he didn't necessarily throw fehrnstrom under the bus. they were both saying the same thing. what romney essentially did 48 hours after what eric fehrnstrom told us, he conceded, fine, if the supreme court is going to call it a tax, then we'll call it a tax. now you see the problem it's creating among conservatives. let's move to there. the penalty versus tax episode highlight what's many conservatives see as romney's fundamental flaw. they simply don't trust him, eshl when it comes to health care. look no further than tad's scathing wall street editorial which slams romney's tax confusion, unquote. the editorial comes out just days or the paper's owner rupert murdoch, i'm not implying anything there, they don't do this same thing but it comes at the same time that rupert said he had doubts about romney's staff. the journal's editorial board writing, quote, this latest mistake is of a piece with the campaign's insular staff and strategy that are slowly squandering an historic opportunity if romney campaign thinks it can play it safe and coast to the white house by saying the

>> well, this is two strikes on fehrnstrom. the first one was his etch-a-sketch comment. this one you know, he was clearly trotted out there to say that on monday. somebody called the campaign and read them the riot act and say you can't say penalty. you have to say tax. i don't know that this is fehrnstrom's fault necessarily. >> jennifer: i agree. >> like the "wall street journal" and rupert murdoch and all of these people are calling for a shake-up in boston. i think he's had a pretty good campaign team. they've run i think a pretty effective campaign. i don't think the problem is his staff. you understand what i'm saying. >> jennifer: i do. the problem is the candidate. no doubt about it. i know that eric fehrnstrom would not have gotten out ahead of his skis as the president would with have said, ahead of his candidate had it not been authorized. michael, thank you for joining us inside "the war room." michael tomasky of the "daily beast." with all of the talk about mitt romney flip-flopping, we're afraid the actual footwear is going to get a bad rap. our digital tea

and they are also furious for eric fehrnstrom for the second time because he told the truth.ll of the dishonesties that governor romney put forward, go to politifact and check it out. >> look at how much money the corporations are sitting on. if you are going to lie, i understand political campaigns do a lot of maneuvering. but don't by any stretch believe for a second that you could blatantly lie about something that you were videotaped saying or the other campaign doesn't even have to throw your way. >> exactly. mitt romney is finally catching hell. and the two things he has caught the most hell on is for telling the truth. we want to know your thoughts at 1-800-steph-1-2. it's the 4th of july-eve party, my friends. we'll be taking your calls after the break. that's my crap fireworks. >> oh, god, that feels weird and good all at once. >> announcer: it's the "stephanie miller show"! ♪ you've heard stephanie's views. >>no bs, authentic, the real thing. >>now, let's hear yours at the only online forum with a direct line to stephanie miller. >>the only thing that can save ameri

eric fehrnstrom tried to create the line, walk a fine line.mney's trying to walk that fine line, too, and i think it shows you they're so concerned about the flip-flop -- they still think that is very dangerous to them and i think that's what you saw come to bubble up this week. >> let's take a look at the "wall street journal" editorial. they write "this latest mistake is of a piece with the campaign's insular staff and strategy that are slowly squandering an historic opportunity. romney promised republicans he was the best man to make the case against president obama, whom they desperately want to defeat. so far, mr. romney is letting them down. chris cilliza, plus bill kristol compare that to losing candidates from massachusetts, talking about dukakis and kerry. that is not a favorable when things are going bad, your staff is too insular, they don't have enough experience. some of this is just the day-to-day politics. go back to 2008. remember how barack obama was consulting with too many people who were telling him what he wanted to hear?

nobody thinks eric fehrnstrom is out there freelancing.his is a message they had, it didn't work, and now conservatives, "wall street journal" editorial board, bill kristol, now conservatives are saying what's wrong with you? whose side are you on? not only are you messing up the health care message, we're worried you're going to mess up the entire campaign. this is such a softball. why are you swinging at it? >> steve, was this dumb? >> well, they bungled the sort of rollout of getting his position straightened badly, i think. and i do agree, i doubt they'll get much mileage out of the tax argument, but i'll be charitable and kind of put out other side out there. it basically goes like this. what kurt just laid out there about the rationale for considering this a tax and not applying to a lot of people, very valid, and most people in isolation see it that way. but consider that as a microcosm for the debate and the health care law. when you take it piece by piece and explain the individual components to people, they always poll very well.

