Mitt Romney stands by gaffe but says case not 'elegantly stated' Mitt Romney speaks to reporters about the secretly taped video from one of his campaign fundraising events in Costa Mesa Photograph: Charles Dharapak/AP Mitt Romney's campaign came close to hitting the self-destruct button when he stood by a secret video recording suggesting that 47% of Americans are government-dependent scroungers who do not pay taxes. In a hastily-convened press conference, the Republican presidential candidate confirmed the authenticity of the video and opted against disavowing the views expressed in it. He said only that the case was not "elegantly stated" and that he had "spoken off the cuff." He was speaking after a secret video recording was posted on a website in which he was caught denigrating people who receive benefits from the government. He went on suggest they could expect little help from him if he became president. "My job is not to worry about those people," he said. He added that all these government-dependent people would support Barack Obama. The video was recorded a few months ago at a fund-raising event behind-closed-doors. The release of the video is the most damaging episode yet in a campaign filled with Romney mishaps. His campaign is in danger of turning into one of the most ineptly-run in recent US political history, though there are still seven weeks left to turn it round. The Obama campaign described the video as "shocking." In his press conference, in California, Romney basically repeated the case he made in the video that the 47% dependent on the government would vote for Obama, though couched in slightly less inflammatory language. Obama's policies are "attractive to people who do not pay taxes," Romney said. Romney tends to avoid the press as much as possible and it is a sign of the seriousness of the situation that he had to make an impromptu statement. He attempted to pose his comments as part of a broader philosophical debate about the future of America. Do you believe in a government-centered society that provides more and more benefits? Or do you believe instead in a free enterprise society where people are able to pursue their dreams? He insisted he wanted to help all Americans. While his views about people dependent on the government will be applauded by parts of the right, he risks alienating independents who do not share his view of American society and also motivating disgruntled Democrats who may have otherwise have abstained in the 6 November election to get out and vote. It also plays into the portrait that the Democrats have been gradually building of Romney as an extremely wealthly individual who is out of touch with working-class and middle-class Americans. At a bare minimum, the controversy ensures it will be the dominant theme of the week, with Romney forced on the defensive again, with detailed discussion of who precisely constitutes the 47%. It also means that the issue of how much he himself paid in taxes will resurface, with calls for him to release his tax returns beyond the two years he has volunteered. The video, was posted on the website of the liberal Mother Jones magazine. It came only hours after the Romney campaign acknowledged it is struggling when it announced it was to change strategy. Romney is trailing Obama in the polls by about three percentage points. In the video, Romney said: "All right, there are 47% who are with him (Obama), who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe the government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to healthcare, to food, to housing, to you-name-it." Many of those he includes in the 47% do pay tax. Many of those also receive government money because they are elderly and have been paying into the system all their lives. The controversy broke only hours after the Romney campaign set out to recalibrate its strategy. It said it would attempt to give a clearer, more positive picture of their candidate as it seeks to regain the initiative with just 50 days to go until the election.