Romney campaign already spinning Michigan results

>>> howard fineman editorial director for the huffington post . he has been talking to the campaigns tonight from our washington bureau, howard, what are you hearing?

>> it's interesting, rachel, to get inside the minds of the spinners in the romney camp, which is where i have been over the last hour via e-mail and text and so forth and it's fascinating because even though this is a night they might do well, they want to talk about what santorum did wrong and how weak barack obama is, as a candidate. there is nothing about gee, our message resonated, people are buying our vision. first thing they pointed out in their view rick santorum 's vote will be heavily weighted with democrats and independents, they dismiss it. they so far to say that from what they understand, the santorum campaign the united auto workers own lists to make robo calls. i checked with the santorum campaign, haven't heard back from them yet but the fact the romney people are willing to say that kind of thing just shows how they want to keep their negative spin going as fast as they can. the other thing they are fascinated by and want to point out is the new gallup poll that shows the president's favorable, unfavorable ratings are under water and mitt romney is ahead of the president in a test match-up. what interested me about this is there is very little positive, very little about mitt romney in what they are saying. they are not saying to me we're finally connecting here, doing well in arizona, going to do well in michigan. people are buying mitt's message. what they are saying is rick santorum played dirty and barack obama is vulnerable.

>> that is phenomenal. the fact the conspiracy theory about the uaw lists to make the san tore robo calls is spicey enough, but to ryan shallenberger -- that will be testable in 15 minute, we'll know whether it's true if it turns out not to be true that will look horrible and pitiful and desperate for the romney campaign.

>> well, i don't think they view themselves that way at all. they are back in the mode they were in, that they have been in the whole campaign, rachel, don't think about us, think about how terrible president obama is, don't think about us, think about how lousy all the other candidates are are. that has been the two-step mentality of the romney campaign from the beginning. it's what they have done with their money and spent $65 million at least. it's how they organized their campaign from the beginning. as one of attacking and trying to tear down the landscape around them, rather than to really focus on their own guy, mitt romney . the exact opposite of the way barack obama ran for president four years ago. barack obama added it's all about me campaign. the romney campaign from the beginning has been it's not about me, it's how terrible all the other people are out there. so it's a fundamental message of lack of goes far to say but lack of faith or even a lack of pride in their own candidate. it sounds crazy but that is the way -- that is the message you get when you get in their minds.

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