The tone of a new ad from Priorities USA, a Democratic superPACs, is raising the eyebrows of more than a few people in D.C. and across the country.
The ad, titled "Understands" focuses on Joe Soptic, a former steelworker from Kansas City, discussing the hardships that fell on his family after he says a plant that employed him closed because of Mitt Romney and Bain Capital.
“I don’t think Mitt Romney understands what he’s done to people’s lives by closing the plant. I don’t think he realizes that people’s lives completely changed. When Mitt Romney and Bain closed the plant, I lost my healthcare, and my family lost their healthcare. And a short time after that my wife became ill. I don’t know how long she was sick and I think maybe she didn’t say anything because she knew that we couldn’t afford the insurance, and then one day she became ill and I took her up to the Jackson County Hospital and admitted her for pneumonia and that’s when they found the cancer and by then it was stage four. It was, there was nothing they could do for her. And she passed away in 22 days. I do not think Mitt Romney realizes what he’s done to anyone, and furthermore I do not think Mitt Romney is concerned.”
The Hill's Brent Budowsky calls the ad both "sickening" and "despicable" and says the Obama administration should ask Priorities to pull the ad, and the Washington Post's Nia Malika-Henderson digs further into Soptic's story.
Watch the ad and the Morning Joe discussion and tell us if you think it goes too far.
Leave a Comment:
Doesn't go far enough!
The point of the ad is the harsh fact that people who have their jobs along with health insurance taken away pay a great price. Nobody is accountable. This ad is stressing the realities of outsourcing and offshoring American jobs. If a company does closes a company in order to follow cheap labor, they should know exactly what they are doing. Morning Joe is missing the point.
Mrs. Soptic died because without Health insurance from the employer she was economically fearful of getting treatment. Mrs. Romney has been able to get the very best reatment that unlimited economic resources could buy because Mitt Romney made $9 million when he shut down the business that was the source of healthcare insurance for Mrs. Soptic and many others. The ACA would have prevented this family tagedy. In Massachusetts, Romneycare would have prevented this family tragedy. Willard is running for president to repeal the ACA and create more tragedies. Not getting my vote. Run the ad. Prevent more votes for Willard.
I am really disturbed by Morning Joe's coverage of this and the Romney tax issue. Romney doesn't have to release his taxes but Obama had to release his birth certificate? Really? Now people have to apologize for an ad that shows the impact of Bain business practices on working families? It is as if the MSNBC Morning Joe Show were given direction from somewhere to spend the last two days attacking this ad and not addressing the issues the ad raises. Meanwhile the Romney campaign can put out blatantly false ads all day long and nobody calls them on it. The White House and every progressive needs to stop running from the cold hard truth. The reality is when people lose their jobs in this country they are in danger of losing their health care and going bankrupt. Period. This is what the affordable Health Care Act is attempting to address. And surprise surprise when people lose their health insurance they can't afford to see a doctor, get sick and often die unnecessarily. What a revelation! Even a Romney spokesperson said so on FOX realizing that the Romney Massachusetts plan would have helped the person spotlighted! This Ad sheds light on Bain Capital and Mitt Romney's business practices and his world view of outsourcing and downsizing. More importantly, it sheds light on how he would run the country. Implementing these types of business practices may make a few people rich but these policies have real consequences on real people's lives. If seeing the testimony of real people telling their story offends the sensibilities of media commentators then too bad. They lives of millions of Americans are at stake so we deserve better from MSNBC and Mornig Joe.
Joe is only "outraged" when Democrats play political hardball, Republicans - who fabricate lies on a daily basis - are given a free pass
President Obama has received hundreds (perhaps thousands) of outrageous right-wing extremist (some racist) criticisims the past 4 years. Willard can handle it.
