These sorts of remarks do double damage.

They needlessly insult some people whose votes the candidate would like to win. And beyond the particulars of what is said, they remind voters that candidate's public persona is phony and affected.

Four years ago a lot of people felt they got a glimpse of "the real Obama." They certainly saw a side of him that he hid when speaking to general audiences, as opposed to urban liberal supporters.

People will react the same way when they see this Romney tape. They'll decide, first of all, that he thinks a surprisingly broad swath of America is composed of losers who won't take responsibility for themselves. As damning, they'll see that the Romney of debates, speeches, and TV commercials speaks differently than the Romney who gets together with his moneyed backers.

On some level, Americans know politicians are phonies.

But you can't help liking a candidate less when you see that there really are rooms full of rich people where he seems to level with everyone much more than he does with the average American. You think, His opponent is right -- he really is hiding his true opinions!

It is truly amazing what a different view of politics the donor class gets. Obama plays to rooms like this too. This cycle, he's managed to keep his words from leaking (or perhaps, after his experience in the last cycle, he's more careful about what he says). As such, expect the Obama campaign to start using footage from the hidden video to start attacking Romney any day now. And know that if you could hear what Team Obama says when they think no one is listening, it would likely be every bit as off-putting (if substantively different). Politicians behave in public as if they're idealists with genuine affection for all Americans. It's unnerving to see how cynical and calculating they really are, though voters would do well to remember it always.

