Politico.com Oct 19, 2012
Obama: Mitt Romney has ‘Romnesia’
President Barack Obama on Friday accused his Republican opponent of having a bad case of “Romnesia” — changing positions when politically expedient.
“I mean, he’s changing up so much and backtracking and sidestepping, we’ve got to name this condition that he’s going through. I think it’s called Romnesia,” Obama said to laughter and cheers at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va., where he spoke to a midday rally of 8,000. “That’s what it’s called. I think that’s what he’s going through.”
Clearly enjoying himself, nearly giggling as he spoke, Obama continued: “Now, I’m not a medical doctor, but I do want to go over some of the symptoms with you — because I want to make sure nobody else catches it.”
Like an announcer in a prescription drug ad or comedian Jeff Foxworthy, the president listed some symptoms, all having to do with women’s issues, the topic of his stump speech. “If you say you’re for equal pay for equal work, but you keep refusing to say whether or not you’d sign a bill that protects equal pay for equal work — you might have Romnesia.”
“If you say women should have access to contraceptive care, but you support legislation that would let your employer deny you contraceptive care — you might have a case of Romnesia,” he said.
“If you say you’ll protect a woman’s right to choose, but you stand up at a primary debate and said that you’d be delighted to sign a law … outlawing that right to choose in all cases — man, you’ve definitely got Romnesia.”
But Romnesia reaches beyond women’s issues, Obama said. “If you say earlier in the year, I’m going to give a tax cut to the top 1 percent and then in a debate you say, I don’t know anything about giving tax cuts to rich folks — you need to get a thermometer, take your temperature, because you’ve probably got Romnesia,” he said.
“If you say that you’re a champion of the coal industry when, while you were governor you stood in front of a coal plant and said, this plant will kill you, that’s some Romnesia,” he continued, the crowd shouting the punch line along with him.
“You’re beginning to be able to identify these symptoms. And if you come down with a case of Romnesia, and you can’t seem to remember the policies that are still on your website, or the promises you’ve made over the six years you’ve been running for president, here’s the good news: Obamacare covers preexisting conditions,” Obama said, smiling. “We can fix you up. We’ve got a cure. We can make you well, Virginia. This is a curable disease.”
By Friday afternoon, Romnesia was catching on quickly.
Within an hour of Obama’s remarks, Romnesia — the campaign’s preferred spelling, an aide acknowledged — was trending internationally on Twitter and had hit the top of the U.S. trending list.
