5 years ago 
 
 Washington (CNN) – "Reprehensible." "Irresponsible." "Hard to stomach." 
 
 White House senior adviser David Plouffe did not mince words Sunday when talking about the reaction by Republican presidential candidates Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich to President Barack Obama's comments on the Trayvon Martin shooting. 
 
 
 
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 "Those two comments are really irresponsible. I would consider them reprehensible," Plouffe said on CNN's "State of the Union." "I think those comments were really hard to stomach, really, and I guess trying to appeal to people's worst instincts." 
 
 While the GOP presidential candidates said the incident was a tragedy, Santorum and Gingrich were particularly critical of the president's response to the shooting in which Martin, an unarmed 17-year-old, was shot and killed by a George Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer. Zimmerman claimed he shot Martin in self-defense. 
 
 A somber Obama on Friday commiserated with the Martin family and urged authorities to fully investigate the shooting. 
 
 "If I had a son he would look like Trayvon," Obama said. "I think (his parents) are right to expect that all of us as Americans are going to take this with the seriousness it deserves and we will get to the bottom of exactly what happened." 
 
 Santorum said the president politicized the events, while Gingrich characterized Obama's comments as "nonsense." 
 
 "What the president of the United States should do is try to bring people together, not use these types of horrible and tragic individual cases to try to drive a wedge in America," Santorum said Friday on "The Hugh Hewitt Show," a radio program. 
 
 "Is the president suggesting if it had been a white who had been shot, that would be OK because it wouldn't look like him? That's just nonsense," Gingrich said Friday on conservative host Sean Hannity's radio show, "The Hannity Show." "I mean dividing this country up, it is a tragedy this young man was shot." 
 
 But Plouffe, who served as Obama's 2008 campaign manager, said the Republican reaction is evidence of a circus-like primary. 
 
 "I don't think there's very many people in America that would share that reaction. You know, this Republican primary at some points has been more of a circus show and a clown show," Plouffe told CNN Chief Political Correspondent Candy Crowley. 
 
 Although he indicated the Obama campaign expects Romney to be the Republican nominee, Plouffe also predicted an aggressive election come fall. 
 
 "Romney has a big delegate lead so we've always felt you know because Romney's won a couple of big states lately, the fundamentals kind of support him," Plouffe said. "But it's going to be a close competitive race no matter who come out the other side." 
 
 Also see: 
 
 Santorum's Louisiana win does little to change the game of delegate math 
 
 ‘Math isn’t adding up,’ Gingrich delegate says 
 
 Santorum video: 'Obamaville' is a house of horrors 
 
 Watch State of the Union with Candy Crowley Sundays at 9am ET. For the latest from State of the Union click here. ||||| White House senior adviser David Plouffe said on Sunday that the administration is "confident" that the U.S. Supreme Court will find the health care law constitutional. 
 
 "We are confident it will be upheld," Plouffe said on ABC's "This Week," a day before oral arguments open on the case. 
 
 He said the mandate requiring every American to obtain health insurance is a concept developed by conservative thinkers and once supported by Republicans Newt Gingrich, Bob Dole and Mitt Romney, who Plouffe termed the "godfather" of the mandate. 
 
 Asked why the law isn't more popular, Plouffe said that hundreds of millions of dollars have been spent attacking it and that the major benefits won't kick in until 2014. 
 
 "We just have to tell the story of this," he said. "One thing I am confident of, by the end of this decade, we are going to be very glad the Republicans termed this Obamacare because when the reality of health care is in place it will be nothing like the kind of fear mongering that was done." 
 
 Read more about: Supreme Court, David Plouffe, Health Law ||||| 5 years ago 
 
 (CNN) – Newt Gingrich may be far behind in the GOP delegate count – he has a quarter of the number frontrunner Mitt Romney does – but said on CNN's "The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer" that he isn't bowing out of the race. 
 
 "I think this is not over until it's over and obviously, if he does become the nominee, I will support him," the former House speaker said of Romney, calling him "the weakest front runner in modern times." 
 
 
 
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 The former Massachusetts governor leads a four-man field - including Gingrich, former Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania, and Texas Rep. Ron Paul – ambling towards 1,144, the so-called "magic number" of GOP delegates needed for the nomination. Almost two-dozen contests remain, the last of which, Utah, votes on June 26. 
 
 "If he can get to 1,144, he's the nominee," Gingrich said. "But if he can't get to 1,144, on 26th of June, it will be a wide open primary at that point. If Romney can't clinch it, I think it becomes pretty wide open." 
 
