The incident, coming the day before Romney gets Secret Service assigned to him, was orchestrated by several members of Occupy Minneapolis and of a group called Glitterati, which advocates for gay rights.
Romney came this afternoon to Minnesota – a state holding its caucuses on Feb. 7 – as the next phase of the Republican primary begins and as he seeks to consolidate different factions of the party. Romney never mentioned Gingrich during his remarks, focusing squarely on President Obama.
After a month in which all the contests were held in concentrated states, the campaign now becomes a more national campaign, with six states scattered around the country planning to vote this month. Romney released new radio ads in Colorado and Nevada.
After his rally here outside Minneapolis, Romney was planning to board a plane and head to Las Vegas for a rally tonight. The Nevada caucuses, which Romney won four years ago, will be held on Saturday. He’s also balancing his time between Colorado, which is holding caucuses on Tuesday.
Gingrich was planning to hold an event in Reno, Nevada, as he attempts to regroup and find a way to get some momentum back after a resounding loss last night in Florida.
“Wow, what a night, huh?” Romney told reporters on his campaign plane this morning, according to press reports. “If they all go like that I’ll feel pretty good. I obviously feel terrific.”
Romney this morning also said that he was “not concerned about the very poor,” citing an “ample safety net.” His critics immediately seized upon the comments as another indication that Romney – by far the wealthiest presidential candidate – is out of touch.
“I’m not concerned about the very poor,” he said on CNN. “We have a safety net there. If it needs a repair, I’ll fix it. I’m not concerned about the very rich, they’re doing just fine. I’m concerned about the very heart of America, the 90-95 percent of Americans who right now are struggling.”
