By Brooke Nevils
Rock Center
LLANGYNWD, Wales - About two hundred miles away from the Greenwich, England, arena where her purebred horse Rafalca competed in the London Olympics, Ann Romney stroked the nose of Magic, a Welsh pony.
"You're so pretty, Magic," said Mrs. Romney.
In the rugged coal country of southern Wales, you see a different side to Ann Romney: she is at one point teary-eyed, another laughing, but always a tough defender of her husband. She talked at length about her life with multiple sclerosis, her conversion to the Mormon faith and her decision to stay home to raise her five boys.
As Rock Center Correspondent Natalie Morales found in her exclusive interview with the wife of presumptive Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, scheduled to air Thursday at 10pm/9c on NBC's Rock Center, this coal miner's granddaughter is much more than an owner of an Olympic dressage horse.
Mrs. Romney is a first-generation American. Her father, Edward Davies, emigrated to the United States from this part of Wales in 1929, at age 15.
"It's very emotional for me to come back and to know what kind of life my grandfather lived, and my father," said Mrs. Romney, touring a coal mine much like the one in which her grandfather began working at age six.
The Davies family settled in Detroit, where a nearly 16-year-old Ann met 18-year-old Mitt at a party, and the high school sophomore's "heart went aflutter." Four years to the day after their first date, they were married.
"We are partners, true partners in every sense of the way," she told Morales. "I don't think he could do it without me. I don't believe he could. I couldn't obviously be here without him either."
Despite her steadfast support on the campaign trail, Mrs. Romney -- much like her sons -- was not so keen on her husband's role in public life after his failed bid for the Republican nomination in 2008.
"After the election was over and [John] McCain was the nominee, I made a decision that I would never do it again," she said. "You know who your husband is. You know-- I know what a good person he is. And oh - the negative - it's so hard as a wife to sit there and listen to that."
But when Morales asked why she changed her mind, Mrs. Romney said, "We have a reason why we're running and it's because I believe in my heart that Mitt is going to save America, that economically we are in such difficult times and that he is the person that’s going to pull us through this."
The criticism that plagued the Romneys during the 2008 campaign has continued, particularly in regards to their reported $250 million fortune and the issue of their tax returns.
When pressed by Morales, Mrs. Romney stood her ground. "We have been very transparent to what's legally required of us,” she said. “There's going to be no more tax releases given."
Mrs. Romney said if they release any more information, "it will only give them more ammunition."
In regards to their finances, she said "there's nothing we're hiding."
"It's been managed by a blind trust since before Mitt was governor, you know, 2002 forward,” she told Morales. “And so, you know, I'll be curious to see what's in there too."
Editor's Note: Natalie Morales' full interview with Ann Romney aired Thursday, August 16 on NBC's Rock Center with Brian Williams.
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Look up IR-2012-64-ovpd Thats what they are hiding It gives amnesty for 8 years of capitol USA outsourcing Romneys have this on there taxes and by releasing it it is an admission of guilt that as wealthy they can have expunged. Vote for these wall street crooks if you would like. Now on the subject of school records. I would like to see Mitt Brigham Young University records. The school you know was named after the most notorious mass murder in US history. The September Dawn Massacre was the largest act of terrorism on America by an American until Oklahoma City Bombing. Please stop the Ayn Rand train because it will roll right over middle America.
So you all hate that Romney will not be bullied into showing more tax returns? How many of you want to show yours???? Come on, dish them up. Each and every one of them. The Romney's showed what they are required to show by law and anything above and beyond that is a bully tactic which guess what? They refuse to allow themselves to be bullied.
The entire point here- those returns mean nothing. All they do show is someone had the NERVE to actually make money in this country. I'm sure they didn't sit on their asses for an entire year, collect welfare and then file and receive a damn refund like a large portion of this country does. I don't like either political party, but I dislike bullies even more. If you are so dumb you will choose a President because of jealous, petty little grievances, then there really is no shock in the fact this country is swirling in the toilet. Every time I hear one of you zombies whine about the "super rich" while laying around whining instead of making yourself super rich I want to puke. And then...you worship some Hollywood actor or an athlete who makes more money than you will ever see for playing a game or strutting around half naked. But...you don't condemn them! No...you let them tell you to hate the rich as if they also live unprivileged lives. LOL!
It is amazing some people would rather have a President who can not even show how he lived the high life he has lived, who paid for his college or even for his daily expenses, has never held a real job and did not inherit said money than one who OMG! refuses to give you all his life tax returns. Grow the hell up! How about you actually do some studying and worry about real issues?
