Ad watch: Restore Our Future ad revives mommy-wars flap

Restore Our Future, the super PAC supporting GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney, tries to revive the mommy wars in an ad timed to Mother's Day on Sunday. The ad reprises the controversy over a remark about Romney's wife, Ann, made last month by Democratic political strategist Hilary Rosen.

Script

Male narrator:Ann Romney raised five boys. She successfully battled breast cancer and multiple sclerosis. But what does White House insider Hilary Rosen say about Ann Romney?

Hilary Rosen (audio clip): Guess what? His wife has actually never worked a day in her life.

Narrator: And Bill Maher, who gave a million dollars supporting Obama, attacks …

Bill Maher (video clip): Ann Romney has never gotten her ass out of the house.

Announcer: Happy Mother's Day from Barack Obama's team. Restore Our Future is responsible for the content of this message.

Visuals

Photos of Ann Romney, Hilary Rosen, and a Mother's Day birthday card with photos of President Obama, Rosen and Maher.

Accuracy

The facts are straightforward: Ann Romney did raise five sons and suffer breast cancer and multiple sclerosis. Bill Maher and Hilary Rosen did make those comments — although Maher's full quote was that Romney "has never gotten her ass out of the house to work." He then said, "No one is denying that being a mother is a tough job," but he made a distinction between working at raising children and working for an employer.

Rosen, who made her comment on CNN, where she is a paid contributor, was villified by Republicans who said her comments reflected Democrats' disdain for women who stay home to raise children. She repeatedly went back on television to apologize to Ann Romney.

The claim that is harder to prove is whether Rosen and Maher are an integral part of Obama's "team'' and whether their comments are representative of the president's views. Rosen's remarks were renounced at the time by Obama, his wife, Michelle, and the leaders of his campaign. Rosen works for political consulting firm SKDKnickerbocker, which has worked for the Obama campaign in the past, and she has visited the White House — although the White House would not clarify how many times. But she does not work for the Obama campaign or the Democratic Party. Maher, a comic and talk-show host, gave $1 million in February to Priorities USA Action, a pro-Obama super PAC.

The ad is aimed at women, among whom Obama holds a lead vs. Romney in opinion surveys. The president's support is skewed to unmarried women, who support him 68% to 24%, according to the latest USA TODAY/Gallup Poll. Married women — perhaps more likely to be stay-at-home moms — favored Romney 47% to 43%.

Contributing: By Martha T. Moore, USA TODAY

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Republicans and Democrats Watch Out: Centrists Are on the Rise! (ContributorNetwork)

COMMENTARY | Polls show that as many as a third of all Americans identify themselves as moderate or centrist, yet the candidates for public office seem to be getting more extreme every election cycle.

I have always considered myself a fiscal conservative and a social liberal. I am in favor of balancing the budget and reducing spending, but not of gutting social services to do it. I also favor equal rights for same sex couples and basically staying out of other people's bedrooms.

Who's my candidate? You'd think the major parties would care, but all the fury centers around which contender can capture the evangelical Christian vote. What about those of us - of all races, genders and socioeconomic classes - who want to see lawmakers take a well-reasoned, balanced approach to solving the serious problems we face today?

I usually vote for some Democrats and some Republicans, but frankly, I find most of those vying for the Republican presidential nomination alarmingly inappropriate. Some of these guys can barely put a coherent thought together, and yes, Mr. Cain, it is necessary to have a thorough knowledge of international affairs to be president.

I shudder to think what would happen if some of these guys became president. But where are the good alternatives? It seems that most intelligent, rational and capable individuals don't want the job. Who can blame them?

The extremists play the part of the squeaky wheel, shouting down the voices of reason. It's not in the nature of moderates to be that loud. We're the mediators, the problem-solvers, the ones who try to facilitate positive solutions.

Question: How can you tell when things are running smoothly? Answer: You don't notice them.

I'd like to see one of the six House Republicans who refused to sign Grover Norquist's tax pledge run for President. How about Frank Wolf? He's one of the few Republicans to vote against making the Bush era tax cuts permanent. Here's a guy who understands that fiscal responsibility means considering both increases in taxes and decreases in spending to balance the budget. I don't agree with everything in his voting record, but it's better than most.

As the percentage of moderate voters grows, perhaps we will gain enough political clout to convince the major parties that the middle ground is where creative solutions spring to life. It's time they started to care what we think.

View the original article here

Republicans and Democrats Watch Out: Centrists on Rise! (ContributorNetwork)

COMMENTARY | Polls show that as many as a third of all Americans identify themselves as moderate or centrist, yet the candidates for public office seem to be getting more extreme every election cycle.

I have always considered myself a fiscal conservative and a social liberal. I am in favor of balancing the budget and reducing spending, but not of gutting social services to do it. I also favor equal rights for same sex couples and basically staying out of other people's bedrooms.

Who's my candidate? You'd think the major parties would care, but all the fury centers around which contender can capture the evangelical Christian vote. What about those of us - of all races, genders and socioeconomic classes - who want to see lawmakers take a well-reasoned, balanced approach to solving the serious problems we face today?

I usually vote for some Democrats and some Republicans, but frankly, I find most of those vying for the Republican presidential nomination alarmingly inappropriate. Some of these guys can barely put a coherent thought together, and yes, Mr. Cain, it is necessary to have a thorough knowledge of international affairs to be president.

I shudder to think what would happen if some of these guys became president. But where are the good alternatives? It seems that most intelligent, rational and capable individuals don't want the job. Who can blame them?

The extremists play the part of the squeaky wheel, shouting down the voices of reason. It's not in the nature of moderates to be that loud. We're the mediators, the problem-solvers, the ones who try to facilitate positive solutions.

Question: How can you tell when things are running smoothly? Answer: You don't notice them.

I'd like to see one of the six House Republicans who refused to sign Grover Norquist's tax pledge run for President. How about Frank Wolf? He's one of the few Republicans to vote against making the Bush era tax cuts permanent. Here's a guy who understands that fiscal responsibility means considering both increases in taxes and decreases in spending to balance the budget. I don't agree with everything in his voting record, but it's better than most.

As the percentage of moderate voters grows, perhaps we will gain enough political clout to convince the major parties that the middle ground is where creative solutions spring to life. It's time they started to care what we think.

View the original article here