Barack's Backers

Last week President Obama made the point that no one goes very far without the help of someone. He mentioned how a teacher might have helped them succeed, or a parent might have inspired them, he noted how we rely on infrastructure like roads and communication systems that are put in place by others, and he celebrated the great American system that has made so many success stories possible. Now, who could disagree with that?

Mitt Romney, of course. Sounding more like a John Birch Society member than a man running for President, Romney complained that Obama was a collectivist for not giving individuals their due. Romney griped that the President was insulting Americans, stating that successful people achieve everything on their own, and he made it clear that Americans shouldn’t give credit to anybody but themselves for their success.

Before you can say, “take the President’s words out of context and twist them,” Romney’s hit squad of ad men had crafted a small idea attack accusing the President of being un-American. Gotcha, right?

Not so fast. It turns out that Romney gave an almost identical speech at the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics. Ouch. It makes Romney look awful foolish… and hypocritical. Sometimes it seem like Mitt Romney doesn’t believe in anything at all.