A video that has surfaced online shows Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney speaking candidly about the election and saying President Obama’s most diehard supporters are “dependent on government” and think they are “entitled to health care, to food, to housing.”

The candidate made the comments about Obama’s supporters while speaking at a closed-door fundraiser this year, according to two liberal news outlets who were leaked the video.

“There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what,” Romney says in the undated video.

“All right, there are 47 percent who are with him, who are dependent on government, who believe that, that they are victims, who believe that government has the responsibility to care for them,” Romney said. “Who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing.”

Added Romney: “I’ll never convince them they should take personal responsibility and care for their lives.”

The person who secretly filmed Romney apparently thought making those comments public would hurt the candidate. The source provided the grainy video to The Huffington Post and Mother Jones.

In his report, Mother Jones editor David Corn wrote that to “protect the confidential source who provided the video” the liberal outlet “will not identify the date or location of the event, which occurred after Romney had clinched the Republican presidential nomination.”

Romney called a press conference late Monday, where he did not dispute the authenticity of the hidden-camera footage, but called for the release of the full video, instead of the clips posted online. He sought to clarify his remarks but did not apologize.

“It’s not elegantly stated, let me put it that way. I was speaking off the cuff in response to a question. And I’m sure I could state it more clearly in a more effective way than I did in a setting like that,” Romney said. “Of course I want to help all Americans. All Americans have a bright and prosperous future.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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