Politicsmitt-romney-videoElizabeth WarrenPolitics

Scott Brown: Mitt Romney's '47 Percent' Comments Are 'Not The Way I View The World'

Scott Brown Distances Himself From Mitt Romney's '47 Percent' Comments
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Politics reporter, The Huffington Post

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U.S. Sen. Scott Brown, R-Mass., addresses an audience during a meeting of the South Shore Chamber of Commerce, in Randolph, Mass., Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2012. The Massachusetts Republican said he's trying to keep taxes low to help businesses grow, while portraying Democratic challenger Elizabeth Warren as a "jobs destroyer" who favors a heavier tax burden. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.) sought to distance himself Tuesday from Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney's controversial comments that 47 percent of Americans back President Barack Obama because they are dependent on government and "believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing."

"That’s not the way I view the world," Brown said in an email to The Hill. "As someone who grew up in tough circumstances, I know that being on public assistance is not a spot that anyone wants to be in. Too many people today who want to work are being forced into public assistance for lack of jobs."

Brown has endorsed Romney's presidential run, but he is locked in a tight race with Democratic challenger Elizabeth Warren and has repeatedly tried to cast himself as an independent. He joins Linda McMahon, the GOP Senate nominee in Connecticut, and Rep. Allen West (R-Fla.) in speaking out against Romney's statements, made during a closed-door fundraiser.

Brown's rejection of Romney's comments comes in spite of the fact that Eric Fehrnstrom serves as a top adviser to both Brown and Romney.

Since the videos surfaced, Romney has called his words "not elegantly stated' but stood by his overall point.

"We were of course talking about a campaign and about how [Obama's] going to get half the vote," Romney said in an interview with Fox News. "And frankly we have two very different views of America."

"Those that are dependent on government and those that think government’s job is to redistribute -- I’m not going to get them," he added later.

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Before You Go

Conservatives React To Leaked Romney Video
Scott Brown(01 of12)
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"That's not the way I view the world. As someone who grew up in tough circumstances, I know that being on public assistance is not a spot that anyone wants to be in. Too many people today who want to work are being forced into public assistance for lack of jobs," Scott said in an email to The Hill. (credit:AP)
Paul Ryan(02 of12)
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"He was obviously inarticulate in making this point," Ryan said during an interview with a Nevada television station. (credit:AP)
Rush Limbaugh(03 of12)
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"This could be the opportunity for Romney, and for that campaign, to finally take the gloves off and take the fear off and just start explaining conservatism, start explaining liberty to people and what it means," Limbaugh said Tuesday. "And explain that they don't need to be in that 47 percent. There's no reason for them, for everybody to be -- essentially having given up on their future in this country. There's no reason for it. This is, to me, such an opportunity to espouse conservatism." (credit:AP)
Allen West(04 of12)
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"Mitt Romney probably could have better explained himself. I think he was a little clumsy in doing this," West said on Fox News. (credit:AP)
David Brooks(05 of12)
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"Sure, there are some government programs that cultivate patterns of dependency in some people. I'd put federal disability payments and unemployment insurance in this category. But, as a description of America today, Romney's comment is a country-club fantasy. It's what self-satisfied millionaires say to each other. It reinforces every negative view people have about Romney," Brooks wrote. "He's running a depressingly inept presidential campaign. Mr. Romney, your entitlement reform ideas are essential, but when will the incompetence stop?" (credit:AP)
Bill Kristol(06 of12)
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"It remains important for the country that Romney wins in November (unless he chooses to step down and we get the Ryan-Rubio ticket we deserve!). But that shouldn't blind us to the fact that Romney's comments, like those of Obama four years ago, are stupid and arrogant," Kristol wrote. (credit:Getty Images)
Donald Trump(07 of12)
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"He has to not apologize, because we've seen enough apologizing already, and he cannot apologize," Trump said on NBC News. "What he said is probably what he means."Trump also said that Romney's words were "inartfully stated." (credit:AP)
Erick Erickson(08 of12)
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"The Romney campaign should double down on what he said. They should own it. The trouble for the left and media (but I repeat myself) is that most Americans agree with Mitt Romney. Most Americans consider themselves part of the 53% and it is not a winning proposition for Barack Obama to convince Americans they are less than they think they are when most Americans already recognize he has made them less than they were," Erickson wrote in a blog post on RedState.com. (credit:AP)
Chris Christie(09 of12)
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"[Romney] believes that every American has got to have skin in the game...he doesn't want what the president wants," Christie said on Fox News, adding that Romney wants to "empower individuals...and that's what he's really talking about." (credit:AP)
Laura Ingraham(10 of12)
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"The idea that you're declaring, 'Well, the race is over. Mitt Romney doesn't care about people,'" Ingraham said on Fox News. "Meanwhile, you have a president whose policies have undermined the 47 percent. ... I'm very pumped up about this. I think it's ridiculous that people are seizing on it and that we're even giving all that much airtime to it, frankly." (credit:AP)
Linda McMahon(11 of12)
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"I disagree with Governor Romney's insinuation that 47% of Americans believe they are victims who must depend on the government for their care. I know that the vast majority of those who rely on government are not in that situation because they want to be. People today are struggling because the government has failed to keep America competitive, failed to support job creators, and failed to get our economy back on track," McMahon said in a statement. (credit:AP)
Jonah Goldberg(12 of12)
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"To read many of the reactions on Twitter, you'd think Mother Jones had just found video of Mitt Romney strangling a hooker with her own pantyhose," Goldberg wrote. "Indeed, many people understand what Romney is getting at here, even if he's saying it badly." (credit:AP)
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