The AP's Glen Johnson (formerly of the Globe) had Romney dead-to-rights when, in his slavish, goofy way, he tried to channel John Edwards:
Romney was in the middle of answering a routine question when he said something that caused Associated Press reporter Glen Johnson to lose his temper.
“I don’t have lobbyists running my campaign,” Romney said. “I don’t have lobbyists that are tied to my … ”
“That’s not true, governor!” Johnson suddenly interjected. “That is not true. Ron Kaufman is a lobbyist.” [ed.: Ron Kaufman is a lobbyist. Not exactly shy about it, either.]
Kaufman is a well-known lobbyist, former adviser to President H.W. Bush and Romney campaign adviser who is often seen by the governor’s side while on the road.
This is hilarious on a number of levels. First is the idea that Mitt would claim to be above lobbyists and corporate control of government. Uh, yeah ... say what you want about the other candidates, but some wear the populist mantle a little better than others. And few wear it worse than a pandering venture capitalist running as the next CEO-in-chief.
And then was his contention that this guy either a.) is not a lobbyist, or b.) is not helping run his campaign (clarification -- he claimed "b"):
So, that statement is, you might say, "non-operational."
Update: Here's Johnson's sweeet dispatch on the exchange. Does Russert act like this when people lie to his face?
COLUMBIA, S.C. -- Republican Mitt Romney said Thursday he could govern in the country's best interest because "I don't have lobbyists running my campaign," although Washington insiders are on his senior staff and registered lobbyists are top advisers.
