Thu May 10, 2012, 09:02 AM

Wash Post article - Romney was an anti-gay bully in High School - assaulted gay student

Last edited Thu May 10, 2012, 09:53 AM USA/ET - Edit history (2)

Mitt Romney’s prep school classmates recall pranks, but also troubling incidents
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By Jason Horowitz, Updated: Thursday, May 10, 7:02 AM

BLOOMFIELD HILLS, Mich. — Mitt Romney returned from a three-week spring break in 1965 to resume his studies as a high school senior at the prestigious Cranbrook School. Back on the handsome campus, studded with Tudor brick buildings and manicured fields, he spotted something he thought did not belong at a school where the boys wore ties and carried briefcases. John Lauber, a soft-spoken new student one year behind Romney, was perpetually teased for his nonconformity and presumed homosexuality. Now he was walking around the all-boys school with bleached-blond hair that draped over one eye, and Romney wasn’t having it.

“He can’t look like that. That’s wrong. Just look at him!” an incensed Romney told Matthew Friedemann, his close friend in the Stevens Hall dorm, according to Friedemann’s recollection. Mitt, the teenaged son of Michigan Gov. George Romney, kept complaining about Lauber’s look, Friedemann recalled.

A few days later, Friedemann entered Stevens Hall off the school’s collegiate quad to find Romney marching out of his own room ahead of a prep school posse shouting about their plan to cut Lauber’s hair. Friedemann followed them to a nearby room where they came upon Lauber, tackled him and pinned him to the ground. As Lauber, his eyes filling with tears, screamed for help, Romney repeatedly clipped his hair with a pair of scissors.

The incident was recalled similarly by five students, who gave their accounts independently of one another. Four of them — Friedemann, now a dentist; Phillip Maxwell, a lawyer; Thomas Buford, a retired prosecutor; and David Seed, a retired principal — spoke on the record. Another former student who witnessed the incident asked not to be named. The men have differing political affiliations, although they mostly lean Democratic. Buford volunteered for Barack Obama’s campaign in 2008. Seed, a registered independent, has served as a Republican county chairman in Michigan. All of them said that politics in no way colored their recollections.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/mitt-romneys-prep-school-classmates-recall-pranks-but-also-troubling-incidents/2012/05/10/gIQA3WOKFU_story.html?hpid=z2

America has a clear f#%king choice this year!

Edit to add - This article reminds me of Republicans mocking Pres. Obama for saying he thought empathy was an important trait for a Supreme Court Justice to have. Clearly, a very unimportant - actually a negative trait - to Republicans.