LOL, Mitt the Twit doesn't have an original bone in his body. As Governor, his track record proved that reality over and over. Mitt is all about making the RICH richer and doesn't give a rats behind about the middle class in this country. This is a man who is clueless about putting "Country FIRST" and not your lining your pockets or outsourcing jobs to foreign countries and stock-piling millions and millions in Swiss and Caymen Island bank accounts to avoid paying taxes!!!! What a joke.
HypoMitt can't handle ANYTHING! Everything is off limits for Mitt because he's so scared to address it! He refuses to talk about his religion, his personal life, his business, his taxes, his tax plan, his policies, his health plan, his term as governor, his overseas accounts, his time at Bain, his shipping of American jobs overseas, his time at school, his time in France avoiding the Viet Nam war and of course he takes multiple stands on EVERY SINGLE ISSUE. What we do know is that when he goes to foreign countries he makes a total and complete fool of himself in a matter of hours over and over again. Just like he does here in America. I mean what kind of a guy doesn't know what a doughnut or a bucket is?
Who is this guy? He's scared to death that if we find out anything about him we will find out exactly what kind of a loser he really is! We know less about him than we knew about Bush and Cheney. The guy's a total whimp.
I agree with Bill Weeden, it doesn't go far enough. Romney and his staffers are so over the deep end, all they seem to do is use "snippets" from other peoples speeches, policies, etc.,and twists them into LIES of distortions.
The Romney camp NEVER has one original answers on how to SOLVE any of the issues we are facing in this country. Romney can't seem to answer/respond or come up with any political or foreign resolutions on HIS OWN, that's because he doesn't have a clue, bottom line. Mitt Romney proved what a twit he was on his recent trip to Europe and the Middle East. I just want to jack slap all his staffers because they too pose a serious problem for Mitt Romney.
He is not saying Mitt killed his wife, he is saying Mitt doesn't care about working people whom made him money and still wanted more and got it! Open your eyes.
It is not outrageous, it's a fact Mitt doesn't care. Does it hurt you to watch this, too bad. Look how Mitt has hurt so many middle class. Do you care about them, Joe? Mikka, I am surprised at you!
What is good for the goose is good for the gander...I can't believe some of these commentators..dogged this President for the last 3 years and non of them from their side cared one bit to come out against some of the foolishness. He does not care adn they know it and now they all seem so disturbed by it. PLuuuuhhhzzzzzeeee.
Joe, why don't you and Romney move to Venezuala? There's probably lots of cheap labor there and probably no social security or medicare. Come to think of it, do you know for sure that Romeny doesn't have financial interests in Venezuala?.
Poor Romney. Wonder how long it took him to pay off HIS school loans? You keep referring to him as a from-the-bottom-up rich guy who did it all on his own. Really?
Where's the patriotism in destroying American companies, sending jobs out of the country and hiding iincome to avoid taxes?
Do we hate in order to promote love? Do we need more falsehoods, disquised as compassion? Do we need a political system, that perfers to spread the "heat" of propaganda, than telling its people the light of truth? When the game of politics allows us to tell ourselves lies, for power and position..it has given up good government, for power politics. And if we accept with ease, men without conscience of character..as those who represent us, what does that say about who we are? Politics without principle, is today's very deadly sin!
Today it really felt like I watching Fox News. How can you attack Obama but allow the Romney attack machine to spit out lie after lie without anyone calling them out. Call a spade a spade. I see now that Morning Joe is Fox and Friends 2.0. Mika you have to stand up for the truth. We all know what Joe Scarborough stand for
According to the discussion on Morning Joe, this ad has not atually run. Why on earth, Joe, if it is so dispicable, do you give it free air time and promote it when the group that made the commercial is neither running nor promoting it? Could it be that it just gives you one more thing to use in the daily rants against Obama?
I am conservative and watch Fox News, MSNBC, and CNN. You grew in my respect and gained credibility by detailing the actual facts of this ad. You are a liberal and I am a conservative, but I will listen to your opinions in the future with the belief you have honorable intensions.