 He likened the Republican race this year to the 2008 Democratic primary, when then-Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama wrangled for months after Sen. John McCain became the de facto GOP nominee. 
 
 In the case Romney does not win outright, Gingrich said "we'll have a discussion for those 60 days for who ought to be the right person to beat Barack Obama." 
 
 Santorum has also committed to remain in the race and is currently second in the delegate count. When pressed by CNN's Wolf Blitzer, Gingrich said Santorum "he doesn't have a guaranteed lock any more than I do or Romney does" on the nomination. 
 
 When President Obama spoke out on the death last month of Florida teen Trayvon Martin, Gingrich called his remarks "disgraceful." Asked about his comments, and a critical response to them by one of President Obama's reelection advisers, Gingrich did not repeat the criticism. 
 
 "I think he should show empathy for that family. I think he should show empathy for every family that loses a child," Gingrich said. "We should be concerned about any young American of any background who ends up getting killed. I think all of us should reach out with our hearts to any American." 
 
 With the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, or "Obamacare," as many know it, before the Supreme Court, Gingrich said he expects the court to find unconstitutional its requirement that individuals carry health insurance or face a penalty – and, because of that, strike down the entire law. He said his past support for an individual mandate came with a "libertarian opt out clause" which would allow individuals "other ways of meeting their financial responsibilities." 
 
 Also see: 
 
 Santorum: Romney 'worst Republican' to run against Obama 
 
 Ryan's open to V.P spot 
 
 Graham's 'comfortable' with Romney 
 
 Plouffe calls out GOP candidates over Obama reaction 
 
 Watch The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer weekdays at 4pm to 6pm ET and Saturdays at 6pm ET. For the latest from The Situation Room click here. ||||| Story highlights Mitt Romney says the health care reform law stifles economic growth 
 
 A new poll shows the nation is divided over health care reform 
 
 Rick Santorum bashes Romney over health care outside the Supreme Court 
 
 A Romney supporter says Santorum has lost his "self control" 
 
 Rick Santorum went to the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday to attack front-running Republican presidential rival Mitt Romney over the federal health care reform law being argued inside this week. 
 
 Framing the legal challenge to the 2010 health care law as a question of "basic liberty in our society," Santorum said Romney lacks credibility in opposing health care reform because he implemented a similar system in Massachusetts when he was governor. 
 
 "There is one candidate in this race who can actually make the contrast that is necessary between the Republican position -- the conservative position ... and one that (President) Barack Obama believes in -- and that's Rick Santorum," the former Pennsylvania senator told reporters. 
 
 Santorum called Romney "uniquely disqualified to make the case" against the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which critics refer to as "Obamacare" because it was championed by the president. 
 
 "He's the worst candidate to go against Barack Obama on the most important issue of the day," Santorum said. 
 
 The comments illustrated ramped-up rhetoric during an off week in the Republican campaign before the next primaries in Wisconsin, Maryland and the District of Columbia on April 3. 
 
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 Coming off Saturday's strong victory in Louisiana, the conservative Santorum is trying to maintain momentum as the race heads for states considered friendlier territory for the more moderate Romney, who has a 2-to-1 lead in delegates. 
 
 According to CNN's unofficial estimates, Romney has 569 delegates compared with 262 for Santorum, 136 for former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and 71 for Texas Rep. Ron Paul. It takes 1,144 to secure the Republican nomination. 
 
 Romney campaigned Monday in California, telling an event in San Diego that the health care reform law was "an attack on free enterprise, an attack on economic freedom unlike anything we have ever seen before." 
 
 Speaking at NuVasive, a medical device company that designs artificial spine replacements, Romney said a new tax on medical device companies under the health care law could force the business to eliminate 200 jobs. 
 
 "I just don't think the president and his people understand that as they burden enterprise with taxation and with regulation, they hurt all of us," Romney said. 
 
 A CNN/ORC International Poll released Monday showed that the health care law is increasing in popularity, especially among independent voters, but half of all Americans still oppose it. 
 
 According to the poll, 43% of Americans approve of the law, up 5 points from November, with 50% saying they disapprove, a drop of 6 points. Of those who oppose the measure, 37% said it was too liberal and 10% said it wasn't liberal enough. 
 
 The health care issue prompted an emotional debate when the law moved through Congress in 2009 and 2010, and it continues to create controversy. 
 
