The Rachel Maddow Show - Inappropriate laughter calls Romney sincerity into question

[Galraedia]

[DirkGently]

1. Saw that. Strong case for creepy.

[roguevalley]

38. there was a movie in which Richard Widmark- an old school out and proud democrat

and die hard liberal- played a psychopathic killer. He pushed a woman in a wheelchair I believe down the stairs and laughed. Laughing psychopaths, they are what they are.

[DirkGently]

41. I can see that clip in my head.

[KansDem]

56. "Kiss of Death" (1947)

Widmark's first film.

One of my favorites!

[Hassin Bin Sober]

57. Tommy Udo was the character's name in Kiss of Death.

I remember it because I watched it with my mother... and later when she was in a wheel chair I would giggle like that to get a rise out of her. She told me she wished she beat me as a child

[icarusxat]

2. I met Mitt

shortly after the 2002 Olympics. He was about to glad hand me when I was performing on stage in Salt Lake City. He noticed that I had long hair and I then got a hate stare so intense that it could peel the paint off a barn. He turned and walked away. This is part of who he is, not some past character flaw. I have told everyone I have met since this event about what happened. Nice to finally find out what was going on that day.

[freshwest]

4. Thanks.

[Rhiannon12866]

5. That really is OTT crazy.

How did he endure the '60s-'70s?!

[NYC_SKP]

20. The Giggles Reveals that he Remembers These Events Fondly... How Sick!

He giggles at the retelling of the stories, "atta girl" = "hee hee".



The man is as awful now as he was then.

[Icicle]

55. He's always been in his bubble

He didn't have to "endure" the 60s and 70s, he was perfectly well insulated from them in his circles of rich people and prep schools. No need to hang out with the rabble. He really doesn't have a clue what life is like for 90% of America. or worse, he sees us as peasants who exist to serve people in his class.

[Lint Head]

8. I've know several people like that. They have sociopathic tendencies.

They are a sociopath in the sense that they are controlling but realize it is difficult to control someone who is away from their norm. So they outwardly despise people who are away from the normal upper class, holier than thou society that they were born into and inhabit.
He has no real conscience and every move he makes is calculated. Romney is calculating his goal of power and ultimate wealth no matter what the human toll. He is a rich snob and a bigoted prick.

Thank God for Obama.
At least he has a conscience.

[Harry Monroe]

16. I'm sure he had to resist the urge to grab a pair a scissors

Can't believe people are supporting this psychopath!!

[freshwest]

3. What a sick freak.

[pacalo]

6. His creepy laughter on each matter signaled that he thought they were trivial.

Politicians who can't remember things aren't mentally fit for running a country, especially if he's a former governor of a state & isn't familiar with its laws.

[citizen blues]

30. I wouldn't put too much into his laughter.....

Remember the Romney family spent a couple generations in Mexico. Seems to me that they could very well have picked up that culture's use of laughter to relieve stress.

For example, a Mexican might laugh in response to being pulled over by a cop. A white cop could very well misinterpret it as being disrespectful where in reality the Mexican is really scared and uses laughter to try to diffuse the situation.

Given that Romney has displayed this behavior before, I would suggest that it's nothing more than a extremely inconvenient (for him) distress-o-meter. I honestly don't think it has anything to do with him trivializing the matter at hand. Quite to the contrary, he's freaking out inside.

[siligut]

31. Did you watch the video?

Mitt cheerfully explained how Seamus loved being in his dog crate on top of the car. No, Mitt is a liar and an entitled sociopath who thinks if he makes light of something everyone else will too.

And please, some people may not know this, but I do. Mormons in Mexico lived in colonies/compounds, they didn't socialize with the locals, let alone pick up their mannerisms/customs.

[Maven]

39. ...

Wait, you're serious?

[truth2power]

47. I think you're correct. Inappropriate laughter is often a response to stress...

That's what's going on when Mitt is questioned about these events.

He remembers, all right. And it scares the bejeezus out of him.

[arely staircase]

54. what a bunch of racist bs nt

[arely staircase]

58. im not sure which part of that is the silliest

the laughing Mexican part or the assumption Romney actually associated with Mexicans while in Mexico.

[DrKPhd]

7. Haha, some great lines--

"You remember that exculpatory evidence and nothing else?!"

"Nobody is laughing with him here. It's not like everybody is laughing here. He's just laughing alone."

[JDPriestly]

9. Rachel Maddow pretty much tied Romney up with a big pink bow and

finished him off. Beautifully reasoned. Beautifully presented.

Maddow points to the heart of the matter -- that Romney either thinks the gay-bullying is funny or ???

And Romney is clearly lying about not remembering the incidents of which he is accused. How could he remember so much about the individuals he tormented and not remember how he tormented them?

