Romney’s $10,000 bet highlights personal wealth

STEVE PEOPLES, Associated Press

Sunday, December 11, 2011

WASHINGTON (AP) — He could have bet a beer. Or maybe a steak dinner.

But during a heated dispute with Rick Perry during Saturday night’s debate in Des Moines, Iowa, Mitt Romney extended his right hand and asked the Texas governor if he’d wager $10,000 to settle a dispute over his healthcare record. The rich bet instantly provided Romney’s opponents with new ammunition for their charge that he’s out of touch with middle-class America.

“I’m just saying, you’re for individual mandates, my friend,” Perry said to Romney.

“You’ve raised that before, Rick, and you’re simply wrong,” Romney responded, extending his hand toward Perry. “Rick, I’ll tell you what: 10,000 bucks?”

Perry laughed it off: “I’m not in the betting business.”

It was an exchange that spanned less than a minute. But it’s one that likely won’t soon be forgotten. Democrats and Romney’s Republican challengers pounced almost immediately.

“I want to know if he has $10,000 in his pocket,” Newt Gingrich’s spokesman, R.C. Hammond, said after the debate.

Romney’s personal wealth and privileged background have long been viewed a potential political vulnerability. He’s the son of a former governor and made a fortune leading a venture capital company in Massachusetts. Romney disclosed earlier in the year that his personal wealth is estimated at between $190 million and $250 million.

But as a presidential candidate in recent months, he’s made a point of courting middle-class America.

“I didn’t grow up poor. And if somebody is looking for someone who’s grown up with that background, I’m not the person,” Romney said during the debate, noting that his father was poor at one point in his life. “They made sure we had jobs when we were growing up. They made sure we didn’t spend money foolishly.”

That did little to stop the Democratic National Committee from using the $10,000 bet to fuel an immediate political attack. In a statement, the DNC said $10,000 is almost three times more than what an average family spends on groceries in a year and more than a year’s worth of mortgage payments for the typical American home purchased today.

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tonto_goldberg 1 year, 5 months ago

The article misses a big point. Perry would have had to "laugh off" that bet at much lower stakes, even over a cheeseburger. A wealthy person who is willing to bet a large amount of his own money is pretty confident of his position. You don't become wealthy by being reckless with money, and Romney made most of the money he has.

evenkeel 1 year, 5 months ago

$10,000 is only 1/5 of the amount that the United States borrows EVERY SECOND. Yes, that is correct. Since President Obama took office, the federal government is going $50,000 deeper into debt every second.

The nation cannot afford Obama.

asb 1 year, 5 months ago

Then the nation shouldn't have taken on two wars, given the luckiest among us a pass on paying for them, de-fanged financial regulators, and funded the billions given in rewards for stealing Americans' money.

asb 1 year, 5 months ago

The regulators were inept, underpaid, underqualified, bought off, unsupervised, and had limited authority and no support from several consecutive administrations and congress, none of which would believe such chaos could arise from simple back scratching greed; history not being paid attention to.

tonto_goldberg 1 year, 5 months ago

theatlantic.com/business/archive/2011/12/newt-gingrichs-tax-cut-for-the- rich-in-a-very-very-tall-graph/249878/

If we can't afford Obama we certainly can't afford Newt, or Perry, or Cain. Those are some troublesome facts, pal.

tonto_goldberg 1 year, 5 months ago

The tax plans from Newt, Perry, and Cain would add drastically to the federal deficit and make the federal income tax more regressive. That is the evil part. People who can afford to pay more taxes ought to pay more taxes. People who can afford less ought to pay less.

asb 1 year, 5 months ago

Every economic system in history has relied on debt to invest in the future. It's only when those benefittng the most from the investment don't help retire the debt that the deficit goes from managed to dangerous.

asb 1 year, 5 months ago

You have it exactly backwards. The wealthiest pay the least proportion of their income and property taxes. Your mantra of "people should get to keep what they earn" is true up to the point where taxes have to be paid, and wealth brings the power to keep more than their share. The government can be managed by liberals and conservatives to live within its means, including debt service that allows for investment in our future, but when the means are suddenly reduced by giveaways for our wealthiest just when wars and economics require higher debt, managing that debt gets harder, so we really need to allow inept idealogues to bring the whole process, which has worked for over two hundred years, to a standstill like a bunch of unsupervised children ruining a gathering with bad behavior.

muleman 1 year, 5 months ago

Gambling is illegal in Iowa.

evenkeel 1 year, 5 months ago

A $10,000 bet highlights Romney's personal wealth. Borrowing $50,000 per second highlights Americas' impoverished Presidential leadership of the past 3 years.

