Man who secretly videotaped Mitt Romney's "47 percent" remarks comes forward

Mitt Romney making controversial comments that were secretly videotaped during 2012 Florida fundraiser / CBS

WASHINGTON The bartender working the private Florida fundraiser where Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney made his comments about "47 percent" of Americans says he didn't make the secret recording as a political partisan.

In his first public interview, Scott Prouty tells MSNBC's Ed Schultz that he lost sleep and struggled for weeks before deciding to release the recording to the magazine Mother Jones.

But Prouty says he thought it was important that people heard Romney and knew what he was really thinking.

In the video, Romney tells donors paying $50,000 apiece that 47 percent of Americans are dependent on government, see themselves as victims and believe the government has a responsibility to care for them.

• Who shot Mitt Romney's "47 percent" video?

Romney's critics used the video to argue that he was out of touch with average Americans, and the video is seen by many pundits to have played an important role in Mr. Obama's re-election.

The Reuters news agency observes that, "When Prouty handed the tape over to Mother Jones and the magazine published it in September, Romney was put on the defensive for weeks and never really recovered."

"I didn't go in there with a grudge against Romney. I was more interested as a voter," Prouty told Schlultz.

Mother Jones also confirmed that Prouty was the person who taped the video, Reuters say.

He described himself as a "regular guy, middle class, hard-working guy" and was tending bar at the event donors had paid $50,000 to attend.

"Prouty said he was initially motivated to release the tape by a different comment that Romney had made in which he expressed interest in having his private equity firm buy a Chinese factory that employed 20,000 people who earned little money" and worked under very poor conditions, Reuters notes.

The media seized on the 47 percent comments.

[knsn_for_cmn_sense]

Dan is a full on 47%er

[RetiredArmy_Nurse]

The 47% also includes retirees on social security, children who have lost a parent, those who are widowed, not to mention our lower ranking enlisted active duty soldiers. Making around $40,000 per year Dan is one of the 47%, as is my son, a new Army lieutenant Blackhawk pilot. Next time you see a married soldier with kids chew him out for getting the EIC, food stamps, military healthcare, and free education for his kids that we taxpayers pay for.

[oldoc44]

We owe this guy our gratitude for bringing out in the open what we all knew was in Romney's heart and mind all along. His comments were spot-on and reflect the GOP/Teavangelical views perfectly. Their record of obfuscation and obstruction for basic social needs programs and "entitlements" tells it all. Their distain for the Medicaid program, for example, is likely built on the fact that the explosion in Medicaid spending is largely due to the illegals and their pregnancies/kids which irritates them no end - but they won't come clean about that either.

[pasthype55]

all the GOP had to do was to come up with someone with some comonsense other than rommey/ryan and the dems would have lost! they were beatable!

[thechooch1]

pasthype55 and where would the gop find these people? Bachmann, Trump, Cain, Perry, Gingrich, Santorum? The candidate didn't matter as much as the message.

[GhostF1ghter]

The funniest thing I have every seen is Karl Rove melting down on Fox News on election night.

[legalbutunjust]

Hah!

[FOX_PARROTS_LIE]

Scottt Prouty, the onetime bartender who made the video of Mitt Romney's 47 percent remarks, has launched a fund to raise money to cover legal costs and possibly the cost of going to law school. After revealing himself on MSNBC's The Ed Show on Wednesday night, Prouty immediately became a subject of intense media attention. He was besieged with interview requests. And while his hour long interview with Schultz was under way, he says, strangers showed up at his Florida home and he soon became a target for hate-tweets and dirt-digging from right-wingers still angry about his role in exposing Romney's dismissive attitude toward half the country.

I wouldn't put anything by these tea potty extremists, so watch your back Scott!

[FOX_PARROTS_LIE]

After taping an interview with MSNBC's Lawrence O'Donnell on Thursday night, Prouty discussed with me his reasons for establishing this fund:

After going public, I've received a flood of physical and legal threats in emails and tweets. People have found my address and have shown up at my door. It's possible I may have to move. And I've had to contact several lawyers and have incurred legal expenses. I might incur more going forward. I always knew that if I talked about this, I could become a target, and I don't want to be melodramatic, but some of the threats I've received do cause me to be concerned for my safety and that of my loved ones.

[rykatspop]

Mr. Prouty, you have every right to be concerned and to take all those threats seriously. Even though this is America, the far-right has a very Nazi like mentality to aggressively hound you, violate your privacy and privileges and freedoms these nut jobs pretend to honor and hold sacred. American principles and values only matter to the far right as long as you think like them.

Examples of Tea Bagger scorn? Just say "multiculturalism" and their blood begins to boil. Why? Because the word infers a world of multiple peoples, cultures, political views having equal value and worth in America.

The Tea Party is nothing more than a post modern Jim Crow brigade. They secretly wish it were 1920 again. Or earlier. They aren't just against the current govt, they're against the social contract the govt has been engaged in to help all Americans since 1932.

[TeamClinton]

The Scott Prouty Interview with Ed was the most powerful condemnation of Mr Romney than anything coming forward before. If that had been presented before the election, Obama might have gotten 400 Electoral College votes.

Thank you Scott for some great work. You, along with Mr. Bill Clinton, have written a much changed history. Just imagine had BHO not been successful and the Republicans actually picked up the seats that they were after in the Senate.

#1, Romney in the WH
#2. GOP in control of both the houses of Congress
#3. The right leaning SCOTUS with surely a chance for Romney to pack it.

This 3 events are a disaster just bearably imaginable>

Thank you Scott for delivering us from this evil,
Team Clinton, 2016

[Think4times]

MMMM Yummy, can I get a little whipped cream put on top of your hyperbole before I eat it up 7?

[GhostF1ghter]

EVERYTHINGMUSTGLOW replies: Such a chickenshlt little punk, a patriot would cut your fcking throat and feed you to the fish.

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Notice fake tough guys like this never give their address.

LOL

[FOX_PARROTS_LIE]

RAJAH88 says:
"Thank you, Scott Prouty! You saved a nation from a mad cultist."




Absolutely! A mad cultist from planet Kolob, and a family with deep polygamist roots, known to have molested little girls and boys!

[FOX_PARROTS_LIE]

Scott Prouty is a real American patriot. Thank you Scott!

[FOX_PARROTS_LIE]

Seems that romney's critics used the video to argue that he was out of touch with average Americans....



Of course the mormon cultist was completely out of touch with the 99%, and only felt comfortable with people like these wealthy donors in the video that could afford a $50,000 a plate dinner.

He could never connect with average, hardworking taxpayers from the middle class, but then again most republican politicians can't either!

[fredisreallydead]

the CON servatives are a CON and America finally caught on!