i mean eric fehrnstrom doesn't improvise. the other thing to keep in mind about eric he's been with the governor for a long time, most of those folks, in the trenches. in '07 and '08, mitt romney had this long heated battle inside the republican primary about whether various fees that were in massachusetts and penalties were tax increases and they had to fight that. what you saw with eric, you saw him making, you know, making sure that they stayed consistent with what they were saying in '06, '02 and '06 during the term and what they said in '07 and '08 and saying today. i think then you saw that in romney yesterday. he was taking pains to try to stay consistent with what he had said, with what fehrnstrom said. no, this was -- especially when you hear the way it was specifically worded, the governor agrees with the dissent and the dissent does not believe the mandate is a tax. they believe the mandate is unconstitutional. he was careful how he worded it. he doesn't go off on his own. >> let's get to the medicaid side of the s

eric fehrnstrom is mr. etch-a-sketch. >> is it true that president obama is the greatest flip-flopper of all because he's said for years oots a mandate, not a tax and now injuries prudence says it is a tax. tom, isn't obama the biggest flip-flopper here? >> frankly, obama argued before the supreme court that it was a tax. that was one of their arguments. again, by conflating this small penalty, this $600 penalty is going to hit fewer than 1% of people, with all of obamacare where states set up free market exchanges and people can buy insurance at lower prices, it doesn't serve -- >> larry. >> it confuses the american people. >> lars larson, i have to ask you, i think obama has deliberately confused the whole issue. lars, the entire republican party, including the congress, including the house, is going to use the idea that there is an obamacare tax. that is what the court, for better or worse, ruled. and they're going to overturn it on that basis. so i want to ask you, lars, will mr. romney and team romney

i agree with richard, i don't think getting rid of fehrnstrom is likely because of the relationship,told the truth. it's the truth that the governor has argued that, a penalty is not a tax. they stuck to that. >> republicans continue to run around calling it a tax, richard? >> yeah, because they have nowhere else to go. mitch mcconnell tried to say there were no conservatives who support this thing until john roberts said it was okay and that's why you're seeing the polls move. they have a bunch of talking points. the reality isn't defined by the media, it's defined by reality. you know, the reality is that a lot of conservatives think this health care approach was fine and among those people is the guy that was their nominee. they can talk around it as much as they like. the reality is still right there. >> according to the washington post, the romney family vacation is mandatory. he really does like mandates. let's take a look. >> the knowledge you have been given, you are now on the inside of what i like to call the burns family circle of trust. >> is there a romney circle of trus

chuck todd was on earlier talking about how fehrnstrom didn't say anything.n't supposed to say this was their way of keeping romney consistent on what he's been saying about mass care, romney care since 2006. now, it's nuanced. it came out as a mess, a total mess. the way fehrnstrom handles it and then romney comes out and tries to clarify it some more. there was a clearer way to do this and remain consistent. but this was not a mistake. mine this is chuck todd talking. >> let me make clear what she's saying. do you think the message fehrnstrom delivered on monday and the message that romney deliver dodd you think there was tweaking between monday and then? >> yes. >> do you say that. >> yes. they didn't change the message, they clarified it. i don't like the way they did it. i think 90% of the population doesn't understand what they're trying to say. not because they're dumb but because it's so esoteric and nuanced. but this was not a campaign mistake. this is what they meant to do. >> no, this was totally a mistake. "the wall street journal" rightly called

here's eric fehrnstrom. >> what did you call it in massachusetts?x or a penalty? >> it was a penalty and the governor had all of the authority he needed under our state constitution to put in place the reforms that he did put in place. >> bill: eric fehrnstrom who was -- who is top advisor to romney now and was with romney as governor of massachusetts as his chief of staff or whatever, a top aide. so he's saying no, it's not a tax. it is a penalty. >> really what this reminds us is this idea that everyone has the responsibility to get health insurance as long as we can make it affordable and if you don't you should pay. what really is a modest penalty under this law. more modest than i think some of the healthcare experts would have even liked to see is not a liberal or a radical idea. in fact, this was an idea that was really created or championed by the heritage foundation, one of the most conservative think tanks in the country. and so that's what we're running up against. >> bill: romney called it a responsibility fee or something like that. i m

my guess is fehrnstrom will be off tv for a while.he deeper reality here is this shows us not flip-flopping, but how much this guy is enthralled to the right wing. he's on permanent probation in his own party. if he weren't president, he'd face a primary in 2016. he's not like reagan who could govern as president in a pragmatic way, raise taxes, negotiate to save social security with tip o'neill, what this really tells us is that in this campaign, the romney campaign, the base calls the shot. not the candidate and if you were president, the same thing would be true. >> listen to mitt romney trying to explain why the mandate in obama's plan is a tax increase while the mandate that he put in place is not. >> actually, the chief justice in his opinion made it very clear that at the state level, states have the power to put in place mandates. they don't need to require them to be called taxes and to be constitutional and as a result, massachusetts mandate wss a mandate, a penalty, was ascribed that way bay the legislation and by me, so it

