Katrina vanden Heuvel: How Romney’s extreme policies insult us all

Washington Post ^ | October 15, 2012 | By Katrina vanden Heuvel

[Oldeconomybuyer]

At first glance, it might seem as if Mitt Romney’s path — from voting in the 1992 Democratic presidential primary to being the 2012 Republican presidential nominee — was linear. But over the past, winding, 20 years, Romney has held every possible view on every possible issue — often at the same time. When it comes to policy, he’s been downright promiscuous.

Jolted with a fresh shot of post-debate energy, Romney is just doing more of what he’s always done — whatever it takes to get elected. This comes naturally because he is, fundamentally, a cipher. The only thing he believes is whatever is politically expedient in that given moment. And right now, he needs to be a hard-liner to get the GOP base to the polls — and a moderate to appeal to those last few independent voters.

His solution is to sign on to the fanatical policies of the extreme right, and then duck and cover to confuse independents about where he really stands.

Enough is enough. Romney’s campaign has made for great “Daily Show” segments. But we’re three weeks away from determining the next leader of the United States. And at this point, Romney is just insulting Americans — our intelligence, our values, our democracy — with the campaign he is running. Tuesday’s town hall debate is an opportunity for voters — and President Obama — to articulate the real consequences that Romney’s real policies will have on real people’s lives. So let’s hope that, at the debate, voters will finally demand that Romney get real.

[Republican Wildcat]

No, it of course doesn’t look different at all. She said exactly what I said she said. She accused Romney of being a communist dictator that wants to take away her right to vote and that Obama would at least allow her to keep it.