Romney's Desperate Ridiculous Slam on Obama Comes Back To Bite Him

"The President today threw in the white flag of surrender again. He said he can’t change Washington from inside. He can only change it from outside. Well, we’re going to give him that chance in November. He’s going outside," Romney said to cheers. "I can change Washington. I will change Washington. We’ll get the job done from the inside -- Republicans and Democrats will come together. He can’t do it. His slogan was ‘Yes, we can.’ His slogan now is ‘No, I can’t.’ This is time for a new president."

Romney, campaigning against longtime Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) in 2007, took the opposite position . "So he certainly has political skill, but I believe that at this time, to change Washington, it would be helpful to have somebody who comes with more private sector skill, experience outside Washington. I don't think you change Washington from the inside. I think you change it from the outside."

Lis Smith, a spokeswoman for the Obama campaign, issued the following statement in response to Romney's remarks:

Once again, Mitt Romney is trying to take the heat off himself by taking the President’s words wildly out of context. That’s twice in just 48 hours, which sets a new record in desperation. What the President said today is no different than what he has been saying for many years – that change comes from outside Washington, not inside. When Americans came together and stood up to special interests, we reformed health care, cut taxes for the middle class and put in new rules for Wall Street. And, that’s why we have elections. Mitt Romney apparently doesn’t believe that change comes from the American people. Maybe that’s because he has written off half the country in this election, and has repeatedly demonstrated that he’s incapable of standing up to the extreme right wing of the Republican Party—even if it’s in our national interest.