Republican presidential candidate and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich slammed Mitt Romney on Thursday, saying he does not support low-income programs.
“I really believe that we should care about the very poor, unlike Governor Romney. But I believe we should care differently than Barack Obama,” Mr. Gingrich said Thursday. “Both Governor Romney and Barack Obama seem to believe that a quote safety net is all the poor need. I don’t believe that. What the poor need is a trampoline so that they can spring up… So I’m for replacing the safety net with a trampoline.”
The Georgia Republican, who has struggled to regain his momentum following a defeat in the Florida primary earlier this week, has increased his criticism of Mr. Romney as the campaign heads to Nevada and Minnesota.
“It’s no surprise that Newt Gingrich would join the Democrats in distorting Mitt Romney’s comments. The sad fact is that Newt Gingrich will do anything to distract from his work for Freddie Mac. When Nevada families were struggling in the housing crisis, Newt Gingrich was being paid $1.6 million by Freddie Mac. He was not sticking up for Nevada families — he was cashing in,” the Romney campaign said in a statement Thursday, responding to the former House speaker’s latest critique.
The latest criticism from Mr. Gingrich seizes on Mr. Romney’s earlier comments, in which he said his campaign would seek to advance the causes of “the 90-95 percent of Americans who right now are struggling.”
“I’m in this race because I care about Americans. I’m not concerned about the very poor — we have a safety net there,” Mr. Romney said during an appearance on CNN. “If it needs repair, I’ll fix it. I’m not concerned about the very rich — they’re doing just fine. I’m concerned about the very heart of America, the 90-95 percent of Americans who right now are struggling.”
