The doggy wars: GOP hits Obama for eating dog as a child

White House

(CBS News) For years, Democrats and animal rights advocates have criticized Mitt Romney for the way he transported the family dog when he took his family on vacation in the early 1980s. According to a 2007 Boston Globe report, Romney placed the dog - an Irish setter named Seamus - into a crate and strapped it to the top of the car for a 12-hour drive from Boston to Ontario. At one point, Seamus got diarrhea, which required Romney to pull over to the side of the road and wash off the windshield.

New York Times columnist Gail Collins and groups like "Dogs Against Romney" have spotlighted the incident, arguing that it provides an unflattering insight into Romney's character. To the frustration of the Romney campaign, it's gotten enough traction that Romney and his wife Ann were asked about the story during an ABC News interview this week. Ann Romney said in the interview that Seamus "loved" the experience of being in the crate and that it was "a kinder thing" to bring the dog with the family than to leave him in a kennel.

Now Republicans have found a way to counter attacks over Seamus: An acknowledgement by President Obama that he ate dog as a child. As conservative website The Daily Caller reported Tuesday, Mr. Obama wrote in his memoir "Dreams of My Father" that he was "introduced to dog meat (tough), snake meat (tougher), and roasted grasshopper (crunchy)" while living in Indonesia between the ages of six and ten. Wrote the Daily Caller's Jim Treacher: "Say what you want about Romney, but at least he only put a dog on the roof of his car, not the roof of his mouth."

The Obama campaign had been trying to keep the Seamus story alive; Obama adviser David Axelrod, for example, tweeted a photo of Mr. Obama with his dog Bo - both of them inside a car - along with the words "How loving owners transport their dogs." (You can see it above.) Following the report that Mr. Obama had eaten dog, Romney adviser Eric Fehrnstrom retweeted Axelrod's tweet with the words, "In hindsight, a chilling photo."

Obama campaign spokesman Ben LaBolt responded by pointing to the fact that Mr. Obama was a small child when he ate the dog meat. Tweeted LaBolt: "What's the next attack @EricFehrn and the RNC will surface on a 6-10 year old?" @EricFehrn is Fehrnstrom's twitter handle.

The news that Mr. Obama ate dog as a child also prompted a series of Tweets with the hashtag "#ObamaDogRecipes," the best of which were cataloged by Poltico. Among them: "Beagles with cream cheese," "Pugs in a Blanket" and "Chicken Poodle Soup."

[wowyouaredumb]

Romney talks about being a president of the people, but while head of Bain, he amassed more than $200 million, while delivery drivers at Bain-owned Domino's Pizza earned $7.66 an hour. Workers struggle everyday to pay their bills because they only earn $7.25 an hour. This is equivalent to $15,080 a year and $9,000 below the poverty line for a family of four.

Or if you'd like you can Google what he did to KB Toys and their employees. Or the 20 some odd other companies he loaded with debt and shut down. There are real people who can attest to Romney's character outside of attacking a 6 year old.

Joke and be morons if you will, but this man will never create a job. Picking on a 6 year old won't change that. Being 47th in the nation on the job in Massachusetts are actually of interest to people. Strapping dogs to the roof of a car, bullying a gay classmate, impersonating a cop, walking an elderly person into a window and laughing about it today - MATTERS TO PEOPLE. If you're a ******, you're a ******. Obama has fulfilled several campaign promises. Romney can't keep his mind made up for more than 24 hours and we have all seen that. Some of you laugh now, but you won't be laughing later .

[ge556]

So many haters. There's no other reason this is a story.

[daniel0866758]

There's a difference: Obama was a child when he ate dog meat. Romney was an adult when he abused Seamus.

[cjherron]

chow mein?

[dddienst]

I guess only Ron Paul likes Dogs.. (as pets)

[ge556]

So many haters.

[USSAmerikan]

Even China has outlawed eating dog, but that was only last year. Whether Barack was coaxed into eating dog or he asked for a second helping is in the past and it won't get anyone hired or bring gas down to $2.50 a gallon. By the same token, Romney came up with a dopey solution to a simple problem: Transporting the family pet, forty years ago. Today, in Florida, you can transport your children, regardless of age, in the back of your pickup truck... Who said seatbelts?
We're all making a skyscraper out of this doghouse...

[wowyouaredumb]

Last time I checked the 80's were not 40 years ago. Romney's character as an adult is important. Strapping a dog to the roof,impersonating a cop, bullying a gay classmate, firing THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE CONTRIBUTING TO THE GREATEST LOSS OF JOBS SINCE WWII. He NEVER created any jobs so before you utter "won't get anyone hired" I hope you people got your facts straight. Hmmmm 47th in job creation in his state, shut down beloved companies like KB Toys, versus a man who has struggled and created jobs. Auto industry? Private sector jobs created? Public ones were slashed. Don't be fooled, everything matters.

[Lindag10]

Why isn't the GOP up in arms over Obama eating snake as a child? I thought what he ate then was important to them.

[earlysaid]

People who love dogs are anti-Romney for how he treated his golden retriever when he was a grown man. Putting your dog on the roof and driving for and eight hour trip does not should kind or considerate of his family dog. The dog was shuffled off to another relative eventually so he did not give a darn for this dog.

[JennyMHatch]

Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ptf9JgYbyxE&feature=youtube_gdata

[FoxNews-Truth]

The baby Obama ate my Dingo!!!

I bet his dinner, oops!, I mean his dog BO sleeps with one eye open since finding out he could be the next main course the White House Chef prepares.

Daddy, Daddy, we can't seem to find BO and we have looked everywhere!!!

[earlysaid]

Nonsense from the people who don't care about dogs, the poor, our elderly or kindness of any type for the down trodden.

[shnovitz]

How pathetic you are if you think that's funny.