If Obama's 'gifts" weren't to buy votes, why did he wait to election time to offer them?

IBD:

Some in the GOP have taken to trashing 2012 presidential candidate Mitt Romney for recent comments he made about his loss. We can't say we agree with the criticisms, since what Romney said is true.

Here's the comment that seems to have riled the Republican elite: "The president's campaign," said Romney, "focused on giving targeted groups a big gift — so he made a big effort on small things. Those small things, by the way, add up to trillions of dollars."

Yes, that could hurt the GOP further with solidly Democratic groups that many in the party of the elephant continue to believe are "natural Republicans." But Romney spoke the plain, unvarnished truth.

Using the divide-and-conquer tactics of Saul Alinsky, Obama successfully exploited age, income, class, race and ethnic divisions to the detriment of Republicans, while smearing Romney as an uncaring, rapacious Wall Street capitalist who murdered a steel worker's wife.

But sure, GOP, pile on Romney, who also remarked that Obama was "very generous" to African Americans, Hispanics and young voters. So why does this offend? It's so obviously true it shouldn't need defending.

Obama bought young Americans' votes by offering to forgive student loans, letting them stay on their parents' health insurance until they're 26 and giving free contraception under ObamaCare to the hook-up generation.

Obama played racial politics with African Americans, too. Both he and Vice President Joe Biden at various times during the campaign suggested Republicans want to take America back to the days of segregation.

Vile stuff, but it worked. Obama got 79% of the minority vote and more than 93% of the black vote, though by nearly any objective measure — unemployment, family income, poverty — minorities are worse off under Obama than under former President Bush.

As for Hispanics, even former GOP Commerce Secretary and Romney adviser Carlos Gutierrez complained Romney had damaged the GOP brand by his comments.

But let's be clear: Democrats promise illegal immigrants amnesty and welfare. The GOP doesn't.

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Republicans should not be afraid to call a pander a pander.  As my headline indicates, the "gifts" were made in the context of an election to appeal to favored groups.  It was done at the same time Obama was successfully suppressing the votes of the white working class with one of the most negative campaigns in history aimed at making Romney unacceptable to them so they would just stay home.  If Republicans are not willing to challenge this type of cynical campaign, they will see more of them in the future.  They should not run away from teh challenge, but they should counter it with a positive uplifting message of job creation for all.  A job is the greatest gift these voters will ever receive.