ Dave

    did you listen to the interview or are you just spouting off?  Romney said he has been personally opposed to abortion for his entire life.  He felt that as governor he would need to uphold the law of the land based on Roe v. Wade.  Then, when governor, he felt that his personal conviction of being pro life would not be consistent and he vetoed legislation.  He did not change his personal views.  He acknowledged that he did change his political views. 

    He is not an overly emotional person and does not feign “I can feel your pain.”  But, he can solve problems and he does get things done.

    He is fiscally conservative and vetoed 100′s of legislative proposals.  He has a stable and long term relationship with family and friends. 

    If he were pandering, he would fake emotions. 

  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_TW7RDF2EW3MIQZZTPR7O6ORXIQ robert

    Bill O’Reilly Grills “Flip Flopney”. HA!

  • Anonymous

    what an ass you are all of you bigots,  I am a Republican that believes Obama will be re-elected because of bigots like you

  • Anonymous

    Romney’s special underwear won’t help.

  • Hout Bosques

    Sheesh, I’ve received quite a few robo-CALLS, but I can’t recall ever before reading a robo-COMMENTS.

    With the end to pre-Iowa debates, it appears the Romney campaign has moved into a new phase: Release the Borg!

    (In fairness, the Borg is fictional evil, so that may be unfair. Maybe: Release the Morg!)  

  • Hout Bosques

    Take a look at what that bit of Mitt fiction was actually all about – from Wikipedia (The Boston Globe article itself is behind a subscriber-only wall.):

    “Romney says that his views on abortion were drastically altered on November 9, 2004 after discussing stem cell research with Douglas Melton, a stem cell researcher at Harvard University. The Harvard Stem Cell Institute was planning research that would have involved therapeutic cloning.[107] The Governor says that Melton declared that the research “is not a moral issue because we kill the embryos at 14 days.” “I looked over at Beth Myers, my chief of staff, and we both had exactly the same reaction, which is it just hit us hard,” recalled Romney “And as they walked out, I said, ‘Beth, we have cheapened the sanctity of life by virtue of the Roe v. Wade mentality.’ And from that point forward, I said to the people of Massachusetts, ‘I will continue to honor what I pledged to you, but I prefer to call myself pro-life.’”[108] Melton disputes Romney’s account of the meeting, declaring “Governor Romney has mischaracterized my position; we didn’t discuss killing or anything related to it … I explained my work to him, told him about my deeply held respect for life, and explained that my work focuses on improving the lives of those suffering from debilitating diseases.”[109]In a press conference video in May 2005 however, Romney when asked about Massachusetts abortion laws stated “I have indicated that as governor, I am absolutely committed to my promise to maintain the status quo with regards to laws relating to abortion and choice, and so far I’ve been able to successfully do that,” indicating that the governor continued to hold a pro-choice position post-November 2004.[110]”

    Hooboy, so MANY Mitt lies packed into just that one episode.

  • Anonymous

    He has worked with struggling companies from the inside in a variety of industries. He knows the often unforeseen impact of government policies that people who have never really worked int he private sector (Obama) can have. He knows what policies need to be rescinded or changed to put America back in business and our people back to work.

    Only an Obama sycophant would think that letting someone regulate the economy with no actual experience in the economy is a formula for success. And, as you can see, it hasn’t been. 

    WILLARD 2012!

  • Hout Bosques

    In fairness, it certainly seems to have left an impression on YOU!

  • Anonymous

    I’m not sure if I understand Mitt’s position…. we should not elect Obama because of the past 4 years because it’s bad but we can’t judge him for his 4 years as Massachusetts Governor because he promises to be better now.  Um, what? 

    Can one person tell me what Mitt Romney did as Governor of Massachusetts that makes him electable or enticing to anyone?  The attack ads write themselves people, enjoy another Obama term.

  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_SVZ5H53BPU4AKHILRVDRXIPBSM josh

    Yeah, but a lot of the Ron Paul supporters are not republicans anyways. Ron Paul’s support base in Iowa for example is 40% democrat, 41% independent and only 19% or so republican.  Romney is not going to expand the social welfare state as much as Obama and will probably be a careful commander in chief.

  • Hout Bosques

    Billold’s like a 2 speed engine: either he’s loading up his questions more than Gaylord Perry & stomping all over your answers like a mallet in Whack-a-Mole, or he’s put you up at bat in T-ball & is lining up helium-filled balloons for you. That’s our Mister Independent for you!

  • Anonymous

    You obama lovers have never used talking points,is that right…how about axelass,wasserschitz,et al…I gave my opinion based on what I heard and saw…nobody told me what to say and how to say it…but continue to follow obama and his clones sending out scriipts 24/7……btw,obamas buddy holder used the libs favorite talking point,RACISM….man we are getting sick of the race card being pulled everytime you all disagree with anything we say….wet kiss goodbye to obama et al in nov 2012……

  • Anonymous

    can you tell what obama did that made him electable…the electorate was fooled once,NOT AGAIN!

  • Anonymous
  • Anonymous

    Dave,I am in complete agreement with you but based on some of these posts and others I have seen,this Country is doomed to repeat the mistake of 08….We damn well will get what we deserve….some of these social issues should be left on the table since we have really serious problems like the economy,middle east,north korea and so much more that I wonder why gays in the military,same sex marriage and even abortion have to be so important…Lets take care of the things that might destroy our Country first….then try to work out differences on social issues….

