Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum Get Into Heated Exchange About Health Care At GOP Debate

Former Governor Mitt Romney came under attack for his health care overhaul in Massachusetts during the last half of the first segment of Tuesday night's CNN debate. It was by far the toughest questioning he's faced from his fellow candidates during any of the nine debates that have occurred so far.

Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum opened the exchange by going after Romney, unprovoked. He said that Romney has "no credibility" in claiming that he wants to repeal President Obama's health plan, the Affordable Care Act, given that his Massachusetts legislation has been cited as the blueprint for it.

In response, Romney began to discuss what he wrote in his 2010 book, "No Apology," about Obama's health law. That caught the attention of another candidate, who seized on changes made to Romney's book between the hardcover and paperback versions.

"You took it out of your book," Texas Gov. Rick Perry interjected.

But Santorum didn't want to defer to Perry, and he kept attacking Romney.

"What you did is exactly what Barack Obama did," he said, adding that the law has "blown a hole in the budget" in Massachusetts.

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (Ga.) chimed in with what was perhaps a more nuanced criticism, at moderator Anderson Cooper's invitation. He said Romney's plan "is not Obamacare" but is "top-down" instead of "bottom-up."

"There’s a lot of big government behind Romneycare, not as much as Obamacare, but a heckuva lot more than your campaign is admitting," Gingrich said.

Romney shot back: "Actually, Newt, we got the idea of an individual mandate from you."

Gingrich admitted that he has supported the idea in the past, but contested the notion that he was the source for Romney's plan, pointing the finger at The Heritage Foundation, a leading conservative think tank.

Though dinged up from the exchange, Romney was feisty and aggressive in defending himself. Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) then chimed in and, in something of a life preserver for Romney, changed the subject to Obama's record on health care.

Yet the attacks by Santorum, in particular, show that the field has come to view Romney as the most formidable candidate in the race.

 

 

Comments

[DANIELISTICALL]

10:50 AM on 10/20/2011

When Romney was in the public sector, as governor of Massachusetts, his record on jobs creation was not much better. After he claimed during a GOP primary debate in 2008 that while he was governor, "we kept adding jobs every single month," Factcheck.org noted "that's just not true." Moreover, the political fact-vetting site reported: Romney's job record provides little to boast about. By the end of his four years in office, Massachusetts had squeezed out a net gain in payroll jobs of just 1 percent, compared with job growth of 5.3 percent for the nation as a whole.

[cheikp23]

09:31 AM on 10/20/2011

Republican Party: Pro-life, but for the Death Penalty and War. Tax the poor and make them fend for themselves. End Medicare and give seniors a voucher to buy insurance from a for profit insurance company. Give the social security fund to Wall St. to gamble with. If you can't afford health insurance and you get sick get your relatives or church to pay the bill for you, or ask the hospital or doctor to take care of you for nothing. Close the borders. If you can't educate your kids yourself, or you can't afford to feed them, don't have a family, but don't have an abortion and don't use contraception, and don't choose to be gay. Remember, the Republican party's priority is American Exceptionalism, which means there is no limit to how much is spent on Defense.

[madrediterra]

10:00 PM on 10/20/2011

... and always carry a chicken when you go out, in case you get hit by a bus and end up in a hospital.

[GunnyJ]

08:46 AM on 10/20/2011

The GOP does not matter to me because I do not matter to them.

[SocialD7]

08:45 AM on 10/20/2011

After all the arguing was said and done, Mitt brought out the most important fact; Massachusetts residents approve of the plan 3 to 1. Mitt why are you so ashamed of something that the people obvious like and why is the creation of Romneycare such a put down during these debates.

[slowuncle]

09:23 AM on 10/20/2011

he drank the koolaid

[Schoolgirl666]

08:35 AM on 10/20/2011

We all know what they're against.....anything Obama related.....But, what are they for? What is their healthcare plan? Everyone go to their church and pray for healing? What is it?

[Kate Zeiss]

08:28 AM on 10/20/2011

"Yet the attacks by Santorum, in particular, show that the field has come to view Romney as the most formidable candidate in the race."

That doesn't change the fact that "little Ricky" is the LEAST formidable candidate in the race . . . and that's sayin' something.

[ethiopia1a]

07:49 AM on 10/20/2011

Thought Perry was gonna pull out a gun when Mitt put his hand on him.

[aaronrossi]

08:05 AM on 10/20/2011

right!!! i was waiting for foam to come out of perry's mouth or smoke from his ears. it was hilarious to watch!

[madrediterra]

10:05 PM on 10/20/2011

Oh yeah! They've been incredibly boring for 30 years, following the 'never attack a fellow Republican' rule. Now it's like watching cannibals hunt.

[DougDeWitt]

06:41 AM on 10/20/2011

As the Republican Debate rages endlessly over who is best-qualified to repeal Obamacare, I'm reminded that the word itself represents a slur, the "N-word" for the Affordable Care Act that We, the People don't want repealed at all.

For the ACA has its flaws, to be certain... the "individual mandate" was a mistake in Mass., and was a mistake in the federal version as well. But it is also the framework for what can easily be molded into universal American-style, best-in-the-world health care for all.

We, the People, no longer wish to debate the morality of a level playing field for All Americans. We no longer wish to mete out health care based on its cost, but on its need. We no longer wish the government to tell us who is, and who is not eligible for benefits.

We are all in this together... we are One.

We will now insist that every American family be given a zero-deductible, zero-copayment Blue Cross and Blue Shield health insurance policy by one of its agents, the premiums financed up front by Wall Street Bankers. We will now insist that those premiums be repaid "off the top" on every American family's federal tax return, as in Earned Income Tax Credit. We will now insist that unlimited access to health care is the right of every American family.

http://americanprogressive.org/2011/08/28/a-social-capitalist-approach-to-health-care-delivery/

[kkdkdkdkdk]

06:29 AM on 10/20/2011

Boys you're like two cats tied by the tail and thrown over a clothes line. After they get through ripping and tearing one another, there won't be much left.

[stratego]

04:26 AM on 10/20/2011

Republican "debates" : The GOP version of illegal cockfighting.

[Kate Zeiss]

08:30 AM on 10/20/2011

Fighting cocks are smarter . . .

[JustABriefThought]

04:18 AM on 10/20/2011

So let me get this straight - the GOP-TP candidates are arguing over which one cares less about the health care of American citizens?

. . . and this is supposed to make me like one of them more than the other?

[stratego]

04:28 AM on 10/20/2011

Exactly. Shows how easily led they think we are.

[Kate Zeiss]

08:31 AM on 10/20/2011

Got it in one, Grammy . . . . F/F

[Lahonda]

03:36 AM on 10/20/2011

Romney's a flipper extraordinaire. In a past life he was a pinball machine.

[Francois Bergeron]

03:21 AM on 10/20/2011

Romney shot back: "Actually, Newt, we got the idea of an individual mandate from you."

These eedjits are fighting to see which one wins with the lesser heart.
Romney should be proud of trying to help his constituents with healthcare.
I cannot fathom the stupidity of these people.

[madrediterra]

10:09 PM on 10/20/2011

If you ever have the chance to watch one of these while visiting another country, take my advice - DON'T. It is painful to answer the 'why are they so stupid' questions.

[vinnieboiblue]

02:30 AM on 10/20/2011

When the Republicans don't like it cause a Democrat proposed it, they call it mandates. When a Republican proposes the same idea, they the Republicans call it "giving Americans the right to determine their own livelihoods and taking the decisions out of Washington's hands. When all is said and done, people don't have any say at all!

[koos458]

01:45 AM on 10/20/2011

What a freak show! Can't wait to see the convention.