I sometimes watch this show for a few days and then I stop because its often no better than fox. This morning was a good example. Gibbs tried to say, when Joe wasn't talking over him, that Romney himself, not a PAC, has a Network ad out that flat out lies about Obama. Joe , the guy who's paid to be up to date on this stuff, says," I haven't seen it." So Gibbs says" Lets play it" ( like they did the PAC created internet ad that Joe was all in snit about) NO Joe, the mighty says, he doesn't want to play that one, or talk about it. Back to Obama bashing.
THis show had Cantor on the other week and I counted 5 lies about the ACA in two minutes..they all just sit there and nod......have Christy on (who Mika keeps a running tweet with during the show) or Walker or Ryan and its a respectful almost fawning interview. The other week they had a GOP congressman on, forget who, who said that Obama has done nothing to promote jobs....Howard Dean asked about Obamas jobs bill, you know the one he presented to Congress in a joint session during prime time..this gop congressman surely knows what this is and knows the gop wouldn't pass it. Joe, you remember, the guy who's paid to keep up with this stuff ACTUALLY LOOKED BEWILDERED AND ASKED THE GOP CONGRESSMAN " Does Obama have a jobs bill???" and the gop congressman smirked. waved his hand dismissively and said "Oh he sent a little list of things to do" and Joe said ...wait for it......"oh". End of discussion.
If it didn't happen in 1995 Joe has no idea what they are talking about.
Although I am registered as an Independent, I would consider myself a Clinton Democrat. I do not typically watch political programs, but I have to admit I do enjoy Morning Joe because of it "bipartisan" attitude. Today, however, I feel Joe Scarborough did beat up Gibbs about the PAC ad - not Obama ad- about the woman who was laid off because of the Bain takeover. Mr. Scarborough was over the top this morning, and not a very gracious host. I wish the topic could have gone to the heart of the issue - universal health care. I wonder where the woman would be now if the United States had a health care similar to Canada? I think I will listen to the second hour of NPR with my coffee instead of turning on the TV. I will miss you Mika.
I agree with many of you. These people cannot see beyond the politics and the campaign to see this man's pain. I get it because if I lose my job I could end up like his wife. If some of these people on this show were ever in this situation or fears facing it they would understand too. But fortunately for them they are not; but have some compassion, please, for people who are afraid and suffering, Mika, and Joe! When I saw the ad I could relate and the sad part is that millions of people do. Why not talk about the bad things that happened? Why should this campaign try to lie and soften what happens to people when corporations make these decisions? Isn't that being untruthful too. Do they even have any concern for this man's wife? WHAT IS the LOW BLOW IS THE CONVERSATION I AM HEARING ON THE MORNING JOE SHOW!! THEY HAVE NO HEART!!!! If I lose my job and my healthcare I have an illness that I could die from. I get it!!
love the romney spokesperson ANDREA SAUL response....LOL
on Fox News this morning (Wed 8/8/12), Romney spokeswoman Andrea Saul went "off-script," and amid a larger declaration about the ad being despicable and somepushback on the facts of the ad, she offered this statement in Romney's defense: "To that point, if people had been in Massachusetts, under Governor Romney's health care plan, they would have had health care."
I don't think Mr. Soptic went far enough...If Gov. Romney had not sold the company, Mr. Soptic would been employed and had health insurance for his wife. It doesn't matter if the company had been sold by Bain Captal 20 years before she died. Mr. Soptic would have been gainfully employed and not working as a janitor earning half the salary he earned before Bain Capital closed the company after receiving over 9 million dollars in profits. Because Gov. Romney closed the company down had a ripple affect, he lost his insurance, his wife no longer had insurance therefore she couldn't receive the proper care she needed...Mr. Soptic would have worked for that company for @ least 30 or 40 years more.
