Romney Campaign and Republican Reactions to the First Presidential Debate

Romney for President
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10:32 p.m.

PAUL RYAN: MITT ROMNEY ARTICULATED HIS POSITIVE VISION FOR A BETTER AMERICA

Boston, MA – Vice Presidential nominee Paul Ryan made the following statement on tonight’s presidential debate:  

“Americans deserve a clear choice about what kind of future we’re going to have, and Governor Romney provided that contrast tonight.  Mitt won this debate by effectively articulating his positive vision for a better America and the specific solutions needed to achieve it. The President, meanwhile, offered only more of the same failed ideas that have left those in the middle class – as Joe Biden put it – ‘buried.’ As we continue to sharpen the focus on the big choice in this election, Americans will see that we cannot afford four more years like the last. We need a real recovery, and Mitt Romney can get the job done.”

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10:49 p.m.

SEN. MARCO RUBIO: TONIGHT, MITT ROMNEY OUTLINED HIS BOLD AGENDA

Boston, MA – Florida Senator Marco Rubio made the following statement on tonight’s presidential debate:  

“After watching tonight’s debate, the choice this November could not be clearer. A vote for Barack Obama is a vote for four more years of economic stagnation and weak foreign policy; as well as higher taxes, debt, and healthcare costs. A vote for Mitt Romney is a vote for real reforms that will bring a real recovery, including 12 million new jobs, tax relief for the middle class, better healthcare at lower costs, a balanced budget, and leadership for an American century. That’s the kind of bold agenda Americans expect and deserve – and that’s exactly what Mitt Romney outlined tonight.”

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11:19 p.m.


Boston, MA – Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell made the following statement on tonight’s presidential debate:  
 
“Mitt Romney’s debate performance tonight crystallized the choice voters face this November. When he is president, Romney’s Plan for a Stronger Middle Class will deliver more jobs and more take-home pay. He will also implement real healthcare reform, restore fiscal sanity, deliver tax cuts for middle-class Americans and ensure peace through strength around the globe. That’s a winning argument that will surely resonate with the millions of Americans who know they can’t afford another four years like the last four years.”

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11:40 p.m.

SEN. KELLY AYOTTE: A MITT ROMNEY PRESIDENCY WILL FOSTER UPWARD MOBILITY

Boston, MA – New Hampshire Senator Kelly Ayotte made the following statement on tonight’s presidential debate:  

“Mitt Romney’s confident, articulate performance tonight laid out the big choice this November in the clearest terms yet. President Obama has an abysmal record and no second-term agenda – meaning voters can only expect another four years of job-killing policies, budget-busting spending, and government-centered health care funded by our hard-earned tax dollars if he is re-elected. A Mitt Romney presidency, on the other hand, will foster upward mobility and success by championing job creation, implementing market-based health care reforms, reining in federal spending, cutting taxes for middle-class families, and protecting American interests abroad.”

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11:55 p.m.

RUDY GIULIANI: A CLEAR WIN FOR MITT ROMNEY TONIGHT

Boston, MA – Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani made the following statement on tonight’s presidential debate:  

“Mitt Romney came away with a clear win tonight. That he was successful in communicating his message of a real recovery in a debate against one of the best orators in a generation speaks not only to Gov. Romney’s preparation, but also to the veracity of his argument. The choice voters face this November is between another four years of economic stagnation that fosters government dependency versus an agenda based on free enterprise that will create 12 million jobs, jumpstart our economy, and restore an opportunity society that fosters success and wealth for all Americans.”

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12:10 p.m.


Boston, MA – Ohio Senator Rob Portman made the following statement on tonight’s presidential debate:  
 
“Mitt Romney was the clear winner of tonight’s debate. The pro-growth policies he discussed stand in stark contrast to President Obama’s failed policies. During the last four years in the Obama economy, middle-class families have struggled with less take-home pay, higher health care costs, unemployment above 8 percent for 43 months in a row, and sky-high debt that our children and grandchildren will have to pay. There’s no doubt we can’t afford another four years of President Obama’s failed policies, and Mitt Romney presented himself as a clear alternative with the plan and the experience to get our country back on track.”

