Appearing on CNN’s State of the Union, Obama campaign communications director David Axelrod was asked about the controversy in the past week involving a proposal by a wealthy conservative businessman’s political operation to attack President Obama’s past membership in the church of Rev. Jeremiah Wright.
Host Candy Crowley asked Axelrod about the response by some Democratic pundits, who have said that such an attack would in turn make fair game of Mitt Romney’s Mormon religion. Does the Obama campaign believe that the candidates’ religions are off limits, Crowley asked?
“Absolutely, and we have right along. we have said that’s not fair game,” said Axelrod. “And we wish Governor Romney would stand up as resolutely and consistently, to refute these kinds of things on his side.”
Crowley pointed out that Romney has repudiated the attack. Axelrod responded, however, that Romney has done so only “tepidly and reluctantly,” and invoked Romney’s own discussion of Wright this past February.
