Romney to campaign donors: Obama voters "dependent," see selves as "victims"

Updated 10 p.m. ET

(CBS News) Mitt Romney's campaign has responded to a video in which the Republican presidential nominee appears to be shown describing the majority of President Obama's supporters as people who are "dependent on government" and "believe that they are victims."

Video of the comments at a private fundraiser earlier this year., from an anonymous source, was given to a pair of left-leaning media outlets, Mother Jones and the Huffington Post. You can see the relevant portion at left.

"There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what," Romney is heard saying in the video. "All right, there are 47 percent who are with him, who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe the government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you name it. That, that's an entitlement. And the government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what."

Romney goes on to say that "these are people who pay no income tax. 47 percent of Americans who pay no income tax. So our message of low taxes doesn't connect." He says his job "is not to worry about those people. I'll never convince them they should take personal responsibility and care for their lives."

Romney says he has to convince the "five to ten percent in the center" to vote for him, adding that members of this group vote sometimes based on "emotion, whether they like the guy or not."

The Obama campaign pounced on the comments, which are already being compared to then-candidate Barack Obama's 2008 comments in which Mr. Obama said that Americans in rural communities "cling to guns or religion" because of a lack of jobs. Those comments also leaked from a private event and outraged many in the Republican base.

"It's shocking that a candidate for President of the United States would go behind closed doors and declare to a group of wealthy donors that half the American people view themselves as 'victims,' entitled to handouts, and are unwilling to take 'personal responsibility' for their lives," Jim Messina, Obama for America Campaign Manager, said in a statement released late Monday afternoon. "It's hard to serve as president for all Americans when you've disdainfully written off half the nation."

In a statement responding to the video, the Romney campaign said "Mitt Romney wants to help all Americans struggling in the Obama economy."

"As the governor has made clear all year, he is concerned about the growing number of people who are dependent on the federal government, including the record number of people who are on food stamps, nearly one in six Americans in poverty, and the 23 million Americans who are struggling to find work," said Romney Communications Director Gail Gitcho. "Mitt Romney's plan creates 12 million new jobs in four years, grows the economy and moves Americans off of government dependency and into jobs."

Romney's 47 percent reference is tied to findings that nearly half of Americans were found to have not paid income taxes. Conservatives seized on the comments to portray themselves as hard workers tasked with supporting freeloaders. Their opponents noted that most Americans pay other taxes, including payroll and sales taxes. The Tax Policy Center found that in 2009, following the financial crisis, 17 percent of households did not pay any federal income tax or payroll tax, mostly students, the elderly and the disabled.

Mother Jones and the Huffington Post altered the video at the request of the source, who wanted his or her identity protected. After originally not disclosing the date and location of the event, Mother Jones late Monday night reported that the event took place on May 17 at the Boca Raton, Fla., home of private equity manager Marc Leder.

The leaked video includes other notable moments. At one point, in reference to his family's time living in Mexico, Romney says of his father, "Had he been born of Mexican parents, I'd have a better shot of winning this." The comment prompted laughter.

"But he was unfortunately born to Americans living in Mexico," Romney continues. "He lived there for a number of years. And, I mean I say that jokingly, but it would be helpful to be Latino." Polls show Latinos favor Mr. Obama by a wide margin in the presidential race.

Romney also says in the video that the way to reach swing voters is to cast Mr. Obama as a disappointment, since they like him and voted for him. "The things that animate us are not the things that animate them," Romney says. (Watch at left.)

Romney also references his personal wealth, according to Mother Jones, stating that he "inherited nothing." Romney's father was a wealthy automobile executive, and he attended a prestigious private high school; Politifact calls his claim that he did not inherit money from his parents "half true."

"There is a perception, 'Oh, we were born with a silver spoon, he never had to earn anything and so forth,'" he says. "Frankly, I was born with a silver spoon, which is the greatest gift you can have: which is to get born in America."

Romney is also heard saying that the campaign trail is not a good place for specifics. His campaign has taken criticism from conservatives for not offering more substance, and Monday morning an adviser promised more specifics would be forthcoming.

"We have a website that lays out white papers on a whole series of issues that I care about. I have to tell you, I don't think this will have a significant impact on my electability," he says. "I wish it did. I think our ads will have a much bigger impact." Romney adds that "in a setting like this, a highly intellectual subject - discussion on a whole series of important topics typically doesn't win elections. And there are, there are, there are - for instance, this president won because of 'hope and change.'"

[normattberg]

crazy, but the guy is right. ooops did I say that out loud? think about it and be honest, if you can..... he's right. hit the nail right on the head. i have met many many of those peeps that think the gov owes them.......and more are born every day. upside down world that we live in. peeps would rather have gov hand outs rather than doing an honest days work and having pride in themselves. its a give me, give me, give me world we live in.

