There is a partisan side to the video that is giving Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney headaches. The man who found the video online and then negotiated its full release was James Carter IV, President Jimmy Carter's grandson.
If you haven't heard by now, the video was released by Mother Jones and it shows Romney talking bluntly about 47 percent of the country, whom he says pay no taxes and think themselves "victims."
Carter was listed as providing "research assistance" in the original article published on the magazine's website.
In an interview with New York Magazine, Carter said he first noticed a clip of the video on YouTube in late May. Since then, Carter kept digging and eventually connected with the person who recorded the video. He played a big role in convincing them that they should release it in full to Mother Jones.
Carter spoke to NBC News today. He told them that he was "proud" of surfacing this video and admitted that he was driven by partisanship.
NBC News reports:
"'I'm a partisan Democrat,' [Carter said.] My motivation is to help Democrats get elected. If there is anything I can find in any race, I try to do that.'
"But Carter also confirmed there is a personal side to the backstory of the campaign video: he was especially motivated, he said, because of Romney's frequent attacks on the presidency of his grandfather, including the GOP candidate's comparisons to the "weak" foreign policy of Carter and Barack Obama.
"'It gets under my skin — mostly the weakness on the foreign policy stuff,' Carter said. 'I just think it's ridiculous. I don't like criticism of my family.'"
James Carter IV is the son of James Earl "Chip" Carter. He describes himself like this on Twitter: "Oppo researcher; political junkie; news sponge; policy wonk. Currently looking for work... Seriously, give me a project."
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