DNC Chair Walks Back Gaffe on Priorities USA Ad

Debbie Wasserman-Shultz appeared on Fox News Sunday with guest host John Roberts over the weekend. During the interview, Roberts asked her about the now infamous Priorities USA ad which dishonestly implies Mitt Romney is responsible for a woman’s death from cancer. Pressed on whether the ad was appropriate coming from Democrats, Wasserman-Schultz claimed she had “no idea of the political affiliation of folks who are associated with that SuperPAC.”

Priorities USA is run by former White House Deputy Press Secretary Bill Burton. Prior to that, Burton held the role of DCCC Communications Director and also worked on the Obama campaign in 2008. It’s not remotely possible that Wasserman-Schultz, the DNC chair, is unaware of any of this.

Monday morning, Wasserman-Schultz made an appearance on CNN’s Starting Point with Soledad O’Brien. Toward the end of the interview, Soledad asked her about the Priorities USA gaffe on Fox News Sunday. As you’ll see, Wasserman-Schultz reversed herself (starting at 4:00 in this clip, courtesy of Townhall):

Soledad O’Brien: [Roberts] asked you “Do you deny that they’re Democrats?” and you said this “I have no idea of the political affiliation of folks who are associated with that SuperPAC.” Really?

Debbie Wasserman-Schultz: Soledad, of course I know the Priorities USA SuperPAC is a Democratic-affiliated SuperPAC. The point I was trying to make…

It’s a neat game the Democrats are playing. DNC and White House spokespeople claim they have nothing to do with the ad in question, placing all the blame on Bill Burton. When Burton is interviewed, he claims the ad didn’t intend to blame Romney for the woman’s death.

Of course, none of this is true. The Priorities USA ad is remarkable for having almost no policy content. It is purely an attack on Mitt Romney’s character, connecting him to a death for which he bears zero responsibility. Nor is it true that there was no coordination between the campaign and the makers of the Priorities USA ad. An Obama for America website tells the same story. Spokesman Stephanie Cutter had Soptic (the man in the ad) tell the story on a campaign conference call she hosted just a couple months ago. Again, every bit of the Democratic media spin on this is a lie. No wonder Debbie Wasserman-Schultz is having such a hard time keeping her story straight.