[sandrarita]

Buh bye Willard!

[sandrarita]

Why should Obama and anyone for that matter respond to such stupidity coming from a man that is not so smart after all?

[rgaviator]

The headline stories on CBS News are so one sided against Romney, that it is becoming status quo. This is incredible, it is like a state run media. Can't all you Fox haters see this?

[polisigh]

Tax evading Romney gave $100 million to his children, which is why he will not release his tax returns from the past. Totally committed to the preservation of advantages the wealthy and white.

[rgaviator]

and this would never happen if her were a different color? Racist comment from you.

[readg821]

What has NOT been said about the 47% is the breakdown of who makes up this category? Does Romney mean citizens who are not paying ANY taxes like payroll with-holding/ Medicare tax, Social Security tax, state tax, or just those TOO POOR to owe taxes on their returns or are under the poverty line after Education, Child-Care, Senior Citizen tax cuts are applied. Maybe Romney is pointing the finger the wrong way! WHY?? We are STILL WAITING for his tax returns(in full) to be presented! It smacks of "Do as I say, not as I do"!

[facetime101]

i said the same thing!!! im a single working mother..i work 2 jobs in the summer and i found out with me working 2 full time jobs i still make less than 11000 a year..i have a 6 year old and i still get gov assistance. my mother died when i was in college i didnt get her ss...i was to old to recieve it. i cant go back to school because when i came home there were no jobs for a year and i tried to keep my loans in financial default but that went sour so now i cant go back till i pay my loans but i dont make enough to keep up with the payments...now just last year obama passed a law allowing me to make payments based on my income i have to pay them 6-8 consecutive months to be allowed financial aid again...so im grateful for that but i dont want to raise my son on the system its not part of my plan but as long as its there to help me i will take all the help i can get and it is help

[readg821]

What has NOT been said about the 47% is the breakdown of who makes up this category? Does Romney mean citizens who are not paying ANY taxes like payroll with-holding/ Medicare tax, Social Security tax, state tax, or just those TOO POOR to owe taxes on their returns or are under the poverty line after Education, Child-Care, Senior Citizen tax cuts are applied. Maybe Romney is pointing the finer the wrong way! WHY?? We are STILL WAITING for his tax returns(in full) to be presented! It smacks of "Do as I say, not as I do"!

[Rebel2012]

The media is playing for President Obama, do they not see the jobs report, the high fuel cost, the unrest in the middle east, the failed policies, the division he is creating, missing intelligence meetings (gets printed version of intel report- woohoo- that's being involved and asking questions. Oh, but let's go on talk shows and head to campaigning, because that's more important than meeting with Israel's PM or taking care of the unrest in the Middle east. Instead, the press looks for anything and everything the Romney campaign does and cannot wait to exploit and let the Obama campaign use it against him. Lord only knows he does not have a good track record to run on so let's turn the people against my opponent.

[fiberglass3]

High fuel prices and a strong stock market indicate an improving economy.

[walkthetalk]

Your are not going to get a STINKIN RAISE!, Far too many Folks on the Take and Government seems to encourage it. Just this week, they admitted that they over paid unrecoverable, Billions in false SS claims last year.

[phwtb100]

The only things Obama has managed to accomplish in the past 4 years is:
1.) putting us all so far in debt that our citizens will be paying for it for the next 200 YEARS,
2.) making all the bankers in this country even richer than they already were, and
3.) guaranteeing the greediest companies in this nation a hellacious increase in insurance revenue!!!

After contemplating for more than an hour over Romneys' statement, I must say, even though it went all over me when I first heard it, I have to agree with him.

Too many people DO consider themselves 'entitled'.

And that 'entitlement' doesn't stop with low-income who live off welfare, medicaid, and HUD, or those feeding off unemployment because they refuse to take a lower paying, less prestigious job than what they had.

It encompasses all the rest of us, too.

It includes those who feel they should be 'entitled' to a decent job WITH a good salary, regardless of what it costs the employer.

It includes those who feel they should be 'entitled' to solid health care coverage IN ADDITION to that good size salary.

It includes those who feel they should be 'entitled' to nice home in a nice, clean, well maintained neighborhood WITHOUT paying the taxes to maintain them.

It includes those who feel they should be 'entitled' to drive a nice shiny new car; 'entitled' to a closet filled with nice clothes; 'entitled' to a cabinet filled with healthy food; 'entitled' to safe schools for their children which offers an excellent education along with the safety; those who feel 'entitled' to affordable tuition, and it includes those who feel they are 'entitled' to a LIFE living the AMERICAN DREAM.

