A lesbian lobbyist for America's Democratic party has caused
trouble by accusing the wife of Mitt Romney - the opposition leader
- of being clueless about the issues faced by working women.
Speaking to Anderson Cooper on his news show 360, Hilary Rosen
(pictured) said that Anne Romney had "never worked a day in her
life".
Adding: "She's never really dealt with the kinds of economic
issues that a majority of the women in this country are facing in
terms of how do we feed our kids, how do we send them to school and
why do we worry about their future."
Offended, Romney took to micro-blogging site Twitter to respond to
the comments, saying: "I made a choice to stay at home and raise
five boys. Believe me, it was hard work."
The White House have attempted to distance themselves from the
debacle; Democratic National Commitee executive director, Patrick
Gaspard, told MSNBC that Rosen is not a "paid adviser to the DNC or
the Obama campaign", despite The Guardian identifying her as a
"Democratic strategist."
Both President Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle, also broadcast
messages via Twitter.
First Lady Michelle Obama said; "Every mother works hard, and
every woman deserves to be respected," while Obama added: "There's
no tougher job than being a mom," and anyone who didn't acknowledge
this "needs to rethink their statement."
Obama's campaign manager Jim Messina tweeted that Rosen's comments
"were wrong and family should be off limits."
"Raising five boys that are hardworking, decent, honest children
is not a bad thing," Barbara Bush, wife and mother to two previous
presidents, and a mother of five herself tweeted.
Rosen has since apologised.
