Ann Romney struck back at Democratic strategist Hilary Rosen’s slam that she has never worked “a day in her life” because her husband, Mitt Romney, about what women think about economics during an appearance on CNN last night.
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Records show that Rosen has been a frequent White House visitor who has participated in high-level meetings with Valerie Jarrett and other close Obama aides.
“She should have come to my house when those five boys were causing all of that trouble,” Romney said this morning during an appearance on Fox News. “My career choice was to be a mother and I think all of us need to know we need to respect choices women make.”
Other women make the choice to have a workaday career and to raise a family, but Romney told Fox News that raising her kids was the “most important responsibility” she could have had.
Romney slammed Rosen saying that she has talked with countless women from all walks of life about the issues they care about on the campaign trail over the past year.
“They are talking about jobs, and they are talking about debt that we are leaving our children,” Romney said. “That’s what I’m hearing, and that’s what we’re talking about here.”
She also struck back at Rosen’s comments from this morning suggesting that Romney can’t relate to women who work at a diner and have to struggle because their welfare support benefits are being cut.
“I know what it’s like to struggle and maybe I haven’t struggled as much financially as some people, have but I can tell you that I’ve had struggles in my life,” Romney said. “I would love to have people understand that Mitt and I have compassion for people that are struggling, and that’s why we’re running.
“Women are talking about economic issues. They are talking about the security of their own jobs, their husbands’ jobs,” Romney continued. “They are worried about the tepid recovery, their jobs, their job security, and beyond that they are worried about the legacy of debt that we are leaving.”
But Romney took particular umbrage to Rosen’s suggestion that her husband holds “old-fashioned” ideas about women and that he doesn’t see them as equal.
“That does bother me,” Romney laughed. “You should see how many women he listens to, and that’s what I love about Mitt.
“He has so many women in his circle – his chief of staff when he was governor. In business, he surrounded himself with so many women he respects and admires,” she continued. “His lieutenant governor when he was governor, Kerry Healey. He respects her intellect… She needs to recognize that is not Mitt Romney.”
Rosen’s comments were immediately disavowed by Obama loyalists such as David Axelrod who called her words “inappropriate and offensive” on Twitter.
The Republican National Committee issued a statement asking for an apology from the Democratic National Committee.
And Republicans plan a Capitol Hill press conference this afternoon to discuss the “War on Women.”
Rosen apologized Thursday afternoon amid the growing firestorm that followed her comments.
“I apologize to Ann Romney and anyone else who was offended,” Rosen said in a written statement, according to The Wall Street Journal. “Let’s declare peace in this phony war and go back to focus on the substance.”
(Ed. note: Added comments from Hilary Rosen apologizing for her attack on Ann Romney.)