Keep asking hckas. How else are you going to learn?

asb 1 year, 5 months ago

Borrowing $50,000 per second highlights Americas' impoverished Presidential leadership of the Bush years.

Sequoia 1 year, 5 months ago

theatlantic.com/business/archive/2011/12/newt-gingrichs-tax-cut-for-the-rich-in-a-very-very-tall-graph/249878/

I think these graphs say all that needs to be said about why Republicans won't win this election. Conservatives need to develop policies that work for everyone.

Kinda hits you in the gut, doesn't it?

tonto_goldberg 1 year, 5 months ago

It's a safe enough bet, and Graceful doesn't have the ten grand either.

Sequoia 1 year, 5 months ago

Don't be so sure. Movement conservatives have isolated themselves in an information bubble. Inside this information cocoon, Obama is either a manipulative socialist or a clueless fool (not sure how a person can hold those two ideas at the same time, but that's movement conservatism for you.)

But outside that cocoon, whatever you think of his specific policies, Obama is man of intellect and dignity.

The best thing for true conservatives will be for the current incarnation of the GOP to go down in flames, regroup and rebrand, and get back to a truly conservative philosophy that works for regular people.

I'm not the only one: thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/12/13/michael-tomasky-could-obama-be-headed-for-a-landslide.html

Sequoia 1 year, 5 months ago

Sigh. The idea that a person can't be a conservative if they look at certain news sources is certainly a depressing aspect of movement conservatism. It is a sign of insecurity and inflexibility. Graceful is a perfect example of the results of belonging to a "conservative movement," a contradiction in terms that comes to resemble a cult more and more every day. They are rapidly losing touch with reality, and this information cocoon is one reason why.

As a true conservative, I read widely. I do not watch my news on television. The fact that this casts suspicion on me is part of the problem I keep railing against. I don't expect to change Graceful's mind, but it is a good opportunity to make my case.

An extremist is a poor leader, but great on TV. When I talk about movement conservatism, I mean that conservatism has changed from a political philosophy into a cultural identity marker, which Fox, book publishers and the talk shows have tapped as a market segment. To make money off people like Graceful, the conservative media just amplifies the standard media business model: 1) provoke fear and indignation in the audience, so they keep watching and 2) inspire distrust of any other media (so they keep watching your product).

So, this is where you get narratives like "the gay agenda," "war on Christmas," "secularists" or "socialism," which is just the latest version of the Red Scare. And hence the emphasis on "liberal media," and Graceful's idea that a conservative must not look at certain publications or consider certain facts. Think about it the next time you watch Fox. Look for fear and mistrust. Then, go read conservative writers like Connor Friedersdorf, Meghan McCardle, and some of the other staff at the Atlantic Monthly and other publications. They don't need to hit the fear and mistrust buttons, because their ideas stand on their own.

Interesting all the talk about socialism from movement conservatives, because one of the main problems of socialism is that statism leads to rigidity, whereas free markets allow for dynamic adaptation to change. By wrapping themselves in an information bubble, movement conservatives are calcifying into the same kind of rigid dogma that causes socialism and other "movements" to crumble under the forces of change. Remember how the Soviet Union used to order massive steel production that its industries couldn't use, even as it was going broke, just so the Politburo could boast that it was beating the U.S. in steel production? Take heed all who invest themselves in glorious "movement," be it conservative or liberal.

Sequoia 1 year, 5 months ago

And I say this not because I'm "liberal," but because I strongly believe that America needs a viable, vibrant 21st Century conservatism that can respond to new challenges and PERSUADE the next generation, not simply excommunicate the nonbelievers. What we have no ain't cuttin' it, and the result will be generations of new Americans that reject anything "conservative" as backward and belligerent.