I had vowed recently that I would stop watching Morning Joe like all of my friends and family have. Morning Joe is pro Mitt Romney and anti- Obama. Are they so dumb that they can't understand if Mr. Soptic had not lost his job he and his wife would have had insurance and she could have received the help she needed to get well. My advice about watching Morning Joe on MSNBC you might as well watch Fox and Friends @ least you know when you turn to Fox that they openly hates President Obama. I hope MSNBC will replace Morning Joe with a program that deals with facts and not assumption. We need to start a petition, boycott Morning Joe's sponsors because we are tired of watching them anihlate Preside Obama. They speaks negative of everything the Democractic Party does. Most of the people I know watches Early Start on CNN or C-Span...thats what I'm going to do...too...
Morning Joe should be on Fox News and not on MSNBC! I don't see him being outrage about all Mitt Romney lies he put out there in his advertisement about the President of the United States! This Joe guy should pack his stuff and move to Fox news.
And that Mikka lady.....I don't know if she is scare of Joe Scarborough or not. Is she a Democrat or a Republican in disguise? She can't even debate Joe on the show. Both Mikka and Joe should be working for Fox News. Look at Mitt Romney's advert on Welfare about the President. What is Mikka and Joe saying about it? Are they outrage about it?
I agree. I don't know what Mika's role on the show is. She writes a book telling women to be strong and sits there every morning acting weak. Joe barley let's her talk. Mika is hardly a good role model for how women should act in business. This morning it looked like she was outraged to gain Joe's approval. She also allows Joe to make false arguments daily. I'm about ready to stop watching the show
I agree with many of you. These people cannot see beyond the politics and the campaign to see this man's pain. I get it because if I lose my job I could end up like his wife. If some of these people on this show were ever in this situation or fears facing it they would understand too. But fortunately for them they are not; but have some compassion, please, for people who are afraid and suffering, Mika, and Joe! When I saw the ad I could relate and the sad part is that millions of people do. Why not talk about the bad things that happened? Why should this campaign try to lie and soften what happens to people when corporations make these decisions? Isn't that being untruthful too. Do they even have any concern for this man's wife? WHAT IS the LOW BLOW IS THE CONVERSATION I AM HEARING ON THE MORNING JOE SHOW!! THEY HAVE NO HEART!!!! If I lose my job and my healthcare I have an illness that I could die from. I get it!!
oh eye cee...when a democrat group does it, it's just ever-so-horrible...despicable...deplorable...sniffle,sniffle,cry,cry,cry. but when a republican group does it, it's...what?
if memory serves, was not another presidential candidate once accused of "murder?" why don't i remember a lot of boo-hooing in THAT case?
William R.
"Willie" Horton
(born August 12, 1951) is an American convicted felon who,
while serving a life sentence for murder, without
the possibility of parole,
was the beneficiary of a Massachusetts weekend furlough program. He did
not return from his furlough, and ultimately he committed assault, armed robbery
and rape.
Republicans picked up the Horton issue after Dukakis clinched the nomination.
In June 1988, Republican candidate George H.W.
Bush seized on the Horton case, bringing it up repeatedly in
campaign speeches.[7]
Bush's campaign manager, Lee Atwater, predicted that "by the time
this election is over, Willie Horton will be a household name." Beginning
on September 21, 1988, the Americans for Bush arm of the National Security Political Action Committee (NSPAC), under
the auspices of Floyd Brown, began running a campaign ad entitled "Weekend
Passes", using the Horton case to attack Dukakis. The ad was produced by
media consultant Larry McCarthy, who had previously worked for Roger Ailes.
After clearing the ad with television stations, McCarthy added a menacing
mug shot of Horton, who is African
American. The ad was run as an independent expenditure, separate from the
Bush campaign, which claimed not to have had any role in its production.[
Democratic Presidential
candidate Michael Dukakis was the governor of Massachusetts
at the time of Horton's release, and while he did not start the furlough
program, he had supported it as a method of criminal rehabilitation. The State inmate furlough
program was actually signed into law by Republican Governor Francis W. Sargent in 1972.