  • Anonymous

    Keep dreaming, GA.Dfly ;)

  • shonangreg

    You speak for all Ron Paul supporters, Scott? It seems rather extreme what you’re saying, “Either support my guy or you won’t get my vote.”

  • Anonymous

    Osama bin Laden and 11 other of the top 20 Al Qaeda top officials are now dead.  OK, now you go

  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_SVZ5H53BPU4AKHILRVDRXIPBSM josh

    If you actually look at romney’s platform, it is pretty conservative. He is prepared to be president. Barack Obama was not prepared, with only a few months in the senate before he started running for president. Bush was not prepared either. He rode into office on the Bush name and a bit of southern charm. It is time for a president who is actually prepared to be president. Romney has far more leadership experience than Obama. Obama is not even 3 years into his first leadership position in his entire life. 

  • Anonymous

    Next time vomit on the keyboard and then press Enter.  It may make a mess, but at least you’ll avoid the laughter and derision directed at you.

  • Anonymous

    It was funny when Glenn Beck called you racist.

  • Anonymous

    The voters are SO stupid.  Unless they vote for the GOP.  Then they are brilliant Patriots. 

  • AMP2020

    After that interview it’s easier to understand why the base of the GOP has problems with Romney… I’m an independent and when I hear him talk, he sounds VERY moderate.

    I think he’s talking hawkish just to sound tough but he wouldn’t bring much new to the table concerning Iran or the middle east. It’s all posturing.

    However, he DOES seem well-balanced and seems to almost be perfectly cast as a President…

  • Anonymous

    It’s on tape what he has said in the past. Sounds like you are a nice little apologizing foot soldier. He’s either a liar or unprincipled.

  • Anonymous

    If you dont want to be called racist: stop doing/saying racist things.

    And cool it with the ellipses; you’re confused about their usage.

  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_KV4RFCL74WV652VV43U3GDPAEY Stephen W

    Romney is the only republican candidate that can win.    All republicans better get out and vote for the nominee no matter who it ultimately is, otherwise Obama wins.

  • Michael T.

    My take is BillO was more concerned with maintaining a positive image as a tough interviewer than to be totally fair and polite to Romney.

    This was most evident when O’Reilly ended the interview tersely and smugly thanking Romney for ‘coming on’.

    It wasn’t blatant and it won’t appear curt (or rude) to B.O.’s many loyal very conservative Tea Party viewers.

    But that doesn’t mean that O’Reilly didn’t once again come off as a bit of a jerk – even among those at Fox News who can’t stand him.

    He should stop wondering why some will not come on his show.

  • Michael T.

    In the spirit of presenting both sides here’s a better idea. (It has nothing to do with his controversial position on Iran.)

    Buy a copy of Ron Paul’s book Revolution. Or borrow a copy if you cannot find extended excerpts online.

    Read it.

    Then go read “10 Reasons Not To Vote For Ron Paul.”
    http://www.addictinginfo.org/2011/11/04/10-reasons-not-to-vote-for-paul/

    Now make up your own mind about whether Dr. Paul’s political philosophy fits in your world view.

  • Anonymous

    You have no idea what this man is like, you don’t know nasty until you elect Romney, a snob millionaire with no social skills, and a compulsive liar, he is a disaster waiting to happen!  Do you have children to send to Romney’s war with Iran?? 

  • Anonymous

    When he was governor he said he was for choice because of his mother and a family member, did he throw that story under the bus and become a life long pro lifer?? he is lying every time he opens his mouth.  Both stories are lies, the mother and family and the changing when he held office.  He is Eddie Haskell.

  • Anonymous

    In other words, you believe everything you hear if it’s what you want to hear.  This man is a compulsive liar!!

  • WiddleBabyDanielson
  • Anonymous

    Romney is not more experienced than Obama ANYMORE. Of course Obama is now more experienced thanks to his presidency.

    If you republicans care so much about experience then how do you explain your love for Herman Cain and Donald Trump?

  • Anonymous

    billo looks ready to get on his knees and show his love!

  • david r

    BillO and Mitt ?  Not much to work with here.  I’m off to another thread.

  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_DNMVQZCXFQTDIGILG354Q727YY Roma Victor

    Romney gives me the creeps. I can’t tell what motivates him, or why he wants to be president, other than to have it on his resume. He was born on third base and thinks he hit a triple. He has no connection with the middle class, and doesn’t have a populist bone in his body. There is so much about this country he just doesn’t get, and he’s so busy running for office, for pete’s sake, that he doesn’t really take time to wonder why poor women have abortions, why young men have to choose between college and the military, or why patients in California turn to medical marijuana when nothing else works. I can’t see his presidency being much more than a series of unforced errors trying to please the Tea Party.

© 2012 Mediaite, LLC | About Us | Advertise | Newsletter | Jobs | Privacy | User Agreement | Disclaimer | Power Grid FAQ | Contact | Archives | RSS RSS
Dan Abrams, Founder | Power Grid by Sound Strategies | Hosting by Datagram