Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney is "stunningly inconsistent" on the issues, and his flip-flopping will eventually catch up with him, David Axelrod, the chief campaign strategist for President Obama, said this afternoon. Axelrod accused Romney of being "brazen, frankly, in his switches of position" on the economy, healthcare, abortion rights, and other issues.
[Check out political cartoons about the 2012 GOP contenders.]
Axelrod's comments are part of the latest Democratic effort to attack Romney, the GOP frontrunner, as untrustworthy and willing to say whatever it takes to get elected. The Democratic National Committee released a new video today saying that despite his claim to be on the side of the middle class, Romney is running to "help the rich." See the DNC video here:
"I don't presume to say he's going to be the nominee but he deserves to be scrutinized," Axelrod told reporters in a conference call. He predicted that Romney will have increasing trouble trying to explain or justify his flip flops as the campaign intensifies. It's important for candidates to be consistent and keep their promises, Axelrod said, adding that every candidate's record, ideas, and character should be carefully considered. "Presidential campaigns are MRI's for the soul," the Obama adviser noted.
[Read: Democrats Launch Website to Paint Romney as Flip-Flopper.]
Romney's response to such criticism is that his views may shift when conditions change but he is at heart a conservative. Romney aides argue that Obama is trying to divert attention from his administration's failure to strengthen the economy and create jobs.
Axelrod said Texas Gov. Rick Perry, a Romney rival for the GOP nomination, has been spending time in debates trying to point out the former Massachusetts governor's inconsistencies but, "He hasn't exactly gotten the gun out of the holster."
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