Romney’s Riches: How Much Should We Care?
Charles Dharapak/AP
Who hasn’t heard about Mitt Romney’s New England vacation at this point? Jet-skis, yachts, lake homes- it’s like something straight out of an L.L. Bean catalog. But regardless of how much the Romneys seemed to be enjoying it, The Daily Beast’s Robert Shrum was certainly not.
“For many Americans, this was the worst of times—scarred by foreclosure, grim levels of unemployment and grinding deprivation. The nominee nonetheless flashed a smile…at the helm and on excursion to the shore,” said Shrum in his recent column, “Hey, Mitt, You Can Be Rich and Win the Election, Just Not Richie Rich.”
The former Democratic strategist pinpoints an important question in the election discussion: how rich is too rich to win the election?
A tough question to answer, given the likes of FDR and John F. Kennedy, who also zipped around Nantucket in the throes of his 1960 election.
And yet Romney deviates slightly from the aforementioned, two presidents who were considered champions of what we would now call the “99%.” Why did John F. Kennedy’s New England vacations evoke admiration while Romney’s inspire disgust at lavish taste? Perhaps perception of voters — and the media — is the only thing that changed.
Despite Shrum’s headline, historically, it is absolutely possible to be Richie Rich and sit in the Oval Office. It seems we let the fruits of the presumptive GOP nominee’s wealth overshadow the lessons to be learned from his successes. What’s more American than working for your money to go on vacation? Let the guy go ride his jet-ski. He’s earned it.
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