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12:23 p.m.


Boston, MA – New Jersey Governor Chris Christie made the following statement on tonight’s presidential debate:  
 
“Mitt Romney was the clear winner tonight. He talked about his record of bringing people together to solve problems and his plan to create jobs and foster economic opportunity for all Americans. President Obama, on the other hand, was unable to articulate any plan for the future except another four years of the same failed, tax-hiking, government-growing policies that have resulted in 23 million Americans struggling for work, 47 million Americans on food stamps, and countless struggling small businesses. The candidates presented two very different visions for our country's future, and it's clear Mitt Romney is the one who will bring the real recovery Americans need.” 

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Republican National Committee
October 5, 2012

MEMO

FROM: RNC Communications Director Sean Spicer @SeanSpicer

TO: Interested Parties

RE: Weekend Messaging Memo - Why Romney Won



I don't have to tell you Mitt Romney won Wednesday's debate. Reporters and commentators across this country have done that job. But let's reflect on exactly why Gov. Romney won--and why President Obama lost.

Governor Romney won because he was strong, substantive, and specific.

Gov. Romney began the debate by highlighting the most obvious difference between him and President Obama: the governor has a plan.

He outlined a clear plan for job creation, which is also highlighted in a new ad released Thursday by the Romney campaign.

He discussed his plans for North American energy independence, for tax reform (including middle class tax relief), for saving Medicare, for making trade work for America, for reducing the deficit, for improving education, for smarter regulations, for improving Medicaid, and much more. Throughout, he offered stats and specifics--while holding the president accountable for his record on the respective issues.

He made clear the choice voters face in November. With Gov. Romney, we have a plan for real recovery. With President Obama, we'll get four more years like the last four years.

It is a choice between policies based on the belief that greatness comes from free people and free enterprise and President Obama's policies of trickle-down government.

Those trickle-down government policies of the last four years have buried the middle class--a fact even the vice president admitted this week and was again made clear by this morning's jobs report.

Governor Romney has a plan and a vision for a better future, and unlike President Obama, he is able to point to a record of success and accomplishment to prove he can get the job done.

President Obama lost because he was defenseless, distorting, and dispassionate.

Debating is difficult when you have nothing to run on. While Gov. Romney brought facts, President Obama offered only empty rhetoric--and of course, higher taxes.

He distorted his record and the policies of Gov. Romney on a range of topics:

He falsely claimed he has a "specific $4 trillion deficit reduction plan."
He claimed he wants to go back to Clinton tax rates, even though Obamacare means Americans will pay more.
He said the Romney plan raises taxes on the middle class, even as Gov. Romney explicitly said he would do no such thing.
He said health premiums are becoming more affordable, contrary to the reality facing most families.
He said Gov. Romney wants a $5 trillion tax cut, which even his campaign has admitted is false.
He claimed his plan is balanced like Simpson-Bowles, which it's not.
He said he made adjustments to Simpson-Bowles for his plan, which Simpson and Bowles would deny.
He bragged about war savings, which has been called "fiscal fiction."
He called Social Security "structurally sound," but the CBO disagrees.
For the full fact-check run down, see our research piece.

The only policy proposal the president offered (repeatedly) is higher taxes. But these taxes are estimated to cost America 710,000 jobs. So much for "Forward."

Four years ago, President Obama said he knew the challenges facing the country and that he had the solutions to our problems. He's had four years in office, but the problems persist. If he had the solutions, there was nothing standing in his way to implement them. Democrats controlled all of Congress for two years and the Senate for all four.

His policies were the problem. And that's why he found himself, four years later, defenseless on a debate stage. He has no record to run on, and he has no credible excuse. Hope and change have been buried along with the middle class.

P.S. Don't miss our post-debate web video, "Smirk."

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Republican Jewish Coalition

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                               
Contact: Shari Hillman