White House spokesman tries to explain Obama’s Rolling Stone remark about Romney

RICHMOND, Va.—After President Barack Obama reportedly suggested during an interview with Rolling Stone magazine that Republican challenger Mitt Romney was "a bullshitter," adviser Dan Pfeiffer said his comment points to underlying "trust" issues with Romney.

"What is true is that trust is a very important part of the election," Pfeiffer, who said he had not yet seen the article, told reporters during Obama's campaign swing through Florida, Virginia and Ohio Thursday. "The president is someone who says what he means and does what he says, and Gov. Romney's answers in the debates on domestic issues and foreign policy raise real questions about that."

In a forthcoming article in Rolling Stone, Obama reportedly told author Douglas Brinkley that children can instinctively tell that his opponent is "a bullshitter." Politico published an excerpt Thursday morning.

Since Monday's presidential debate, Obama has made an effort to raise questions about Romney's integrity. Last week he coined the word "Romnesia" to describe what he claims to be Romney's tendency to shift and moderate his positions closer to the election.

Listeners should not be "distracted by the word" but should "focus on the issue," Pfeiffer added. "The president addressed that issue in his stump speech today and he's done it throughout this trip."