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166 replies	Author	Time	Post
Wash Post article - Romney was an anti-gay bully in High School - assaulted gay student (Original post)	Pirate Smile	May 2012	OP
worth kicking today.. the contrast couldn't be greater. . . n/t	annabanana	May 2012	#1
no surprise	spanone	May 2012	#2
Nope, not at all.	freshwest	May 2012	#137
Wow---just fucking wow.	trumad	May 2012	#3
Hmmmm. I sure hope we'll be hearing more about this. K&R	lamp_shade	May 2012	#4
This really needs to go viral. Shows his meaness and lack of character...n/t	monmouth	May 2012	#5
But, but, but...........	PatSeg	May 2012	#115
Me too. He remembers it alright, probably quietly thanking whomever he thanks that the	monmouth	May 2012	#118
And now Romney	PatSeg	May 2012	#120
Didn't dimson also	xxqqqzme	May 2012	#123
Yes he did	PatSeg	May 2012	#125
Thats because the bushes kill anyone who may potentially speak up.	Dont call me Shirley	May 2012	#129
That thought occurred to me	PatSeg	May 2012	#132
Well you know, Romney has that "selective memory recall" thing.	crunch60	May 2012	#142
I know	PatSeg	May 2012	#143
met him in person and off camera	icarusxat	May 2012	#158
Apparently, he has some fixation with how hair is supposed to look...	Zookeeper	May 2012	#159
Yep	PatSeg	May 2012	#163
holy shit, that's bad	Enrique	May 2012	#6
I have a tough time	dwig3d	May 2012	#91
If Obama's alleged eating of dogs when he was 10 is fair game	gratuitous	May 2012	#7
I wouldn't hold your breath	nxylas	May 2012	#24
This needs to go to Rachel.	Faygo Kid	May 2012	#8
I'm pretty certain that she's already on this	ashling	May 2012	#119
Wow!	treestar	May 2012	#9
So he wasn't	ProSense	May 2012	#10
It will be. This isn't a blog or left-leaning publication. It's the Washington Post,	Pirate Smile	May 2012	#14
well we're disgusted by this however	azurnoir	May 2012	#11
I don't know about that...Still a lot of mullet lovin' repugs out there....	Tikki	May 2012	#41
I am not surprised, not one little bit	adigal	May 2012	#12
Tuck Chodd mentioning it now.	lamp_shade	May 2012	#13
Wow. A "three-week spring break"? Damn, must be nice.	Bruce Wayne	May 2012	#15
sounds like the killings in Iraq for Emo hair	riverwalker	May 2012	#16
A conformist asshole and a bully then . . . .	hatrack	May 2012	#17
Romney's behavior is outrageous and indefensible	bupkus	May 2012	#18
Yup. That's the Mitt-Wit. He hasn't changed one iota.	TahitiNut	May 2012	#19
Borg Romney and his 'prep school posse': "You will be assimilated"	FailureToCommunicate	May 2012	#20
We are the Morg. Lower your shields and put on your magic underwear, you will be assimilated.	backscatter712	May 2012	#25
Whenever I hear the word "pranks," I immediately think of bullying disguised as humor. (nt)	enough	May 2012	#21
And don't tell me this isn't relevant today--it tells a lot about his character.	WI_DEM	May 2012	#22
Agree	wendylaroux	May 2012	#35
agree	maddezmom	May 2012	#50
+1	uponit7771	May 2012	#79
Willard's new campaign slogan. Vote for the rich bully.	sarcasmo	May 2012	#23
Rich WHITE bully	FailureToCommunicate	May 2012	#42
I'd prefer: "Bully for the rich."	longship	May 2012	#47
I think I like the "I am borg, here to assimilate you"	newspeak	May 2012	#101
Perhaps his campaign leaked this to help enhance his "tough-guy" image	corkhead	May 2012	#117
I'm not surprised	Renew Deal	May 2012	#26
Emphatic K&R - American people deserve to know all about this	coalition_unwilling	May 2012	#27
unbelievable	maddezmom	May 2012	#28
another part of the article	warrior1	May 2012	#29
“Atta girl!”	riverwalker	May 2012	#34
K&R. Sociopathic POS. n/t	DLevine	May 2012	#30
What a clAss act.	Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin	May 2012	#31
I have incidents from high school that I'm not particularly proud of...	KansDem	May 2012	#32
