Politics At First Bite

Mitt Romney on NBC's "Today" show this morning: "I mean, I like the Twilight series. I thought it was fun. I don't like vampires personally, I don't know any, but you know my granddaughter was reading it and I thought, 'Well this looks like fun,' so I read that." Yes, this was Romney's dorky attempt at being congenial. And anyone watching Romney trying to act normal would see it as just that. No big deal. The political press, on the other hand, seized on the statement like vultures picking over fresh road kill. Steve Benen: "Let's put aside the notion of a 64-year-old presidential hopeful enjoying the Twilight series. What stood out for me in this little quote was Romney feeling the need to mention he doesn't "like vampires personally," followed in the next breath by a reminder that he doesn't "know any" vampires. [...] It's understandable that Romney and his campaign team want to make the candidate seem more likable and less animatronic. But is it me, or do these efforts usually end up making Romney look kind of ridiculous?" Long story short, Benen suggests Romney is trying too hard to appear normal. Sure - technically, Benen and the other pundits who have opined on this "issue" are probably right. But that doesn't make these observations any less trivial.