Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

There was a line in the victory speech of Willard "Mittens" Romney on Tuesday night that has received quite a bit of commentary:

President Obama wants to put free enterprise on trial. In the last few days, we have seen some desperate Republicans join forces with him. This is such a mistake for our Party and for our nation. This country already has a leader who divides us with the bitter politics of envy. We must offer an alternative vision. I stand ready to lead us down a different path, where we are lifted up by our desire to succeed, not dragged down by a resentment of success. In these difficult times, we cannot abandon the core values that define us as unique — We are One Nation, Under God.

A reporter asked Newt Gingrich about this statement at a campaign event in South Carolina on Wednesday. This was his answer:

I think it’s funny that on the one hand he wants to run around touting his record, on other hand if anybody asks a question about his record, he hides behind an entire framework and to question the facts is to be anti-capitalist. That is nonsense — baloney is the term I think I was using the other morning. The fact is, we have a right to know. We have a right to know what happened at Goldman Sachs, we have a right to to know what happened with trillions of dollars in New York. We have a right to know what happens when companies go bankrupt. I think the country would like to know. And if we’re going to run a presidential campaign on a record, the record has to be open to review. Now this is not anti-capitalism. That is the smoke screen of those who are afraid to be accountable.

This line of attack has been a recurring theme for Mittens on the campaign trail. As Jed Lewison noted at Daily Kos: Mitt Romney campaign: Newt Gingrich is putting free enterprise on trial:

According to Mitt Romney's campaign, if you question Romney's record at Bain, you might as well be a communist—even if you're Newt Gingrich or Rick Perry[.]

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And even worse, you're a coconspirator with President Obama!

Free enterprise is being put on trial by President Obama. And their first witness is Newt Gingrich.

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Instead of actually responding to the criticism, Romney is saying the criticism itself is out of bounds.

The Ayn Rand acolytes of the right-wing noise machine have been foaming at the mouth over the attacks by Gingrich and Governor Goodhair on the excesses of the vulture capitalism of Bain Capital. These right-wing talking heads also believe criticism is out of bounds, and are trying to intimidate the candidates into backing off.

Which surprises me that conservative William Kristol of all people takes these Ayn Rand acolytes to task:

And the unqualified defense of the virtues of Bain Capital by some on the right is also silly. Criticism of any behavior by a private firm? Outrage! An Assault on Capitalism! Haven't they read Schumpeter? Don't they know the glories of Creative Destruction? And, of course, all such destruction must be assumed to be creative!

Yikes. If this is where some in the conservative movement and the Republican party are inclined to go—four cheers for finance capitalism!—good luck. Indeed, it’s useful to flush out this tendency now, and subject it to debate. Because it’s a recipe for political disaster—and intellectual sterility.

Newt Gingrich is correct when he says there is a qualitative difference between “entrepreneurial capitalism” and the "vulture capitalism" Romney did as head of Bain Capital. Newt Gingrich: I'm anti-capitalist? 'Baloney':

“People draw a distinction between investors who want a company to succeed and investors who basically take over a company for the purpose of draining out its cash and walk out without concern about the consequences,” said the former speaker.

Back in December, President Obama went to Osawatomie, Kansas to deliver a speech that echoed "trust buster" populist progressive President Theodore Roosevelt's "Square Deal" speech. Teddy Roosevelt would have none of "Mittens" Romney and his Ayn Rand acolytes arguing that the excesses of laissez-faire "free market" moral nihilists is out of bounds for public scrutiny and accountability. "Trust buster" Teddy Roosevelt based his political career on holding these "malefactors of great wealth" accountable for their destructive actions.

I will repost excerpts from Theodore Roosevelt's New Nationalism (Square Deal) speech below the fold. It's a shame that there are not any Republicans today like Teddy Roosevelt. Teddy would kick Mittens' ass!