Mitt Romney is digging in on President Obama’s “you didn’t built that” line, preparing to use the quote as the basis of several attacks for the long haul.
Earlier this week, Romney acknowledged charges that his campaign used the quote to mislead voters about the president’s real position on small business owners, but doubled down on the attack as a whole by saying the quote is actually worse when considered in its full context.
Democrats and the Obama campaign are right there with them, releasing their own ads and preparing a major blitz to push back on the Republican attacks.
“You didn’t build that” is going to haunt the campaign for the near term. Here’s a quick look at the battle lines:
Republicans
⢠On Wednesday, the Romney campaign announced 24 events with small-business owners across the country centered on its new “we did build this!” slogan it debuted in California Monday.
⢠Meanwhile, the RNC released a web video based on the new Republican argument that the full context of “you didn’t build that” is worse than the out-of-context clip they’ve been using up to now:
American Crossroads, the super PAC co-founded by Karl Rove, took the original route in its new web video, focusing on the “you didn’t build that” as a gaffe rather than presenting it in context.
⢠Republicans are pointing to Obama’s latest TV ad — which directly refutes the “you didn’t build that” attack — and saying it shows Democrats are worried that the line has gained traction.
“I think that there’s definitely a little bit of panic in Chicago right now because they realize this comment clearly struck a chord with the American people,” RNC spokesperson Sean Spicer told CNN Wednesday morning.
Democrats
⢠Late Tuesday night, the DNC announced a plan to push back on “you didn’t build that” with its own grassroots events across the country. The DNC plan calls for highlighting Romney’s record in Massachusetts and at Bain Capital, and suggesting that Romney is the true candidate standing in the way of small business growth.
⢠Obama once again stepped into the fray at a fundraiser in Hunts Point, Wash., Tuesday night. For the second time in as many days, Obama called out the GOP and Romney over the continuing “you didn’t build that” attack.
“I have to tell you, I generally have patience with what the other side says about me, that’s a requirement of this job. And if you don’t like folks talking about you, you probably shouldn’t run for president,” Obama told fundraiser guests. “The one thing I do have no patience for is this argument that somehow what I’m criticizing is success. That’s an argument you hear from the other side, ‘Oh, he wants to punish success.’ I want to promote success.”
⢠Democrats insist their new focus on “you didn’t build that” is less about panic and shutting down Romney than about building the Obama message. That suggests Democrats, too, may have a vested interest in keeping the quote at the center of the campaign.
“I was concerned when I saw the initial [Romney] ad that it might be impactful,” Obama campaign strategist David Axelrod told MSNBC Wednesday. “I’ve concluded that it’s not all that impactful. But the ad that we did in response got a very good response in the testing that we did. Because it pushes our message forward.”
