Romney says loss the result of Obama's 'gifts' to minority voters, women and young people

Certain provisions of the 2010 health law were the key "gifts" GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney said were to blame for his loss. Other Republican leaders, including Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal fiercely rebuffed Romney's comments.   

The New York Times' The Caucus: Romney Blames Loss On Obama's 'Gifts' To Minorities And Young Voters
Saying that he and his team still felt "troubled" by his loss to President Obama, Mitt Romney on Wednesday attributed his defeat in part to what he called big policy "gifts" that the president had bestowed on loyal Democratic constituencies, including young voters, African-Americans and Hispanics. … The president's health care plan, he said, was also a useful tool in mobilizing black and Hispanic voters. Though Mr. Romney won the white vote with 59 percent, according to exit polls, minorities coalesced around the president in overwhelming numbers: 93 percent of blacks and 71 percent of Hispanics (Parker, 11/14).

Los Angeles Times: Romney Attributes Loss To 'Gifts' Obama Gave Minorities
Romney's frank analysis echoed his secretly taped comments at a May fundraiser, where he told a small group of donors that 47% of the electorate was unlikely to vote for him because they paid no income taxes and were dependent on government. It followed his running mate Paul D. Ryan's assertion that Obama's win stemmed from turnout among "urban" voters. … Young voters, Romney said, were motivated by the administration's plan for partial forgiveness of college loan interest, the extension of health coverage for students up to age 26 on their parents' insurance plans and free contraception coverage under Obama's healthcare plan, which he credited with ushering greater numbers of college-age women into Obama's coalition (Reston, 11/14).

The Washington Post: Romney: Obama's Gift Giving Led To Loss
Mitt Romney is blaming his loss in the presidential election on "Obamacare" and other "gifts" he says President Obama handed out to African Americans, Hispanics and other core supporters, according to news reports Wednesday. The defeated Republican candidate told donors in a conference call that Obama targeted those demographics, along with young voters and women, through programs such as health-care reform and "amnesty" for children of illegal immigrants, according to articles posted online by the New York Times and Los Angeles Times (Markon and Tumulty, 11/14).

The Hill: Romney: 'Gifts' In Obama's Health Care Law Helped Him Win
Mitt Romney suggested Wednesday that President Obama won a second term largely because of policies in his healthcare law. In comments to a group of donors, Romney said he lost in part because of the "gifts" Obama had given to certain demographic groups -; and a lot of the specific gifts he mentioned came in the form of healthcare benefits. "You can imagine for somebody making $25,000 or $30,000 or $35,000 a year, being told you're now going to get free health care, particularly if you don't have it, getting free health care worth, what, $10,000 per family, in perpetuity, I mean, this is huge. Likewise with Hispanic voters, free health care was a big plus," Romney said, according to the New York Times (Baker, 11/14).

CNN: Jindal Slams Romney For 'Gifts' Comment About Minorities, Young Voters
Republican Gov. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana fiercely shot back at Mitt Romney's claim Wednesday that President Barack Obama outmatched the 2012 Republican presidential nominee by offering "gifts" to African-Americans, Hispanics and young voters. "I absolutely reject that notion," Jindal, who was a surrogate for Romney's campaign, said at the Republican Governors Association conference in Las Vegas. ... Romney, who lost to Obama by 126 electoral votes, said the president courted voters by offering policies - some of them this election year - that appealed to key constituencies. "With regards to the young people, for instance, a forgiveness of college loan interest, was a big gift," Romney said, according to The New York Times. "Free contraceptives were very big with young college-aged women," he continued. "And then, finally, Obamacare also made a difference for them, because as you know, anybody now 26 years of age and younger was now going to be part of their parents' plan, and that was a big gift to young people Killough and Bohn, 11/14).