The Reaction: Which Issue Wins?

By Carl

On Wednesday, President Obama flew to Colorado, a key battleground, where he pushed the issue of access to contraceptives, which is also the subject of a campaign ad in swing states featuring quotes from Romney attacking Planned Parenthood.

In Denver, Obama was introduced by Sandra Fluke, the Georgetown University law student who briefly became a political celebrity this spring when her comments about the need for Catholic universities to provide contraceptive coverage drew an attack by radio host Rush Limbaugh, who called her a "slut."

While Obama sought to expand the gender gap, which is especially pronounced among single women, Romney spent a second day going after the president about welfare, using a line of attack that centers on the administration's willingness to let states change current welfare-to-work rules.

Time's up.

The problem with Romney's ridiculous attack is how it's so easily refutable. Indeed, Romney as governor asked for a waiver on the work requirement of welfare reform. He can run all the ads he wants but the first time the issue is brought up in debate-- or indeed, any issue like healthcare reform that Romeny was against being against before he was against being for-- Obama will hammer him for denying other people the same opportunities the people of Massachussetts have.

Which keys into the whole "elitist, out of touch, aphotic asshole" trope that Romney seems to determine to run on.

Meanwhile, President Obama's issue of the rollback of women's rights seems to be a sure-fire winner, in that it has the truth solidly behind it with someone in front of the issue who's stance on it has been solid: no one questions Obama's commitment to women's rights and equality. From the Lily Ledbetter Act to the confirmation of Elena Kagan to the SCOTUS, no President has been as firmly on the side of women as Obama. Clinton, maybe, but you'd have to ignore the whole "Slick Willie" side of him.

Romney and Obama are both appealing to fears, but only Obama's fear-mongering has the truth behind it and that's thanks to the GOP as a whole. From Virginia's transvaginal ultrasound to South Carolina's support for rapists....you read that correctly...women across the nation should and are going to be terrified to vote for a Republican.

And who would blame them?

(crossposted to Simply Left Behind)