By now you’ve likely heard the disturbing story about Mitt Romney’s dog, Seamus — specifically how Romney once strapped a caged Seamus to the roof of the family car on a vacation to Canada and back (a 12-hour ride each way). As told to a Boston Globe reporter by members of the Romney clan, the presidential candidate’s sons, who were all young at the time, freaked out when poor Seamus went all diarrhea all over the moving car, so Romney pulled up at a gas station, hosed down the dog and the automobile, and proceeded on with the trip.
The incident was the focus of a recent pro-Newt Gingrich attack ad on Romney that asked: “Imagine what Obama would do with a candidate like that.” Well, now it appears as though Obama’s reelection staff is actually chomping at the bit to show us what they’ll do — witness Obama advisor David Axelrod’s tweet this afternoon linking to the photo above on the White House Flickr page.
It’s as if they can hardly wait to plant the Seamus seed in the public’s consciousness. Imagine that!
Many have long believed that the Seamus incident could become a real thorn in Romney’s side in the general election. I’ve mentioned here previously how in any national election these days 40% of the electorate will vote Republican and 40% will vote Democrat regardless of who the candidate is — it’s the other 20% who swing the election. And this, as silly as it may seem on the surface, is something that has the potential to resonate with a nation of pet lovers. I can all but guarantee that there are tens of thousands, if not more, who would frown on something like Seamus-gate much more than they would Romney putting money in offshore banking accounts. That’s just the damn truth.
UPDATE: The plot thickens! Seamus may have run away.