It was by no means surprising when Politico's Roger Simon claimed on Friday's "Inside Washington" that former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney's comment concerning corporations being people "was one of his rare flubs."
But when the Washington Post's Obama-loving columnist Colby King stuck up for Romney saying, "He's actually right," it's a metaphysical certitude many unsuspecting viewers around the nation spit out whatever was in their mouths (video follows with partial transcript and commentary):
ROGER SIMON, POLITICO: He looks upon himself as a corporation. You’re going to see that in a lot of Democratic commercials. That was one of his rare flubs. Americans don’t feel right now that corporations are people just like them.
COLBY KING, WASHINGTON POST: Look, his opponents are going to play this for laughs, but it is not funny. He’s actually right. And I’ll tell you why he’s right. Because he knows that corporations are not just some faceless entity. People own corporations. Those people who own corporations are called shareholders. These are individuals who make investments and they expect to get a return on their investments if the company makes profits. Those corporations are run by people, large numbers of people to, to, it’s a teachable moment. It’s a way for, it’s time to tell people just what we’re talking about when we talk about the private sector.
GORDON PETERSON, HOST: Gets away from the demonization of the CEO.
Somebody pinch me. The Post's King defended a Republican presidential candidate as well as the private sector, and host Peterson agreed.
Significantly less surprising, Simon doubled down moments later:
King wasn’t deterred:
KING: Corporations are owned by shareholders. Shareholders are people in the number in the millions in this country. It’s the way in which this economy works. If you don't have investments in companies, where people get a reasonable return on their investments, we don’t have a private sector. And Romney’s right to raise that point, and I hope he expands on it in future discussions.
Wow. Good for King.
Consider that this comment by Romney instantly became a liberal talking point. A Google search of "Romney 'corporations are people'" generated over 500,000 results.
This was said less than 36 hours ago, and it already has over a half a million pieces written about it.
Given all the liberal finger-pointing at Romney, you have to seriously wonder how King will be received at the Post when he returns to work Monday.
Good luck, Colby. Our prayers are with you.