fehrnstrom out, and he said it is not a tax. journal" wrote the most scathing editorial about how mitt romney has thrown the entire republican party under the tracks and we see governor romney coming out yesterday saying it is a tax, not when i did it but and cited with the supreme court minority but agrees with the majority. >> what is a guy supposed to do when the date he has been pursuing this whole time really doesn't like him. they are stuck with him -- >> although in fairness myth's great grandfather miles p romney moved to mexico because he wanted to wear a lot of the corsages at the same time. >> exactly. and then we helped him out by bringing him back to the united states. but mitt romney cannot articulate a clear vision because it flies in the face of his own record. fehrnstrom, i think was honest. it is right. it is a penalty. and even if it is a tax it's a tax that there's no penalty for not paying. >> can you explain that please. >> in order for democrats to get this through -- to convince other democrats and maybe

here is eric fehrnstrom, also a senior adviser and mitt romney. >> the governor believes that what weace in massachusetts was a penalty. and he disagrees with the court's ruling that the mandate was a tax. >> the supreme court is the final word, right? highest court in the land? they said it was a tax, didn't they? so it's a tax, of course. that's what they say it is. >> so are you going to clear that up, kevin? >> well, i think, look, the governor spoke on this. i think for all the emphasis that we put on staff, staff really don't matter. what matters at the end of the day is the candidate, his vision, his words. and governor romney made very clear what he believes. he's made very clear, this is an election that voters are looking for a choice on the issue of obama care. you have one candidate that wants to keep it and believes the taxes, the regulations, the size and scope are good. and one candidate that believes it's not helpful for the american public and wants to repeal it and replace it with more patient-centered care. that is what is on the ballot in november. all this talk ab

today romney contradicted his top campaign adviser eric fehrnstrom and called it a tax. >> the supreme court is the final word, right? it's the highest court in the land. they said it was a tax. so it's a tax, of course. >> reporter: earlier this week he called it and a similar fee in romney's massachusetts health care reform a penalty. >> the governor believes what we put in place in massachusetts was a penalty, and he disagrees with the court's ruling that the mandate was a tax. >> reporter: the obama campaign accused romney of contradicting his own campaign and himself. >> we believe in america. >> reporter: but romney aides say the two views are aren't consistent. the war of words comes as the president prepares for a campaign bus tour of ohio and pennsylvania where he'll have some unwelcome company, former minnesota governor tim pawlenty and louisiana governor bobby jindal, both possible romney vp picks, will shadow the president. the trip could be overshadowed by this friday's jobs report. remember, the last report showed the unemployment report ticked up. the president really ca

his spokesperson eric fehrnstrom insisted that he did not. >> the governor believes that what we putplace in massachusetts was a penalty and he disagrees with the court's ruling that it was a mandate as a tax. >> putting romney for the first time perhaps in this entire election cycle on the same side as house minority leader nancy pelosi. >> it could come under any other place but it's under the tax code. >> eliot: democrats have more success running ads like this about the aftermath of a bain corporate takeover. >> we all lost our jobs. mitt romney made over $100 million by shutting down our plant and devastated our lives. >> eliot: and the ads seem to be resonating with the voters. 23% of the registered voters began with a positive view of romney's business record, but that number dropped to 18% with 33% having a negative view in 12 swing states where the bain attack ads were played. for more i'm joined by boris ebb stein republican strategist daily caller and former mccain mccain-palin communication aide. we have mitt romney and the g.o.p. congressional leadership. isn't this a ni

. >> but here's romney adviser eric fehrnstrom saying no, it's not a tax. >> the mandate is not a tax. >> just for good measure, romney spokesman andrea said it is not a tax. but the romney campaign must have caught a lot of flack from republicans because he felt able to say yes, the mandate is a tax. >> so it's a tax. like it or not, it's a tax. >> that was more than enough to set off rupert murdoch's wall street journal which wrote a stinging critique of romney's flip-flopping. quote, perhaps mr. romney is slowly figuring this out. in a july 4th interview he stated himself that the penalty is now a tax after all. but he offered no elaboration. so the campaign looks confused in addition to being politically dumb. the latest mistake is a piece of with the campaign's insular staff and strategy that are slowly squandering an opportunity. here's more on fox news. >> his two senior advisers have a totally different story. >> i know. it was so stupid. what he was doing is he didn't want to be accused of raising taxes in massachusetts. >> wow. so stupid, huh? and bill crystal agrees with th

