Politically Foul
Politics is not a game exactly, but there are rules. And when you break them you're running Politically Foul! Each week, we call the penalties, conversions and downs as we see them on the political playing field.
Mitt Romney breezed into Ohio swinging on Super Tuesday with his MVP, Ann, at his side. In a (failed) attempt to honor his wife, Romney announced to the crowd, "I'll introduce to you the heavyweight champion of my life."
Foul! No game rules include referring to your wife's weight. Ever.
"I don't mean weight," Romney fumbled, "She's just a great fighter is what I mean."
Lucky for Romney, Ann is a good sport! "Well, if this goes on my longer, I will be the heavyweight champion," said Ann. Referring to her clothes, she told the crowd, "Things are getting a little tight. This is what happens when you're on the campaign trail."
Ann Romney deserves a team spirit award!
Barbara Bush called a foul of her own on this year's Presidential campaign, "This is the worst campaign I've ever seen in my life," she said in an interview.
Flag Mrs. Bush: selective memory infraction! Presidential candidates have played tough in the past. John Quincy Adams accused Andrew Jackson of being a murderer. Or how could we forget Lyndon B. Johnson's Daisy ad. And the one that must have slipped Mrs. Bush's mind: the 1988 Bush-Dukakis race that featured the Willie Horton ad on the death penalty...a particularly tough ad from the Bush campaign. The political playing field can get rough!
President Obama checked comedian Aziz Ansari at a fundraising event in NYC last week. Obama's oldest daughter Malia is a big fan of Ansari but Obama wanted to remind him, "I have more Twitter followers than you, man." A twitter-off challenge from President Obama? Ansari will have to retaliate on the digital field.
Those are the political plays we flagged this week. Tell us your best and worst moments and we'll survey the field again next week.