If Republicans have had a little more swagger in their step of late, it is no coincidence. Last week, GOP governor Scott Walker won a recall election in Wisconsin, becoming the first governor in US history to survive a recall election, and exposing Democratic organizing weakness in the process.More dramatic still, the Romney campaign announced that in May, for the first time, it out-raised Obama, pulling in $76.8 million to the incumbent’s $60 million.Eager to swing back into the monetary lead, Obama hit up a group that, after a period of lukewarm feelings, recently came out in droves to support him once again: the LGBT community. Ever since announcing his support for same-sex marriage -- and raising one million dollars within an hour and a half -- Obama has been milking his pro-gay record in fundraising appeals for all he can. That’s why he chose to address a star-studded group of LGBT supporters in Los Angeles, including the likes of Cher and Glee star Jane Lynch.Social media went wild when news of his speech to the crowd included a comment about Mrs. Obama that, depending on how you look at it, could be interpreted as lewd. Referring to the First Lady’s televised push-up contest with Ellen Degeneres, Obama said:
I want to thank my wonderful friend who accepts a little bit of teasing about Michelle beating her in pushups -- (laughter) -- but I think she claims Michelle didn’t go all the way down. (Laughter.) That's what I heard. I just want to set the record straight -- Michelle outdoes me in pushups as well. (Laughter.) So she shouldn’t feel bad. She's an extraordinary talent and she's just a dear, dear friend -- Ellen DeGeneres. Give Ellen a big round of applause.
Twitter quickly responded to the alleged innuendo:Tweet of the Week:Obama just entered Biden oops territory: Said Ellen is mad that Michelle beat her at pushups "because she didn't go all the way down.
— Amy Gardner (@AmyEGardner) June 7, 2012
Thankfully for Obama, the Twitterverse also gave Republicans some tough times. As with other attempts to trend political terms on Twitter to push a specific message, an online anti-Obamacare campaign went horribly awry this week. Telling people to tag their tweets with #IWantRepeal, the National Republican Congressional Committee promised supporters that it would live stream a printer physically adding their name to the petition. Supporters of the healthcare law, which the Supreme Court will rule on this month, starting adding names to the list that were, well, less than wholesome.I hope @MichelleObama yells at @BarackObama tonight. Or at least withholds pushups.
— Meredith Shiner (@meredithshiner) June 7, 2012