[Skittles]

10. of course he remembers

he's pretending not to because he is a COWARD who clearly still has the same mindset he did back then - the man has NOT evolved

[marble falls]

14. It shows he is uncomfortable with the event and might even feel some shame (maybe) ....

but if he wants to lighten the load of it, he need to own it and repent. "Sorry if I offended, but ,,," just does not begin to cut it. Pretending that the other kid was in sin (he wasn't) but pretending he was, sinning against a sinner is no defense. Mitt needs to come to Jesus over this.

[JDPriestly]

29. [phone]

Romney is just now beginning, I repeat beginning to realize how bad is behavior looks to normal people.

He entered the presidential race all full of confidence. He was the winner. He felt it was his turn. He thought he projected the image of a good man.

Well, now he's the man in the mirror. And it will get a lot worse before this ends. He is a real heel. He became rich from the suffering of others. I will bet that his career as a bully was just beginning in high school.

I can't wait until people he worked with and fired, people he treated callously and cruelly throughout his life begin to come forward. It's going to be interesting.

[Skittles]

34. excellent analysis, JDPriestly

also I imagine his wife, if she is smart enough to learn from negative feedback, is starting to realize how out of touch she sounds when she tries to empathize with the economically disadvantaged

[caseymoz]

45. My experiences with bullies in high school is . . .

. . . they have a higher chance of graduating into leadership positions.

This is why it's important to stop bullying in school.

Romney is in real trouble, even if this was a long time ago because bullying is now a hot-button issue, and his laughing over it was the very worst response he could have made.

I like how Maddow reveals that he laughs when he recalls having done something especially cruel.

Combine this with the fact that he's willing to lie and emulate any position to win any vote, and you have a sociopath. You're right. He really hasn't known up until now just how awful his actions look to other people.

His campaign is going to be a crumbling wreck before he even gets to the Republican Convention.

I almost wish I could feel sorry for Repubs. The only leaders that conform to their ideology are either idiots like Perry and Sanatorum, personality disorders like Gingrich and Romney, or both, like Cain and Bachmann. I wonder why? Perhaps those are the only people who could truly be conservatives now, or thrive under conservatism?

The successors children of the Reagan Revolution have truly reaped a cinder lot.

[diane in sf]

11. This giggling psycopath stuff really reminds me of bush

[marble falls]

15. W's snicker was truly psychopathic.

[madokie]

12. What a weird ass dude

If the people of America lets this slimy, smarmy bastard make it to the white house we deserve what we get.

[MH1]

17. They let dubya in. They'll let anyone into the WH if the concoction is simmered and timed just right

This is why, as awful as Romney is, having Santorum or Cain as a nominee would be even worse.

However, I'm beginning to wish that Ron Paul actually had a chance as the republican nominee. At least "stopped clock" applies to him. Santorum is so prehistoric, a clock metaphor doesn't even apply. Cain is just nuts. And now we know, absolutely 100% confidence, that Romney is a sociopath. So there is no telling what he'll do to exert and retain power once he gets it.

If anything screws up this election and Obama loses, America is going to be truly fucked.

[madokie]

18. W was a different story in that he did not get there fair and square

and I doubt that willard would either but if enough vote for him to make it possible to steal then we're literally fucked.

[emulatorloo]

24. The election is going to be DAMN close. The deck is stacked against Obama and Democrats

- cable and network news media that will cover up for Romney and pretend he is a credible candidate
- cable and network news media that serves as an amplifier for Republican lies rather than fact-checking them
- cable and network news media that misrepresents the positions of Obama and Democrats

(I will note that the media's strategy fell apart in 08. They gave endless positive coverage to McCain and negative coverage to Obama. However once McCain made the statement that "The fundamentals of the economy are sound," they could no longer cover up for McCain)

and there there is

- unlimited Koch Bros type money to swiftboat Obama and democratic candidates 24/7

Obama etc will push back hard on this shit. News Media won't cover the pushback, they'll just give free airtime to Rove's crossroads by endlessing showing their ads during cable talk shows.

Romney's entire primary campaign was about driving up the negatives of his opponents. "Look, that guy is worse than me." This is their strategy going forward. Lie about Obama and engage in character assassination.

Even though I am physically and emotionally tired as hell, I am going to do everything I can to GOTV.

[siligut]

32. No, they don't!

The media has a strong influence on people.

[mucifer]

13. I'm guessing this is going to endear him to lots of right wingers

who aren't thrilled that he speaks French.

[Pachamama]

27. Yes indeed....The GOP, which is full of bigots, sociopaths & Bullies, will happily vote & support

...Romney even more because of this. It will have been something that makes Romney endearing to them. Sick and Sad, but true.

Suddenly, any of those who had reservations because of his being a Mormon, Romneycare, flip-flopping or that he speaks French (well, not really IMO) will overlook that because he is now "one of them".

President "Lord of the Flies" Romney.....how great....

[They_Live]

19. What is this tactic

of pretending that homophobia didn't exist in the 1960's? I guess that kind of lie might work for younger people who weren't alive then.

