Wednesday, Dec. 07, 2011
Mitt and Rick's Tension-Filled Touch
Sparks flew whenever Mitt Romney and Rick Perry met on debate stages this fall, but few moments were as incandescently confrontational as this exchange from an Oct. 18 debate in Las Vegas. When Perry interrupted a Romney rejoinder after the Texas governor accused him of knowingly hiring undocumented workers, the former Massachusetts governor laid a hand on his rival's shoulder, shouting over him, "Rick, I'm speaking. I'm speaking. I'm speaking. I'm speaking." The unexpected touch elicited an icy stare from Perry, which returned to his face a few moments later when Romney responded to yet another interjection by suggesting that "if you want to become President of the United States, you've got to let both people speak."