Mitt is Biff. eom	leveymg	May 2012	#33
Bullshit...the kid's hair was cut because he ate spoiled turkey off the counter!	joeybee12	May 2012	#36
Wait a minute: Have we heard from John Lauber? What's his price	ProgressiveEconomist	May 2012	#37
he died in 2004	maddezmom	May 2012	#58
Thanks. I searched repeatedly inside that article for "Lauber" but did not see that detail.	ProgressiveEconomist	May 2012	#76
no problem	maddezmom	May 2012	#82
He passed on, liver cancer I think.	Mother Of Four	May 2012	#65
I'm sure no one is surprised by this revelation. Even when he's trying to be "charming" he's a bully	myrna minx	May 2012	#38
asshole	get the red out	May 2012	#39
Not uncommon behavior for the time...	malthaussen	May 2012	#40
I think that anyone who would do what Romney did would have been	JDPriestly	May 2012	#69
This WILL kill his chances in November. The GOP is clueless on vetting candidates, it seems	slackmaster	May 2012	#43
This might help him with some of the RWers out there	NewJeffCT	May 2012	#109
Romney is very unpopular among much of the right because of his record on gun control laws	slackmaster	May 2012	#111
I bet Ted Nugent loves this.nt	DocMac	May 2012	#140
The wing-nuts posted plenty of excuses for Rmoney in the WAPO comments.	Zookeeper	May 2012	#160
That something happened a long time ago is often weak sauce as an excuse	slackmaster	May 2012	#162
The responses were just knee jerk. I doubt that...	Zookeeper	May 2012	#164
marking to read later	tanyev	May 2012	#44
Sickening.	Skinner	May 2012	#45
photo of the young hair Nazi	Enrique	May 2012	#46
I've said it before here, Romney = Greg Marmalard	Gidney N Cloyd	May 2012	#74
LOL. Dead on, Gidney!	catbyte	May 2012	#130
he had/has predator eyes & grin	eShirl	May 2012	#92
This makes me like Romney even less	karynnj	May 2012	#48
Yep--not to mention blowing up frogs.	classof56	May 2012	#83
He's a thug.	highplainsdem	May 2012	#49
K&R n/t	Lugnut	May 2012	#51
I smell a "gay boating" mini series coming they	bonniebgood	May 2012	#52
Huh? what are you saying? do tell.	cali	May 2012	#63
what are you saying here?	maddezmom	May 2012	#71
I wonder who would be surprised by this. I doubt most DUers would be. nt	valerief	May 2012	#53
Imagine the backlash if Obama had attacked a kid cuz he was White?!?	catbyte	May 2012	#54
Let's hope this is publicized everywhere.	MineralMan	May 2012	#55
Thats one of the qualifications	Iliyah	May 2012	#56
A bully with a short temper -- should make the debates interesting...	Buns_of_Fire	May 2012	#57
despicable -- but it will endear him to some of the GOP base	fishwax	May 2012	#59
Piece of shit, Mitt Romeny n/t	ejbr	May 2012	#60
How about a bunch of people who lost their jobs because of Romney's Bain Capital .....	Botany	May 2012	#61
I hope the Dems keep this little gem ready.....	Swede Atlanta	May 2012	#62
Here's something else from the article that bothered me to read	polly7	May 2012	#64
That's disturbing. How mean.	TwilightGardener	May 2012	#155
It will be interesting to see how (or if) ...	surrealAmerican	May 2012	#66
This little anecdote	Turbineguy	May 2012	#67
Gawd I don't know what I like better ...	bayareaboy	May 2012	#68
It's unclear whether Romney opposed the kid's gayness	Marzupialis	May 2012	#70
No doubt Ted Nugent is	Smilo	May 2012	#72
This has to go mainstream.....timing is curious.	Chakaconcarne	May 2012	#73
Good call Chaka	zzaapp	May 2012	#75
I agree; it's no mistake or coincidence.	eShirl	May 2012	#93
Fuck Mitt Romney. nt	boxman15	May 2012	#77
Not so surprising that Romney was a bully...	beac	May 2012	#78
I can't belive this, I...wow....this guy is sadistic...please people vote...fuckin wow	uponit7771	May 2012	#80
Romney has finally found something he doesn't flip flop over.	Sheepshank	May 2012	#81
Cranbrook School is NOT a "high school"	KurtNYC	May 2012	#84
