Anatomy of a campaign ad: Planned Parenthood's 'Out of Touch'
Planned Parenthood Action Fund pushes the idea that Mitt Romney is waging a war on women, and uses $1.4 million to get its message across
The group behind the ad: "Out of Touch," an attack on presumptive GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney (watch the ad below), was launched by the Planned Parenthood Action Fund (PPAF), the political arm of Planned Parenthood, after PPAF endorsed President Obama — only the third time the 90-year-old organization has endorsed a presidential candidate.
The ad: The spot kicks off with a controversial clip in which Romney says, "Planned Parenthood — I'm going to get rid of that." A voice-over declares that the GOP presidential hopeful would "deny women the birth control and cancer screenings they depend on." Next, another Romney snippet has him saying he'd overturn Roe v. Wade, a move the voice-over says would "deny women the right to make their own medical decisions." Finally, we hear audio of a male Romney aide responding to a phone call about equal pay: "We'll get back to you on that." "Romney's putting your paycheck at risk," says the voice-over, before calling Romney "out of touch and wrong for women."
The ad buy: The PPAF is spending a whopping $1.4 million to air its ad on broadcast and cable TV in Florida, Iowa, Virginia, and Washington, D.C., through June 19.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The strategy: The PPAF, which "has become increasingly politically active in the past two years, since House Republicans pushed to cut off all government funds for the group," is trying to "play into the Obama campaign's argument that Romney and Republicans are waging a 'war on women,'" says Cameron Joseph at The Hill. The Obama campaign must be thankful, says Maggie Haberman at Politico. The size of the ad buy and "the surgical nature of the strike represent something of a test assault on Romney."
The reaction: The problem with the Romney quote about "getting rid of" Planned Parenthood, says FoxNews.com, is that "in the original interview with a St. Louis TV station, Romney appeared to be saying he'd get rid of federal funding for Planned Parenthood, and not the organization itself." When pressed about the spot's accuracy on MSNBC's Morning Joe, PPAF president Cecile Richards noted, "Those are his own words — I didn't make those up." But by "equating 'women's health' with access to contraception and abortion" is Planned Parenthood "saying that pregnancy is a disease?" asks Rick Moran at The American Thinker. The organization may regret raising its own profile in the campaign and, thus, inviting more scrutiny and criticism. Whatever the result, says Katie J.M. Baker at Jezebel, "even in the bullshit heavy political sphere, there's nothing more powerful than using someone's own words against him."
Sources: The Hill, FoxNews.com, Politico, MSNBC, The American Thinker, Jezebel
For more campaign ad anatomies see:
Obama's "Steel"
Scott Brown's "Independent"
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
The week's best photos
In Pictures Playful goslings, an exploding snowman, and more
By Anahi Valenzuela, The Week US Published
-
What is rock flour and how can it help to fight climate change?
The Explainer Glacier dust to the rescue
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
Crossword: April 19, 2024
The Week's daily crossword puzzle
By The Week Staff Published
-
Arizona court reinstates 1864 abortion ban
Speed Read The law makes all abortions illegal in the state except to save the mother's life
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Trump, billions richer, is selling Bibles
Speed Read The former president is hawking a $60 "God Bless the USA Bible"
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
The debate about Biden's age and mental fitness
In Depth Some critics argue Biden is too old to run again. Does the argument have merit?
By Grayson Quay Published
-
How would a second Trump presidency affect Britain?
Today's Big Question Re-election of Republican frontrunner could threaten UK security, warns former head of secret service
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
'Rwanda plan is less a deterrent and more a bluff'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By The Week UK Published
-
Henry Kissinger dies aged 100: a complicated legacy?
Talking Point Top US diplomat and Nobel Peace Prize winner remembered as both foreign policy genius and war criminal
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Last updated
-
Trump’s rhetoric: a shift to 'straight-up Nazi talk'
Why everyone's talking about Would-be president's sinister language is backed by an incendiary policy agenda, say commentators
By The Week UK Published
-
More covfefe: is the world ready for a second Donald Trump presidency?
Today's Big Question Republican's re-election would be a 'nightmare' scenario for Europe, Ukraine and the West
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published