At least Romney's family WORKED. As did Romney himself. They understand working for a living and to grow your own fortune, unlike the plant presently sitting in the White House who has never held a real job. Get a grip. Those in Washington need to at least have an understanding of what it means to work every day while trying to survive, instead of an entitlement coach who wants to teach all of you to be entitlements peasants so someone else can control you. Enjoy the soup line and while you are there...think about those tax returns. At least you could have wiped your arses with the paper.
Romney hardly could be called someone who worked for his fortune. He was always guaranteed to come out ahead, no matter if Bain failed, or not. His IRA is somehow worth $100 million, when the maximun annual contribution is limited to 30 grand. Fishy and shadey. He's either taken advantage of some very exclusive tax loopholes or has violated the code and found an amnesty provision and penalty payment deferrment program. Another case of the regulators dropping the ball..............like Madoff and the SEC, more than likely.
OVPD Offshore Violation Penalty Deferrment
So in your mind, Romney sat around and money just flowed to him? His FAMILY made and lost fortunes, more than once. Romney then added to his own finances and has lost also. I don't know how he did his IRA. Everyone with great wealth has done something you or I have not done...or maybe we also would be one of the super rich. But it is hypocritical to condemn those who created great wealth when if given the chance you would do the same. Most people with money have advisers who tell them what to do to make more money. Can you honestly sit and judge and say you would not do the same things they did? Have you never hunted for deductions on your taxes to lower your tax debt? Have you never done anything a little off the wall? The reality is, you or I will not be going to Washington unless we have made a fortune or someone wants to put us there for a hidden agenda. It's that simple. I am not fond of the elite myself, but I also know we need rich people. Without them, who would you work for? I at least prefer elite who know how to amass fortunes with their brains instead of those who have been handed money for doing nothing. Personally I would rather live in a world where we all work just for what we need each day as in years past...but someone will always want to control others. You have to ask yourself to what extent you wish to give the control. P.S. Investments in IRA's can earn or lose like any other investments. Your investment does not always stay exactly at what you put in.
When did Willard Mitt Romney ever really lose money? He's had an increasing positive net worth every year of his adult life. His compensation minimum was GUARANTEED at Bain. Wasn't he on the audit board at Marriott Corp. when they had to pay a $220 million dollar fine to the IRS. Isn't it almost always a matter of misinterpretation of some obscure loophole, or outright misuse, which either does or doesn't get CAUGHT by the regulators who are not above being bought off.
The rich don't have to be considered the job creators. They rarely use their own money to start a business. Buffet, Gates, Ford, and Zuckerberg weren't rich before they started their businesses. You are endorsing the rich being the only ones who should have access to the credit and capital markets, rather than those with innovative ideas and patentable intellectual property and good business models, is part of the problem. The so called 'Angels' always want too big a cut.
Did you not just say they were NOT rich before THEY started their businesses? Hence the way you get rich. You get someone to believe in you and your concept and then you create a business. That business either takes off or fails. I know for a fact as I have started several in my life, some which worked and some which failed. If they aren't the job creators, who do you think is? If there is no factory, no store, no restaurant, no houses to build, no mine to work, no oil to drill, and so on...who will all those people work for? You? The Government? Credit is given to those who have a way to repay it even if their business fails. This is one reason we are in such trouble with the housing and loan market...credit was given to those without the ability to repay. And losing jobs compounds the inability to pay. If you are willing to live in a dirt hut without any luxuries then yes, you don't need rich people or companies creating jobs. A poor man can not hire another poor man. All humans need compensation for their work if they want to survive. People with innovative ideas and patentable intellectual property also need investors to take those ideas further. If only you think your idea is worthy then maybe...you need to rethink your idea. Trust me. If you have something of value you have developed there will always be someone willing to invest.
Envy and jealousy are an evil snake. It winds and twists through you until you hate everyone who has something you think you should have until you no longer even make any sense. You condemn Zuckerberg and Gates yet in the next sentence say the access to credit and capital should be given to those with innovative ideas and patentable intellectual property. What exactly were their ideas? They got investors because they had those intellectual and patentable ideas not because they had family money.
And that investor need not be a rich person. Your illogic is cyclical. Gates was NOT rich when he bacame a job creator, nor was Zuckerberg. They had great ideas and went into debt, to investors, because no other investment mechanism has been chartered, and became rich by going public. Their self issued shares of the company went up in value exponentially. The value of their stock is only a paper gain until they sell the shares or use it as collateral on LOANS.