But, what they BOTH, Obama and Romney, fail to realize is we ARE ENTITLED to everyone of those things.

The FACT is IT IS the responsibility of the government to make sure ALL those 'entitlements' are POSSIBLE.

It is NOT their responsibility to GIVE THEM TO US.

The government has to stop trying to provide everyone with everything they WANT and START forcing this country to make available all those things we NEED to live, and do so at a FAIR PRICE paid for getting it.

FORCE the banks to give us fair rates and fair, easily understood terms on our mortgages and STOP allowing them to only lend money to those who don't need it.

FORCE the hospitals, doctors, labs and clinics to charge FAIR rates to EVERYONE and STOP price gouging the uninsured.

FORCE the insurance companies to charge a FAIR, AFFORDABLE RATE for insurance and STOP allowing them to 'clause out' of paying what they made us believe they would pay for when we signed on the dotted line.

FORCE those who are filled with greed to let go of the POWER that comes along with it. Greed is an evil that can not be overcome by any means except the persons own will. I understand that. But the POWER that goes with that greed is a whole different ball game.

There is absolutely NO excuse for a doctor to 'feed on' and exploit the sick at the tune of $500+ an hour. There is NO EXCUSE for a hospital to charge you RENT on surgical equipment AND an outrageous amount for the surgical room! There is NO EXCUSE for charging $100 for one Tylenol pill, or $200 for a box of Kleenex.

NO EXCUSE for an employer to BE FORCED to pay an outrageous premium to cover their employees with shoddy insurance that, in the end, will FORCE them to fire half their staff just to keep themselves from violating the law!!!

There is NO EXCUSE to penalize someone because they can't afford to pay $15,000 a year for medical insurance (and that IS the average price for a standard, no frills insurance policy in this country)!! How on earth can any one making even $30,000 a year pay that????

The list can go on and on and on.

STOP the GREED/FIX the problem.

The problem with this election is that no one is addressing the REAL issue in this country, GREED and POWER. Address THAT problem, and 90% of our problems will disappear.

[KPeters_from_UK]

A Reuters survey of 1700 CEO's around the world says that twice as many CEO's think Obama would be better for the economy than Romney. That is a huge margin. http://www.cnbc.com/id/48699694

[KPeters_from_UK]

Obama's accomplishments:
Fixed the preexisting conditions travesty [and rescissions] in health insurance.
Invested in clean energy.
Overhauled the credit card industry, making it much more consumer-friendly.
While Dodd-Frank bill was weak in many respects, it was still an extremely worthwhile start at re-regulating the financial sector.
He created a Elizabeth Warren's dream agency: The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
He's done a lot for veterans
He got help for people whose health was injured during the clean-up after the 9/11 attacks.
Advanced women's rights in the work place
Ended Don't Ask, Don't Tell (DADT) in our military
Stopped defending DOMA in court.
Passed the Hate Crimes bill.
Appointed two pro-choice women to the Supreme Court.
Expanded access to medical care and provided subsidies for people who can't afford it.
Expanded the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP)
He's killed Osama Bin Laden
Eliminated several other Al-Qaeda leaders
Obama has overhauled the food safety system
Ended the War in Iraq
Begun the drawdown of forces from Afghanistan
End-run Republican obstructionism by recess-appointing Richard Cordray to run the Consumer Financial Protection Board.

My best thank you to Obama is for his Health Care Reform Bill, preventing insurance companies from denying insurance because of a pre-existing condition..
Health Care Reform Bill, allowing children to remain covered by their parents' insurance until the age of 26
Tax cuts for up to 3.5 million small businesses to help pay for employee health care coverage
Added 4.6 billion USD to the Veterans Administration budget to recruit and retain more mental health professionals
Significantly increased funding for the Violence Against Women Act..
Eliminated subsidies to private lender middlemen of student loans and protect student borrowers.
Significantly expanded Pell grants, which help low-income students pay for college.

Signed New START Treaty - nuclear arms reduction pact with Russia
Launched recovery.gov to track spending from the Recovery Act, providing transparency and allowing the public to report fraud, waste, or abuse
Provided the Department of Veterans Affairs with more than $1.4 billion to improve services to America's Veterans
Signed the Children's Health Insurance Reauthorization Act, which provides health care to 11 million kids -- 4 million of whom were previously uninsured
Signed financial reform law prohibiting banks from engaging in proprietary trading (trading the bank's own money to turn a profit, often in conflict with their customers' interests)

Signed financial reform law allowing shareholders of publicly traded companies to vote on executive pay

Want more? Read from March/ April 2012
Obama's Top 50 Accomplishments
By Paul Glastris, Ryan Cooper, and Siyu Hu