The Top 10 Political Gaffes This Election

Political gaffes, blunders, and missteps hurt a number of campaigns this election season

December 17, 2012 RSS Feed Print

The media used the term "etch a sketch" to describe Romney's sometimes changing political positions for months.

6. "Binders full of women"

When women's issues came up in the second presidential debate, Romney boasted of gender equity in building his cabinet as governor of Massachusetts, saying he had "binders full of women." The awkwardness of the phrasing spurred dozens of memes online.

7. "Put y'all back in chains"

Biden, who is known to be gaffe-prone, raised more than a few eyebrows in August when he told an audience including black voters in Danville, Va., that Mitt Romney would "put y'all back in chains." The Romney campaign seized upon the remark, calling it a "new low."

8. "I like being able to fire people."

In a speech in January in New Hampshire, Romney tried to explain the benefits of being able to get rid of medical insurance that wasn't working. "I like being able to fire people who provide services to me," he said. Democrats used the comment to bolster their criticism that Romney's tenure at Bain Capital was akin to "vulture capitalism."

9. A "base on the moon."

On the campaign trail in Florida in February, then Republican presidential contender Newt Gingrich promised that "by the end of my second term, we will have the first permanent base on the moon." Gingrich's moon colony provoked laughter from scientists who said the plan was impractical, but some voters supported the idea.

10. "Etch a sketch"

Romney's campaign took a hit in March after adviser Eric Fehrnstrom talked on CNN about how the campaign transitioned from the primary to the general election. "You hit a reset button for the fall campaign," he said. "Everything changes. It's almost like an Etch A Sketch. You can kind of shake it up and we start all over again." The media used the term "etch a sketch" to describe Romney's sometimes changing political positions for months.