House Speaker Thom Tillis and GOP presidential contender Mitt Romney have something in common besides party affiliation: they both deny reality in a way that’s positively Orwellian.
Let me explain, starting with Tillis, the Pride of Cornelius. He held another in his series of town hall meetings two days ago, this one in Hickory. Before the meeting, he got together with folks at the Hickory Record newspaper, where, once again, Tillis denied that cuts to the education budget enacted by the General Assembly have nothing to do with 1,853 public school teachers and teacher assistants being laid off, nor with the 4,000-plus teacher and TA positions that were eliminated.
Now, Tillis wants to — get this — hold hearings to determine why school superintendents cut teaching jobs. Hmm, Tom, was it maybe because you took a big slice out of their budgets? But here’s the kicker: according to the Hickory Record editors, Tillis indicated the problem could be that politics were involved in why teachers were canned, presumably in order to make the GOP look bad.
Huh?! It’s bad enough to not admit that cuts you directed in the legislature have cost thousands of teachers their jobs. But to come up with some cock-and-bull story about school superintendents laying off teachers to make you look bad is just, well, incredible — in every sense of the word, from “impossible to believe” and “far-fetched” to “astonishing” and “mind-boggling.”
Tillis’ hogwash about teacher layoffs is bad, but it pales before the “I’ll say absolutely anything to get elected” strategies of GOP presidential candidate Romney. The Robotic One has claimed that his tax plan would protect the middle class, but yesterday he took it even further on a Tampa TV news show, saying (with a straight face), “The policies I’ve put forward are tax cuts for the middle class. I’m proposing no tax cuts for the rich.”
To cut right to the chase, that’s a flat-out lie. As Think Progress points out, Romney’s tax plan “consists of $6.6 trillion in tax cuts, the vast majority going to the wealthy and corporations.” And those middle class tax cuts? You’ll only get them if you pile up capital gains, which most middle-class families do not have.
It’s one thing for a politician to stretch the truth, but it’s quite another for him to simply lie through his teeth and deny the reality that everyone around him can see. In Romney’s case, the more I see him, the more he seems like someone to whom his own words don’t even mean much, especially considering the conglomeration of flip-flops, misdirections and outright lies he’s been throwing around. Just thought you’d like to know.
This article appears in Nov 1-7, 2011.
I beleive that it is the School systems fault for cutting the teachers that they may have. If our state needs to cut expenses then the education system is not untouchable. We all ready spend more than we need to educate. Why do we need so much administration to look over the shoulders of the teacher. Cut out the admin. people who are pulling down the six figure incomes and you can keep more teachers.
This is just typical Liberal rhetoric as is all the rheteric by this left wing writer. Its funny how John Groome calls out Think Progress to be some kind of legitimate organization that reports facts when in reality they are a joke just like you are Mr. Groome. Have you seen NC’s education rating ? Maybe these teachers should have been cut out. We dont need more teachers we need better teachers.
It’s “Grooms,” genius.
Mitt Romney is one of the most honest men in America. I know his family. They are some of the finest people I have ever met. Just what part of being faithfully married to Ann for 40 YEARS! as a good father and grandfather bugs you?
The Obama Spin machine cites his change on Abortion and Gay Marraige. But this is misleading.
As a former Mormon Bishop and Stake President….Mitt Romney personally believes Abortion to be wrong except in cases where the Mother’s life is at stake or rape or incest. He is also opposed to homosexuality and believes it too is wrong. HOWEVER, Mormon’s believe in AGENCY or the FREEDOM TO CHOOSE, that it was given to man from God and he can use it to obey God or he can use it to sin. As God does not COMPEL his children to obey but allows their individual choice….I feel Mitt Romney feels Abortion and Gay Rights are MORAL issues which should NOT be LEGISLATED by the STATE.
IF you allow the State to LEGISLATE morality…then the State decides right and wrong, moral or immoral instead of the Commandments of God found in the Bible.
For example: If you take a cat to 1st grade in school for show and tell and one student asks if it is a boy or girl kitty and you do not know…..Can you have the kids take a vote on it to decide CORRECTLY?
This is what LEGISLATING MORALITY does.
What Mitt Romney is is HONEST and CAPABLE. He CAN help us balance our budget and turn our nation around.
REMEMBER that is what he has done for a living….he has purchases failing US businesses and cut out the waste and made them profitable again. Domino’s Pizza and Staples are two examples of his companies he started. Both are today going strong still employing American’s. Mitt can turn this around!