Sequoia 1 year, 5 months ago

Well, the daily beast report had to do with poll numbers. Those are facts that can be verified as true or false. There is nothing liberal or conservative about them. I don't regularly read the Beast, but it hosts Andrew Sullivan's blog (a conservative!), so I got to that story from there.

But look, I don't spend a lot of time worrying about whether something is liberal or conservative. I read very widely. I do not watch cable news of any kind or listen to talk radio of any kind. I do not let anyone tell me what I should or should not read. Nothing is off limits for me. You'd do well to pick up a book or magazine more often. The quality of your thought and your writing would improve. Give it a try!

Liberals can do their own thing. You're right, I'm not here to criticize liberals. There are plenty of other people on here to do that. I'm doing what no one else can or will: offer a conservative critique of contemporary conservatism.

There's plenty of "left versus right" garbage. Just a bunch of ideological trash left over from the baby boomer generation, and as far as I'm concerned all the old hippies and squares can't be swept out of our culture soon enough. I'm not here to fight the same old battle with the same old arguments. I'm trying to break through "left versus right" with something new: real conservative philosophy (which is actually quite old).

You're stuck in a fake battle between "big" government and "small" government. I'm here to talk about smart government.

We can talk about where Obama has taken some conservative positions, and maybe I will in the future. Stay tuned.

But I will say this: He's exactly the model of family values that conservatives always say blacks should aspire to (and you should read transcripts of speeches he's given to black audiences... no white president could get away with it). He is calm and not overly emotional. He killed Osama Bin Laden.

soxfan 1 year, 5 months ago

it sounded like a figure of speech to me but a higher figure of $$$$ don l

3bunnies 1 year, 5 months ago

huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/12/mitt-romney-bet-rick-perry_n_1143868.html

TheRickster 1 year, 5 months ago

Betting a huge amount is an attempt to show how sure you are of your statement! I know most of you have mouthed off with a million dollar bet before,,, it doesn't mean you have a million dollars but you would win it!

wyriontair 1 year, 5 months ago

For the media, Democrats and DNC to make this a big deal shows they are desperate. I cannot believe that anyone commenting here has not said "I'll bet you a dollar" "I'll bet you a million dollars", I'll bet you a drink", "I'll bet you a six pack". to prove a point.

evenkeel 1 year, 5 months ago

asb, so Bush is to blame for Obama racking up more than $5 TRILLION in debt in his first and only term. Hmmm. You make a not very strong point. I guess it is the best you can muster.

I see that the concept of personal responsibility continues to elude you.

asb 1 year, 5 months ago

The conversation requires some civility.

evenkeel 1 year, 5 months ago

Inconvenient facts are not uncivil.

That debt is embarassing, isn't it. It was for Bush supporters and it is for Obama-heads.

It is much worse that embarassing though. It is a threat to our well-being as a nation. Wait until interest rates rise and servicing our debt explodes.

evenkeel 1 year, 5 months ago

hckas, it would tickle me to think that Graceful is a 1%'er and that her being rich is keeping you and those OWS folks from doing better in your own lives. That would be cool. But I cannot bring myself to think that way. I am far too sensible for that. The thought does tickle me though.

See, the deal is that a rich persons’ income doesn’t increase out-of-wedlock childbearing, dropping out of school, committing crime that leads to incarceration, failure to develop marketable job skills or lack of work effort. Those are the real world obstacles to advancement up the income scale- not some boogey-man rich person who has their boot on the throat of the poor victims of capitalism.

hckas, in the cartoon world that you inhabit, do you think of rich people more like Scrooge McDuck or Snidely Whiplash?

spelchek 1 year, 5 months ago

"Romney’s $10,000 bet highlights personal wealth" - Two words: So what?

Is not Mr. Obama rich? Seems to me this article is stating that Mr. Romney and Mr. Obama (rich people) are both out of touch. Moreover, one is the sitting POTUS flushing the economy down the toilet and the other is running to try and fix the economy. One is a successful businessman the other is a successful business destroyer. Who is to blame for our current situation? I'll give a hint, it's not Romney.

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