"Governor Romney has no memory of participating in these incidents"	groundloop	May 2012	#85
and now has issued a non-apology apology	maddezmom	May 2012	#89
non apology apology & he has a bad memory too	Botany	May 2012	#95
Operative word "seem..."	Aviation Pro	May 2012	#90
Fucking prick	cindyperry2010	May 2012	#86
But this is heroic leader behavior to Republicans.	Kablooie	May 2012	#87
Lurch the Fucking Stiff....	Aviation Pro	May 2012	#88
Rant Of The Day	HangOnKids	May 2012	#116
"Go fuck yourself and the fucking dressage horse you rode in on, phlegm."	Maven	May 2012	#121
LOL!!!	DocMac	May 2012	#141
Given his history of animal abuse this is no surprise -	TBF	May 2012	#94
Thanks.	Scurrilous	May 2012	#96
The problem isn't the incident itself. I'd hate to be judged on the things I did in high school.	LetTimmySmoke	May 2012	#97
The incident itself is pretty fucking brutal, actually	alcibiades_mystery	May 2012	#138
K&R! We need to take down this homophobic, psychopathic skinjob! n/t	backscatter712	May 2012	#98
people like him shouldn't make it to Street Cleaner.	BlancheSplanchnik	May 2012	#99
Bush blew up frogs	thesquanderer	May 2012	#100
Mitt, your Delta Tau Chi name is "Brutus"	KamaAina	May 2012	#102
Mitt is WAY too square for the Deltas. He'd fit right in with the Omega House though.	Initech	May 2012	#104
"Thank you, Sir, may I have another?"	KamaAina	May 2012	#108
I keep telling you - today's bullies = tomorrow's Republicans.	Initech	May 2012	#103
yep, i wonder when similar stories come out about John BONER, Eric WANKER,	alp227	May 2012	#157
Romney's going to lose it before Nov.	AnnieK401	May 2012	#105
RMoney has NO empathy, none at all...	Spazito	May 2012	#106
He and "W" have something in common	young_at_heart	May 2012	#107
Why am I not surprised? First the dog, then the dog-eating, and now this.	daaron	May 2012	#110
Mitt again is completely lacking in courage	aint_no_life_nowhere	May 2012	#112
Great! More grist for the mill!	ailsagirl	May 2012	#113
Reminds me of the film If... with Malcolm McDowell	Ghost of Tom Joad	May 2012	#114
Fucking bastard! May he go to Hell!	Odin2005	May 2012	#122
Right wing spin: Romney was showing his leadership abilities even back then.	tclambert	May 2012	#124
And just when I think my opinion of the shitstain cannot get any lower	Rex	May 2012	#126
Glad this is hitting the news - it'll make a difference to independent voters...	polichick	May 2012	#127
What a miserable POS this guy is.	NYC Liberal	May 2012	#128
A Bully? NO! K&R	DianaForRussFeingold	May 2012	#131
This is exactly who Romney is.....	TLM	May 2012	#133
Bastard	Why Syzygy	May 2012	#134
I think the story said he died... (nt)	TLM	May 2012	#135
A "prank" is pennying someone in their room so they	hifiguy	May 2012	#136
Assault is not a "prank".	Why Syzygy	May 2012	#139
Yep. Had they done this to a woman, they would have been arrested.	TwilightGardener	May 2012	#154
Just another reason	Aerows	May 2012	#144
Can Romney be the R nominee after this?	abelenkpe	May 2012	#145
It is likely that he enjoyed doing that. One of his first tasks in becoming a "god" over Earth.	patrice	May 2012	#146
America needs to know what kind of asshole this guy at least was	usregimechange	May 2012	#147
wow	Skittles	May 2012	#148
Sociopath...	Brooklyn Dame	May 2012	#149
This is the Republican way.	Thinkingabout	May 2012	#150
This message was self-deleted by its author	chrisa	May 2012	#151
They keep saying Crannapple or whatever is an elite institution. It is not. It is very expensive,	mahina	May 2012	#152
Good Gawd what an Asshole!!!	SunsetDreams	May 2012	#153
I knew it!	Tripod	May 2012	#156
I would be EXTREMELY sad to know that my son did something so very cruel.	spicegal	May 2012	#161
Romney is a Bully Punk	Joey Liberal	May 2012	#165
The "Poor Me" generation	banana convention.	May 2012	#166