[HopeHoops]

21. "air tight kennel"???

[tclambert]

36. Yeah, that caught my ear, too. You put an animal in an airtight container, and it will suffocate.

I remember hearing of a case last year where some lady tried to mail a puppy in one of those flat rate boxes with no air holes. An alert clerk noticed the box move and rescued the puppy. That woman faced animal cruelty charges.

[truth2power]

48. Yeah. Every time I hear that, I cringe. Whatever is he thinking? n/t

[HopeHoops]

50. Thinking?

NOT APPLICABLE!

[EmeraldCityGrl]

22. Rmoney is a sociopath. Referring to him as

"out of touch" is no longer appropriate. This assault was the missing puzzle piece that
that made all the other stories, gestures, statements bewildering and incomplete. Rmoney
wants this position of power for reasons that should terrify everyone. Even repubs know
there will be dangerous consequences if he were ever elected.

[Pachamama]

28. This is probably just the tip of the Iceberg....

....Im predicting there will be more stories to come and this is just the beginning....No, there probably are no sex scandals with this guy (frankly, I look at him and he feels Asexual to me and puts me out of the mood and I am sure he has that effect on all) but instead we now know this guy is a liar and bully.

My daughter who has been dealing with some bullying at school from some middle school mean girls who have taunted her about her height and has been traumatized so much that at one point wouldnt go to school for a week, watched this on the news last night and got visibly upset. She said it best: "Our Country's President is our leader and representative. A role model. Romney is a Bully and cruel. He should be disqualified to even run".

Anyone who has suffered bullying never forgets. It scars and damages. The other thing she said was that people who know they have done wrong, dont snicker and remember and show remorse. She felt he didnt care and his snicker told her that.

[EmeraldCityGrl]

46. Your observation of him seeming to be asexual

is very interesting because I also am picking up some strange vibes from him also.
The "wild and crazy guy interview" with his wife, watch the way he stares at her.
It's creepy. He looks like an adoring child staring at his mother.Some weird psychosexual
stuff going on there.


Your daughter is wise beyond her years. I'm sorry she has had to experience so much trauma
to have such a depth of understanding. As an adult the empathy she has for others will draw
the very best of the human race to her. If she could only see that now.

[truth2power]

49. I am so sorry for what your daughter is enduring. I feel fortunate that there is ZERO tolerance

for bullying in my school district. There have been anti-bullying programs for the students; there are anti-bullying reminders posted in the halls, and no teacher would tolerate such behavior.

[iamthebandfanman]

23. its a nervous laugh..

he doesnt know what else to do, so he snickers.

from personal experience, im sure it means he has some deep seeded issues he needs to work out with himself.

[emulatorloo]

25. Maddow is excellent as always.

I wish there was a way to clone her and have her host EVERY DAMN CABLE NEWS SHOW on television.

[caseymoz]

44. You're right.

And she zooms in on the thing everyone else is ignoring, out of politeness, I guess.

[wildeyed]

26. He is trying to brand the incident as a "prank" when it was really assault.

And, hahaha, it was sooooo long ago, how could you possibly hold me accountable. The "hahaha" is Romney trying to make the person asking the question look ridiculous for questioning his "youthful pranks" aka assault. God, what an asshole.

[bhikkhu]

33. This brings to mind the "Turn it Off!" number from the book of mormon

...which, oddly enough, may be exactly what is going on with the lack of memory and the jovial evasion there.

[enough]

52. Remarkably on point. (nt)

[HCE SuiGeneris]

35. He is a twisted phuck!

[tclambert]

37. The nervous laughter at inappropriate times is his "tell."

It gives away he knows he got caught doing something wrong--lying, bullying, cruelty to animals, insensitivity to normal humans--and he doesn't know how to face up to it.

[ncgrits]

42. Ding ding ding! We have a winner!

You've hit the nail on the head! It's nervous, guilty laughter.

[Stuart G]

40. K and R nt.

[caseymoz]

43. It's Candidate Giggles

Or just call him Giggles for short, like some people call President Obama just Obama. Giggles first name is Ghastly.

Giggles would find having his finger on the button of a nuclear arsenal an absolute scream. Can't wait to hear him joke about that. But I won't, Giggles will go down in November.

[rgbecker]

53. Another case of a Republican unable to remember things:

Reagan testifying about Iran-contra affair.

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1990-02-23/news/9001160156_1_iran-contra-testimony-recall

[spiderpig]

59. I loathe this humanoid so much

I clearly remember the humiliation of being the last school-yard pick for a stupid dodgeball game. This cretin chuckles over willful and cruel mistreatment of students and teachers as youthful indiscretions - that is, if he admits to even remembering them.

And the abuse of Seamus the Irish setter, told as if it were a humorous anecdote, just makes me want to barf.

He is disgusting.