AARP Magazine carries an interview with Romney in which he says that small businesses aren’t hiring because they fear new regulations and higher taxes. Really? We’re not hiring because the economy sucks.

This was one of several idiocies spouted in the interview, including:

* The enormous burden of taxes on the Middle Class. (The median family income is about $48K; a two-child family making $48K pays little or no income tax. Methinks he considers Middle Class to start at about $100K, which is actually more like the top 7%.)

* By removing regulations on offshore and ANWAR drilling, the U.S. could cease oil imports and become energy self-sufficient. (Offshore reserves are projected to contain enough oil to last our voracious oil appetite for 9 months, while ANWAR is projected to last a year. Then what?)

After reading the interview, my first thought was, the man’s an idiot. But could he be that stupid, or is he just saying what some folks want to hear?