Response to Pirate Smile (Original post)

Thu May 10, 2012, 09:04 AM

annabanana (45,588 posts)

Wash Post article - Romney was an anti-gay bully in High School - assaulted gay student

1. worth kicking today.. the contrast couldn't be greater. . . n/t

2. no surprise

137. Nope, not at all.

3. Wow---just fucking wow.

4. Hmmmm. I sure hope we'll be hearing more about this. K&R

5. This really needs to go viral. Shows his meaness and lack of character...n/t

115. But, but, but...........

118. Me too. He remembers it alright, probably quietly thanking whomever he thanks that the

120. And now Romney

123. Didn't dimson also

125. Yes he did

129. Thats because the bushes kill anyone who may potentially speak up.

132. That thought occurred to me

142. Well you know, Romney has that "selective memory recall" thing.

143. I know

158. met him in person and off camera

159. Apparently, he has some fixation with how hair is *supposed* to look...

163. Yep

6. holy shit, that's bad

91. I have a tough time

7. If Obama's alleged eating of dogs when he was 10 is fair game

24. I wouldn't hold your breath

8. This needs to go to Rachel.

119. I'm pretty certain that she's already on this

9. Wow!

10. So he wasn't

14. It will be. This isn't a blog or left-leaning publication. It's the Washington Post,

11. well we're disgusted by this however

41. I don't know about that...Still a lot of mullet lovin' repugs out there....

12. I am not surprised, not one little bit

13. Tuck Chodd mentioning it now.

15. Wow. A "three-week spring break"? Damn, must be nice.

16. sounds like the killings in Iraq for Emo hair

17. A conformist asshole and a bully then . . . .

18. Romney's behavior is outrageous and indefensible

19. Yup. That's the Mitt-Wit. He hasn't changed one iota.

20. Borg Romney and his 'prep school posse': "You will be assimilated"

25. We are the Morg. Lower your shields and put on your magic underwear, you will be assimilated.

21. Whenever I hear the word "pranks," I immediately think of bullying disguised as humor. (nt)

22. And don't tell me this isn't relevant today--it tells a lot about his character.

35. Agree

50. agree

79. +1

23. Willard's new campaign slogan. Vote for the rich bully.

42. Rich WHITE bully

47. I'd prefer: "Bully for the rich."

101. I think I like the "I am borg, here to assimilate you"

117. Perhaps his campaign leaked this to help enhance his "tough-guy" image

26. I'm not surprised

27. Emphatic K&R - American people deserve to know all about this

28. unbelievable

29. another part of the article

34. “Atta girl!”

30. K&R. Sociopathic POS. n/t

31. What a clAss act.

32. I have incidents from high school that I'm not particularly proud of...

33. Mitt is Biff. eom

36. Bullshit...the kid's hair was cut because he ate spoiled turkey off the counter!

37. Wait a minute: Have we heard from John Lauber? What's his price

58. he died in 2004

76. Thanks. I searched repeatedly inside that article for "Lauber" but did not see that detail.

82. no problem

65. He passed on, liver cancer I think.

38. I'm sure no one is surprised by this revelation. Even when he's trying to be "charming" he's a bully

39. asshole

40. Not uncommon behavior for the time...

69. I think that anyone who would do what Romney did would have been

43. This WILL kill his chances in November. The GOP is clueless on vetting candidates, it seems

109. This might help him with some of the RWers out there

111. Romney is very unpopular among much of the right because of his record on gun control laws

140. I bet Ted Nugent loves this.nt

160. The wing-nuts posted plenty of excuses for Rmoney in the WAPO comments.

162. That something happened a long time ago is often weak sauce as an excuse

164. The responses were just knee jerk. I doubt that...

44. marking to read later

45. Sickening.

46. photo of the young hair Nazi

74. I've said it before here, Romney = Greg Marmalard

130. LOL. Dead on, Gidney!

159. Apparently, he has some fixation with how hair is supposed to look...

104. Mitt is WAY too square for the Deltas. He'd fit right in with the Omega House though.