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Romney's Ridiculous Hyperbole

He predicts more change in the next 10 years than in the last 1,000. Not likely.

 

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Summary
Romney says in a TV ad that the U.S. will see more change in the next 10 years "than in the last 10 centuries." More than since the Dark Ages? More changes than the advent of the printing press, railroads, constitutional democracy, penicillin, electricity, telecommunications and the Internet all put together? We don't think so.

A Romney spokesman said he didn't mean what he said as fact, calling the statement "a metaphor." We call it a ludicrous exaggeration.

Analysis
Romney announced the 30-second spot Jan. 1 and said it would run in New Hampshire.

1,000 years of progress?
The ad features Romney talking straight to the camera, exuding confidence and optimism and saying "I'm ready" to "unleash the promise and innovation of the American people." We have no quarrel with that; any candidate is entitled to lay out goals.

But Romney goes over the top when he predicts that "in the next 10 years, we'll see more progress, more change than the world has seen in the last 10 centuries."

Lacking a crystal ball or time machine, we can't predict the future. But based on available evidence we judge Romney's claim to be so far beyond the usual bounds of campaign exaggeration as to be worthy of ridicule.

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Member Comments

  • Posted By: Dare270 @ 01/10/2008 5:12:07 PM

    It's there job to write stuff like this they get paid for it, dumbass.

  • Posted By: JayZee @ 01/05/2008 8:38:26 PM

    I wish the Newsweek editors would at least try to "get a life". Do they really have nothing to do of any importance with their time than to try to make a Volcano our of a matchstick in their astute judgement
    that the next ten years are not going to be see greater progress than the last 1,000 years! If they weren't
    serious I would think it was funny. However, these people really believe that their sophmoric comments are going to impact public opinion other than those with an IQ equal to a rock.
    Too funny!!

  • Posted By: Vic Lundquist @ 01/05/2008 8:05:36 PM

    Dr. Doug: You asked for a photo of Gov. Romney with his hair askew. Please give me your phone number so I can call you to collect. Here are 4 photos:

    http://confessionsofapoliticaljunkie.blogspot.com/2007/11/how-often-do-candidates-do-stuff-like.html

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