 On Sunday, Santorum used a profanity in responding to a New York Times reporter asking about Santorum's assessment of Romney as the "worst Republican in the country" to run in November. Santorum insisted he was talking in the context of the health care issue and called the reporter's question an attempt to distort his words, saying "It's bulls---." 
 
 Santorum refused to back down Monday over the exchange, saying: "If you're a conservative and you haven't taken on a New York Times reporter, you're not worth your salt, as far as I'm concerned." 
 
 In an interview on CNN's "The Situation Room," Santorum said the confrontation was ginned up by Romney campaign operatives. 
 
 "They sent a Romney person to our speech," he said. "He fed the line to all the reporters, and we saw it happening. And every man in that room, even the reporters, said, 'Oh, yeah, we understood what you meant. But the Romney people said this to us, so we had to ask about it.' That's what happened." 
 
 But a top Romney surrogate said Santorum's heated exchange with the reporter showed he lacked the temperament to serve as president. 
 
 "Sen. Santorum has lost his personal discipline and self control in the process," former New Hampshire Gov. John Sununu said on a conference call with reporters. "It's one thing to lose your temper at a New York Times reporter and it's another to have to deal with the pressures of folks on the international stage and even opposing congressional leaders." 
 
 Sununu also suggested Santorum should drop out of the race so Republicans can unite in support of Romney. The proposal drew a scornful response from Santorum. 
 
 "After I won Louisiana by 23 points?" Santorum said. "I understand the game, but this is, you talk about desperate and pathetic, Mitt Romney can't run on his record." 
 
 Santorum has made his opposition to the health care reform law a central campaign theme, repeatedly attacking Romney for the Massachusetts law that preceded the federal version. 
 
 "This was a disaster in Massachusetts and then he had the audacity to go out in 2009 and argue that Barack Obama follow his lead," Santorum said outside the Supreme Court. "Unfortunately for the country, Obama did. President Obama did follow Mitt Romney's lead." 
 
 Romney contends his program was only designed for Massachusetts and that he would seek to repeal the federal plan if elected president. 
 
 However, the health care issue continues to haunt Romney on the campaign trail. 
 
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 Obama's senior adviser, David Plouffe, made sure to highlight the Romney-Obama link on health care during appearances on Sunday talk shows. 
 
 "Mitt Romney is the godfather of our health care plan," Plouffe said on the NBC program "Meet the Press," noting that now Romney was "running away from that." 
 
 To Santorum, it all comes down to growing concern on the political right about whether Romney truly holds conservative beliefs he has declared during the GOP campaign or will revert to more moderate stances of the past once the nomination is secured. 
 
 However, pressure is mounting from mainstream Republicans for Santorum and Gingrich to drop out of the race so the party can coalesce around what many consider to be Romney's inevitable nomination. 
 
 Gingrich, who has won only two states -- South Carolina and his home state of Georgia -- has vowed to stay in the race until the Republican convention in Florida. 
 
 Conservative Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina made it clear Sunday that he expects Romney to be his party's nominee, even though he has yet to make a formal endorsement. 
 
 "I think the primary's over. Romney will be the nominee," Graham said on CNN's "State of the Union." "I'm very comfortable with him ... he'll get to 1,144." 
 
 Santorum and Gingrich have run "phenomenal races," Graham said, but now was the time for Republicans of all stripes to work together to defeat Obama in November.
– David Plouffe is making the talk-show rounds this morning, and CNN reports that he's wasting zero time in bashing Newt Gingrich for accusing President Obama of politicizing the Trayvon Martin killing, and dismissing the GOP nomination race at large as a "clown show." Gingrich "is clearly in the last throes of his political career," said Plouffe, and instead of exiting "with some shred of dignity," has "clearly chosen" to "say these irresponsible, reckless things." "I think the president spoke movingly about this tragedy, as a father," Plouffe said. "So I think those comments were really hard to stomach, really, and I guess trying to appeal to people’s worst instincts." Elsewhere on the Plouffe dog-and-pony show, as per Politico: On Paul Ryan's budget: "If Mitt Romney is the nominee, then this really is going to be the Romney-Ryan plan. He said he's going to rubber-stamp it." On being "confident" health care reform will be upheld by the Supreme Court: "By the end of this decade, we are going to be very glad the Republicans termed this ObamaCare, because when the reality of health care is in place it will be nothing like the kind of fear mongering that was done." On the White House's gay marriage stance: "We don’t even have a platform committee. We are going to work through the platform process."