U.S. Republican presidential nominee and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney speaks to reporters in Los Angeles, Calif., on Monday.JIM YOUNG/Reuters
BAD
William Kristol- Editor of the the conservative
Weekly Standard
William Kristol, the editor of the Weekly Standard, a conservative magazine, said he still hoped Mr. Romney would win in November, but called Mr. Romney's comments during the fund-raiser "arrogant and stupid."
David Frum - Republican moderate pundit
Mr. Frum, the Canadian-born conservative who's a respected Republican moderate pundit in the U.S., wrote on the Daily Beast that Romney "has just committed the worst presidential-candidate gaffe since Gerald Ford announced in 1976 that 'there is no Soviet domination of Eastern Europe."'
David Brooks-Conservative columnist
Mr. Brooks, a conservative columnist at the New York Times, said Mr. Romney's comments were the talk of "self-satisfied millionaires" and reflected a "country-club fantasy."
"It suggests that he really doesn't know much about the country he inhabits. Who are these freeloaders? Is it the Iraq war veteran who goes to the VA (Department of Veterans Affairs)? Is it the student getting a loan to go to college? Is it the retiree on Social Security or Medicare?"
Linda E. McMahon- Republican candidate for the Senate
In Connecticut, Ms. McMahon, the Republican candidate for the Senate, denounced Mr. Romney's videotaped remarks, saying she is "sympathetic" to the economic struggles of American families.
"I disagree with Governor Romney's insinuation that 47 per cent of Americans believe they are victims who must depend on the government for their care," Ms. McMahon said in a statement posted on her campaign Web site. "I know that the vast majority of those who rely on government are not in that situation because they want to be."
GOOD
Donald Trump-Entrepreneur
Mr. Trump told NBC News that Mr. Romney shouldn't apologize for comments, adding "what he said is probably what he means. He has to not apologize; I think we've seen enough apologizing already." He then added: "He is going for those independents. He won't get the votes of a lot of people he's discussing, and if you're not going to get the votes, let's go on with it."
Erick Erickson - RedState blog
Erick Erickson said on the RedState blog that Mr. Romney's campaign should "double down" on what he said in May because most people in the country agree with the premise that too many people are dependent on government.
"Team Romney should force this debate onto the national stage," Mr. Erickson wrote. "They should not walk it back. The American people are with him. It is the perfect time to remind people that Barack Obama, who authored Obamacare, wants to now be the arbiter of people's fair share."
– NYT, Staff