Joe,
Soptic story is true and even CNN had him on and he was stong on how he felt!
And Romney+staff, not just Andrea are talking about his Healthcare! she is just taking the heat because of the early morn Fox trot. Romney spoke about it before and later in day at stops and he has to say something? if he is to repeal it?whats he do with the now insured? remove them?
Now on Newt, how do you not even question facts that he had to walkback last night that he could not prove! what Romney says and has him out there defending?
John is the only one!
It's not the commercials from the PACS it's the media who are not doing their jobs with the person's you have on, you allow to spin.
You muck it all up that to allow a blowhard like Newt just talking nonsense, and then have Senor there like a bodyguard?in case he goes off rail like he did "Saul Alinsky?", left wing radical,Obama rants....Both campaigns are taking what you allow them.
If issue's matter than why not talk about them with some sort of facts that get thru!
Where are Romney Pac people on cable having questions asked of them? why no disclosure's on their part? where is the outrage on what they run? out and out lies? but you take a person's point of view and treat it like a outrage?
My first vote was for Anderson in 1980 so I am not affilated and I will not vote for Romney, I would vote for Obama again, before a liar like Romney. Tax returns do matter, when you are a picture of what's wrong in our system that has been gamed by Romney and other's like him. Tax havens are not standard deductions or loopholds they are to evade tax liabilty and they have morph these last 30 yrs to avoid taxes not only here but worldwide countries are feeling the effects
You so use to Dems being marshmallows and the minute they
start acting like republicans you get bend out of shape, We are not going back
to being yellow belly pushovers. We don’t care how this affects the White House
“brand”. So deal with it
I agree with the many of you who have stated that the point of the ad is to express the pain and suffering of folks who have lost their jobs and health care due to private equity companies like Bain who's purpose is not to create jobs but make money for their investors. The point is that Romney was instrumental in creating the “structure” under which the workers lost their jobs.
On another point, Joe you have to stop interrupting Mika. It is painful to watch and and not very respectful toward her. You will be loosing a lot of your female audience if you continue to do this. This morning you were out of control and rude toward her and this sort of behavior is happening far to often lately.
Cap'n,
i would normally agree with you about joe and mika, but i've finally just recently learned that this is a routine vaudeville act they've been perfecting for many years now, starting during their radio days, and not likely to change. mika's a willing participant and her "distressful mugging for the camera" when joe "treats her bad" is just that...mugging. (an act for which they each get to laugh all the way to the bank.) notwithstanding, their cage fights DO get tedious as well as boring at times, not to mention hard on the ears. but no worries...after the election, they'll quiet down again when joe goes back to being the little ole RINO he really is. ;)
I have become increasing more frustrated with the "Joe Scarborough Show" (what is Mika's role?) This morning's show was, with little exception, a Mitt Romney promo. To accept the unchallenged position taken by the show this morning you have to accept 1) Mr Romney, the sole shareholder and CEO of Bain had absolutely nothing to do with the layoffs @ Mr Soptic's company 2) there is no connection between the loss of medical coverage and medical care 3) As a result of the lack of medical care, there was no timely diagnosis and 4) Mrs Soptic died. I would think that Mika could connect the dots. Where is the lie? No one said that Mitt killed Mrs Soptic. There are merely inferences that there is a causal connection. I agree.
This is a matter that relates to the healthcare debate. It appears that all panelist think that the story regarding the (in)famous picture of the Bain (we are rich) now puts things in perspective and Mitt should be proud of the photo.
Finally,I watch with disdain as the crew listened to Newt "the truth" distort and spin with little challenge. When was the last time Joe allowed someone with a different perspective to utter 2 complete sentences without interrupting. This show was one of the worst in a series of recent pitiful performances. Since the show has taken a clear right of center positon lately, perhaps you should adopt the "Fair and Balanced" slogan.