Huckabee Attack Ad Runs Anyway

On one point it is more than a bit misleading. The ad says Romney's record as governor of Massachusetts includes "no executions." That's true, but the reason is that Massachusetts doesn't have a death penalty. Furthermore, Romney tried and failed to get the death penalty reinstated.

The ad also misleads when it holds Romney accountable for the state health care program's coverage of abortion. The Romney campaign points out that the former governor was not the one who made the decision to provide abortion coverage for a $50 co-pay. Indeed, the health care legislation Romney signed declared that an independent agency, the Commonwealth Connector, would implement the law and would "develop criteria for plans eligible for premium assistance payments." (The state subsidizes coverage for those making less than 300 percent of the federal poverty level.)

The ad also is somewhat misleading when the narrator states that Romney's record includes "over $700 million in new taxes." That's not correct. It refers to a Boston Globe story quoting an analyst whose estimate was made up mostly of increases in fees, not taxes. A graphic on screen does state it correctly, saying, "Analyst puts increase in fees, taxes at $700 million." But that's not what the narrator said.

We concede this last point is a minor quibble. We ourselves have been critical of Romney's claim that he didn't raise taxes at all, noting that some of his fees and closing of "loopholes" in corporate taxes look a lot like tax increases, whatever they are called. But Huckabee sets a high bar for himself when he complains in the ad about "Mitt Romney's dishonest attacks on me" and adds that "if a man's dishonest to obtain a job, he'll be dishonest on the job."

On another matter the ad is fairly accurate. Romney did sign an "assault weapon" ban for Massachusetts, and supported a national assault weapons ban and the Brady Bill during his 1994 Senate run. He has since joined the NRA, but has been criticized for falsely claiming that the group endorses his candidacy.

In short, Huckabee uses the word "dishonest" three times to describe Romney's attacks on him, but his own attack falls short of total honesty.