Projo Offbeat Blog

Mitt Romney had better not expect the dog-lover vote to push him over the top in the 2008 presidential election.

The former Massachusetts governor blew his chance with that group back in 1983 when he put the Irish setter in a dog carrier and attached it to the roof rack for the 12-hour drive from Massachusetts to Ontario for a family vacation.

In part 4 of its series on Romney, The Boston Globe notes that Romney did make a windshield for the dog.

At least he didn't tie the dog's leash to the back bumper and make it run to Canada.

But Romney can forget his worries about having too-perfect hair and flip-flopping on issues such as abortion and gay rights, he now has a real PR problem.

If Romney had spent any of his early career working in a newspaper instead of working in finance and getting rich, he'd have realized that people react more to stories about suffering animals than stories about suffering people.

Romney would have been better off if he'd put the five kids in the animal carrier and let the dog ride in the back seat.

He'd have probably had a more peaceful ride, too.

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