Your take on the mortgage crisis is equally askew. The people who got mortgages and then couldn't pay the loan off, only hurt themselves. The credit ratings agencies which misrated the debt as triple "A" so that it could be sold to pension funds and investors around the globe are the culprits. They had one job to do and failed to do it properly because they were being paid by Goldman Sachs to lie about what they believed the value of the risk of the debt paper was; a clear conflict of interest and rather blatant corruption. The mortgage holders didn't build the houses that they had to vacate and give back, nor did they burn them to the ground when they moved out. The oversupply of housing inventories was no accident, it was part of Goldman's big scam to become too big to be ALLOWED to fail. The scam worked for them and against the American taxpayer.
what is the reason for off shore accounts
All the Global elite hide money in offshore accounts. It's called not putting all your eggs in one basket. Yes, it deflates taxes which could have been collected and given to others who feel they have a right to your money, but it is also a smart move to keep your family secure in the event one country or the other goes to hell. Anyone with a brain does not put all their money in one location, as you wouldn't either if you had the same incomes.
The husband of this woman wants to modify the tax code. We ABSOLUTELY have the right to know how that would affect him and his sneering wife. And how much money DO they have in offshore accounts? They scream about being rewarded for risk taking. Money sitting in a Swiss or Cayman account re-capitalizes the US economy and demonstrates risk taking how exactly? We have banks un-willing to lend due to lack of capital and these millionaires and billionaires want to reduce access to capital further still by modifying tax code that allows them to extract , side-line, and hide the main stimulus to rebuilding the economy: CAPITAL.
I find it funny that reporters don't ask hard questions.
Anne says, "It will give the opposition ammunition."
Why doesn't Natalie Morales ask, "You mean that they'll point out that you may not have the ability to understand people struggling along and only earning 1% what you are?"
Plus, Anne's comment that they give 10% to charity is a smoke screen. They actually give 10% to the Mormon church which just spent $10 billion to build a mall.
And never mind that people are so afraid of implying a religious litmus test for public office that they ignore that Anne and Mitt have sworn in a secret temple covenant to do everything in their power to "build up [Mormonism]." Just check the record of Orrin Hatch and Jason Chaffetz who frequently submit bills to Congress that are designed to help Mormon, Inc. Most recently, Chaffetz had the House pass a bill to sell public land known as "Y-Mountain" near the Lord's University, BYU, in Provo, Utah to the Mormon Church.
Mall, Main Street Salt Lake City, Y-Mountain...now all owned by LD$, Inc.
For me it's pretty simple (as simple as him providing his returns for us to see). I simply can't trust him with our country if this is how he behaves. He's not deserving of the Presidency.
I THOUGHT THAT THIS TRAVESTY CUT BRIAN WILLIAMS' REPUTATION BY HALF-- it was like a celeb interview on a TV show for breathless fans, and did not resemble journalism in any way
They got an unknown interviewer that Ann could push around, filmed it in WHITE Wales, showing 2 churches, although Ann's Dad was a severe atheist. George Romney engineered the marriage and the conversion of her entire family to mormonism. (they baptised the dead atheist father)
How to describe Ann Romney? Marie Mormonette, maybe? Imperious and haughty, not caring what the public wants.
Mitt acts like he is going through the motions out of duty. Ann, who obviously wears the pants, wants to be Queen.
Can we agree that this was not exactly a Barbara Walters or Mike Wallace or Charlie Rose interview, but a puff piece that ought to have been on Entertainment Tonight, or similar?
On Huff Po, a clip of her interview has nearly 40,000 comments, of which at least 9 out of 10 are negative about her demeanor and attitude
Baracka HUSSEIN Obama, deceiver, destroyer, Lucifer's solder, show your Legitimate birth certificate, your true religious affiliation, your passport to enter the USA as a student from Indonesia, your high school records, all and any college OR university records you claim to have attended, who the heck sired you, DAVIS or OBAMA? Your numerous Social Security numbers illegally obtained. Your Communist, Marxist, Socialist back ground. OH, AND WHAT CAUSED THAT HUGE SCAR IN YOUR HEAD? THAT IS BEYOND FRIGHTENING! PRODUCE YOUR MEDICAL RECORDS! HAS THE ILLUMINATI MICRO CHIPPED YOU? WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT ARE YOU? Then we will demand ROMNEY produce his tax records! So put up or shut up. PLAIN AND SIMPLE!
Sounds kind of like the belief that Bush was God's appointed savior for our country which turned out somewhat the opposite and now we are to trust the mormons have a better connection to God.
Did anyone find Ann Romney's statement that "Mitt is going to save America" strange? Natalie questioned it and Ann firmly restated it. I grew up Mormon and have since left that church. Let me tell you a well known "prophecy" of church founder Joseph Smith that is familiar to virtually every practicing Mormon. It is taken from his so-called White-Horse Prophecy: "Someday when the U.S. Constitution would hang by a thread, the Mormon Priesthood would rise up and take over the government". In 1999 when Sen. Orrin Hatch wanted to run for President, he thought he was the savior on the white horse, now Mitt Romney thinks he is. Google White-horse prophecy and read the article by Sandra Tanner of Utah Lighthouse Ministries for the full story. This scares me as a former Mormon and should scare every American unless you want to live under a Mormon-run theocracy.
