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Romney's Effort To Connect With Wisconsin Voters Meets With Derision From Democrats On Twitter

BY Sarah Lai Stirland | Thursday, March 29 2012

Mitt Romney’s latest effort to make a joke at his own expense provided ample fodder on Wednesday for a Democratic snipefest on Twitter around the hashtag #RomneyAnecdotes.

The former governor of Massachusetts on Wednesday tried to bring about a sense of affinity with Wisconsin voters (who go to the polls in the Republican primary on Tuesday) by recalling an anecdote about his father’s own awkward political moments.

Romney’s father George was once the president of American Motors, which ran factories in both Michigan and Wisconsin. At one point, Romney recalled, his father decided to close the factories in Michigan and move them all to Wisconsin. That proved to be an awkward moment for Romney senior when years later he decided to enter the gubernatorial race in Michigan.

Both the Democratic National Committee and Barack Obama’s campaign pounced on the anecdote Wednesday afternoon, again pounding on the Republican presidential frontrunner for being out of touch for making light of factory closings.

That meme then made it onto Twitter, where Romney once again became the butt of a wave of snide remarks meant to bolster the perception of the candidate as an out-of-touch member of the 1%, to which senior Romney campaign advisor Eric Fehrnstrom shot back: You know what's "humorous"? Caterwauling from the Dems about Mitt's recall of a campaign story involving his dad.”

#RomneyAnecdotes

Storified by Sarah · Thu, Mar 29 2012 01:26:00

"So I lean over to the children and I say 'got your trust fund!' and we LAUGHED" #RomneyAnecdotesOliver Willis
I get up, kiss my wife and think, "What a great day to close a factory and wreck some lives. God bless America!" #RomneyAnecdotesShoq Value
"And then I told the butler, 'Get out of there, that's for cars. Take the stairs.'" #RomneyAnecdotesBen Dimiero
"So then we played musical chairs, and when the song stopped I fired everyone." #RomneyAnecdotesOliver Willis
#RomneyAnecdotes I once went to the ghetto... Just kidding i haven't ever been to THAT part of town, but i know the guy why owns it.Nate Cooper
RT @VegasJessie: So the wife pleads with me, "how can we keep our insurance if you lay off my husband." I said, 'LOL'. #RomneyAnecdotesFeministLynn
RT @OneLegSandpiper: So I pulled over on the way to the kitchen and asked the cook what exit the maid's quarters was. #RomneyAnecdotesJust Ann American

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