. >>> coming up next, madeline fehrnstrom will answer your questions about diet, nutrition and health it's time for "today weighs in" when we get the answers about confusing and controversial topics of diet and fliegs and overall health. >> with us is madelyn fernstrom. sara is at the nbc experience store to round up some questions. what have you got, sara? >> our first question is from a dad/daughter combo. first question from dad. >> i've been trying to lose weight forever. i know what i can't do, i know what i can't eat, but i don't have the motivation. where do you get motivation? >> the biggest thing with motivation, it's hard to lose weight or even stay on track. but we think about losing weight. that's not the action verb. action verb is small steps changing your eating, small steps in physical activity and having the mindset that small achievements really count. i ate one more fruit today than yesterday. that's huge. i walked 30 minutes all week. we don't think they're a big deal, but these baby steps add up every day to help keep you motivated. you need support from others. t

what is his name -- >> eric fehrnstrom. >> mr.ey thinks it is not a tax -- >> yes. >> and then mitt romney said no it is a tax -- >> it is definitely a tax. >> and the preibus! kenny in cleveland sends this -- >> oh, dear. >> hold please while we deal with technical incompetence. >> if you can afford to buy insurance then buy it, if you don't want to buy it, then you have to put enough money aside to pay your own way. if people can afford to buy it either buy the insurance or pay your own way. don't be free riders and pass on the cost of your healthcare to everyone else. >> governor romney said in 2009 using tracks penalties or tax credits encourages free riders to take care of themselves. >> the government has consistently described the mandate in massachusetts as a penalty. the mandate was not a tax. >> okay. >> the governor believes what he put in place in massachusetts was a pen amity. >> the majority of the courts said it is a tax. and therefore it is a tax. >> what is the rnc's position? >> well, our position is the same as

eric fehrnstrom was asked who was running bain between 1999 and 2002? his response, you should check with bain, but it wasn't romney. the huffington post checked with the security and exchange commission in six different filings between april of 2000 and may of 2001. mitt romney was listed as a member of the management committee at bain. the committee was responsible, key word there, for day to day operations of bain. in one filing, romney was listed as president and managing director. no one can have titles like this in the business world and not have any responsibilities to accompany. romney's answers are clouding the issue, no doubt. it's getting so bad for mitt romney, even conservative pundits are urging him to release his tax returns to get everything out in the open. >> mitt romney is losing at this point in a big way. if something is going to come out, get it out in a hurry. >> he should release the tax returns tomorrow. you have to release six, eight years of tax returns. >> there's obviously something there. if there was nothing there, he woul

i think fehrnstrom was speak for romney and the campaign that was quite clear.didn't want to have to admit that he raised a tax in massachusetts. so romney was defending his own position. meanwhile republicans are out there calling it a tax and they say to romney you can't take this position. you got to go with us on this. so a couple days later romney switches. sow gets stuck with the flip-flop. he looks like he is caving to pressure from congressional republicans and the right wing of the party and it looks like the campaign is not competent. because you would have thought t was known for a long time that the supreme court was coming down with a decision. there were a lot of different possibilities. would you have thought they would have worked this out in advance. i think it was a loser a crossing the board for him. >> which is why he should announce a plan. so it's less about talking about the past, the massachusetts pretzel he's stuck in and mostly talking about here's my opposite, here is obama's option, you decide. >> woodruff: how much is he hurt if at a

i'm concerned about eric fehrnstrom and he gave the etch-a-sket etch-a-sketch remark and internally romneyem to be saying they're upset with him for doing that. at the same time, though, the president up until the supreme court gave him a win last week had a significant series of bad weeks. polling isn't going well in the battle grounds. even cnn has him behind mitt romney in battle grounds. and no one wants to talk about should barack obama's team do this. i don't know if it's fair to talk about mitt romney's team when they're neck and neck in the polls and he hadn't done anything wrong in the past few weeks. >> right. and this is a campaign being run out of massachusetts so there are a lot of consultants wanting in. but to change your campaign at this point would be so destabilizing and demoralizing. you want to reach out and grow your campaign is what i think i'm hearing eric say. but when you're in the real heat, that would be i think a terrible management decision. >> final word -- >> mitt romney should ignore people like jack welch and rupert murdoch. neither one have ever run for po

and his words yesterday contradicted how his senior advisor eric fehrnstrom characterized romney's view just two days earlier, on msnbc. the governor believes t what we put in place in massachusetts was a penalty and he disagrees with the court's ruling that the mandate was a tax. >> reporter: romney remained on vacation today, but his campaign issued a statement, turning the focus back on obama, for denying his own justice department argument that the mandate could be seen as a tax. but the back and forth over what to call the mandate also raised concerns among conservatives over the romney campaign's overall strategy. the "wall street journal," in a harshly worded editorial today suggested that the romney camp's handling of the mandate and other issues could be putting his prospects in jeopardy. one quote: "the campaign looks confused in addition to being politically dumb." the editorial added that romney's staff is slowly squandering an historic opportunity. and with four months to go until election day, a new pew research center poll finds that voters believe the campaign is informa