Did anyone think Ann Romney's comment "Mitt is going to save America" was a little strange? Natalie questioned it and Ann emphatically repeated that Mitt is going to SAVE America! I was a little disturbed by this because having grown up Mormon (and since left that weird church) I heard many times that "Someday when the United States Constitution would hang by a thread, the Mormon Priesthood would rise up and take over the government." This is a quote out of a prophecy by church founder Joseph Smith known as the White Horse Prophecy. Virtually every practicing Mormon has heard it. Ann was alerting Mormons to the fact that the time has come and Mitt will SAVE us. In 1999 Sen. Orrin Harch (also a Mormon) wanted to run for president because he felt he was the savior - well that didn't turn out so now Mitt thinks he is IT. Knowing what the Mormon agenda is, this scares me and it should scare every American unless they want to live under a Mormon ruled theocracy. We've heard some bad stuff about Scientology lately - Mormons are good at covering up what they don't want you to know also. Google "white horse prophecy" and read the article by Sandra Tanner of Utah Lighthouse Ministries for the full story.
How is sending people to an Anto Mormon source going to provide accurate and legitimate information. Wouldn't it be better to send people to the Mormon church. I mean seriously, I would never get medical advice from my tax preparer and I would never seek information about the Catholic church from anyone other than the Catholic church.
Such a sad state of affairs when we have to resort to name calling, demands for more records than we are entitled and distrust becaus of a mans faith.
The press and the opposition are brutal in launching an unfair fight that really never should happen. We have literally moved from a civil society to one where tyranny is the order of the ay.
To my conservative friends, drop the birth certificate issue. Here may. B something there but it is too late, he is our president. I suspect every State required proof of his citizenship when he was added to the ballot both for the previous election and the current one.
To my liberal friends. Drop the call for tax releases. Mitt has clearly complied with the law and you have no right to ask for more, if ou were to run you would have the same protectin. At the same time they keep saying that he made extensive disclosures when he was Governor so maybe you should check those records. Seriously I do to know what you are looking for but it is probably not there.
Also drop the religion thing. I remember back all of the things that were being said about Obama because of Rev Jeremiah Wright, in many ways I see where the reverend was coming from even though he was a bit on the brash side. It is sad that Obama distanced himself. If you believe in something you should stand up for it. I do not see Mitt renouncing his religion and I also see nothing wrong with a church that spends tremendous amounts of money on humanitarian issues.
It is silly to me that we can no longer be civil in our debate or with one another, this applies to both sides. If we continue it will just serve to rip our nation apart that, much more.
We have every right to ask for whatever we require of him, for us to give him our vote and support. He is applying for a job from us.
There is NO equivalence between the TAX returns and Obama's birth certificate. Obama's birth certificate from Hawaii was presented to the public before he was elected. The racists among us simply didn't want to believe that it was authentic and then demanded further substantiation of a "long form" birth certificate, which when they got it delivered to them called its autheticity into question again.
Romney will lose the election. His returns will be made public whether he likes it or not. This was never about what is legally required, or whether tax laws were broken. It was always about effective tax rates and the use of tax loopholes and amnesty programs.
We have every right to ask for whatever we require of him, for us to give him our vote and support. He is applying for a job from us.
There is NO equivalence between the TAX returns and Obama's birth certificate. Obama's birth certificate from Hawaii was presented to the public before he was elected. The racists among us simply didn't want to believe that it was authentic and then demanded further substantiation of a "long form" birth certificate, which when they got it delivered to them called its autheticity into question again.
Romney will lose the election. His returns will be made public whether he likes it or not. This was never about what is legally required, or whether tax laws were broken. It was always about effective tax rates and the use of tax loopholes and amnesty programs.
What a world we live in! We are able to hide ten years of tax returns and then say "We are not hiding nothing". Does this make sense to you?
Jim and others who claim there are more important things to worry about than the Romneys' taxes. You are missing the point. Romney is asking the American people to trust him enough put their lives and their future in his hands for the next 4 years. If he can't be honest and forthcoming and defend or at least explain the choices he has made in his life, it goes to trust, honesty and character. He asked several years of tax returns from his vice presidential candidates. Yet thinks voters should not expect more than one incomplete year of taxes from him (and that only bc republicans demanded to see them in the primaries). I would never vote for a candidate that is not open and on the record with views, plans and his own life, no matter what party.
Ann is a classy lady in the nicest way. So honestly sincere yet humble. She holds all the best values of the human race. Life, sacrifice, perseverance and respect for humanity and God. God does not create anything less. If we are less, then only we are responsible, not something other.