CAMPAIGN 2012
With Surrogates Like These, Who Needs Enemies? -- PICTURES
By Matt Berman
Updated: June 15, 2012 | 7:58 p.m.
June 12, 2012 | 4:29 p.m.
From Bill Clinton and Cory Booker to Jeb Bush and Eric Fehrnstrom, the 2012 presidential campaign has been marked by a parade of advisers and surrogates—for both President Obama and Mitt Romney—straying off message.
Romney surrogate Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said in a June 14 PBS Newshour interview that casino magnate Sheldon Adelson's $10 million donation to the Romney campaign may mean that "maybe in a roundabout way foreign money is coming into an American political campaign," since "much of Mr. Adelson's casino profits that go to him come from his casino in Macau." (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
Former Republican New Hampshire Gov. John Sununu went off message in defense of Mitt Romney's statement that "[Obama] says we need more firemen, more policemen, more teachers.... It’s time for us to cut back on government and help the American people." While Romney has pushed back against those who say his statement advocated the dismissal of public workers, John Sununu suggested that fewer teachers may be a wise idea. (AP Photo/Jim Cole)
Former President Clinton has created a series of headaches for the Obama campaign. He's called current economic conditions a "recession," went against the administration's position on extending Bush-era tax cuts, and defended Bain Capital, while the Obama campaign was airing ads criticizing it. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell (D) called the Obama campaign's ads attacking Bain Capital "very disappointing." (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (R) said on June 11 that his father, George H.W. Bush, and Ronald Reagan would have a "hard time" finding a place in today's Republican Party. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
In May, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani offered Romney something of a backhanded compliment: Sure, the former Massachusetts governor had been "far more successful" than President Obama, but Giuliani still had a "far superior record" to Romney's, the former mayor said. Romney had an "otherwise decent record, but the numbers weren't as great," Giuliani said. (AP Photo/Brian Bohannon)
In February, Rick Santorum's top donor, Foster Friess, called attention to Santorum's anti-contraception stance with a "joke" that was widely criticized as being in poor taste. Friess, one of the biggest donors to the Red, White and Blue Fund, a pro-Santorum super PAC, said on MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell Reports that “back in my days, they used Bayer aspirin for contraceptives; the gals put it between their knees, and it wasn't that costly.” Santorum had to do damage control, criticizing the press and calling it a "bad" and "stupid" joke. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
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