Mitt Romney’s unforced error this morning isn’t likely to derail his campaign but it certainly adds to the impression he doesn’t care much about people.

First Read: “All political candidates — just like all non-politicians — make verbal gaffes… But in politics, what becomes damaging is when a verbal gaffe fits a pre-existing narrative.”

Jonathan Chait: “It may not be true that, at a personal level, Romney doesn’t care about the poor. He probably does. But his platform doesn’t. In that sense, his slip-up was a gaffe in the classic sense of admitting what he actually thinks.”

Andrew Sullivan: “Just because Romney looks smooth doesn’t mean he is. He is often a dreadfully inept candidate.”
Taegan Goddard’s Political Wire