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Romney Dog-Whistles To Tenther Extremists: ‘I’m As Conservative As The Constitution’

During his interview yesterday with Meet the Press, GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney made the rather odd statement he is “as conservative as the Constitution” — a phrase that makes about as much sense as saying that you are “as green as a cloud” or “as square as an egg.” Despite Republican efforts to pretend that the Constitution is actually a Tea Party manifesto, the Constitution says very little about politics. Virtually all questions under our Constitution are left to the democratic process, and most of the remainder are covered by very progressive prohibitions on things like discrimination, voter suppression, or government censorship. Yet, despite the fact that Romney’s statement makes little sense to anyone familiar with our actual constitution, it was likely intended as a dog whistle to ideologues who can’t tell the difference between the Founding Fathers and Ayn Rand — one of whom is Romney’s running mate.

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