The deep-pocketed super PAC that helped Mitt Romney bury his Republican primary opponents in negative campaigns is hoping to erase memory of those same ads as the candidate it’s supporting pivots to the general election. Politico reports Restore Our Future has scrubbed its YouTube channel of all but two spots:
The [two ads] that are left are a contrast spot about Romney and President Barack Obama and one about Romney helping a Bain official search for a teenaged daughter who’d disappeared in New York City. That spot, the best of the 2008 cycle for Romney, was made by Larry McCarthy for the campaign back then. McCarthy is now with ROF.
The super PAC removed nasty ads going after former candidates Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum, both of whom are expected to endorse Romney soon. Both candidates launched vicious attacks on Romney, with Gingrich explicitly calling Romney “a liar” and Santorum calling the former Massachusetts governor the “ultimate flip-flopper.” Restore our Future returned fire with at least $11 million in negative ads hitting the candidates, playing an essential role in helping Romney secure the nomination.
But now that Romney is the presumed nominee and heading into the general, the super PAC backing him and its former rivals would rather have voters forget what they said about each other during the primary.
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