This will be a brief diary; or perhaps short-form diary is the better phrase.
I'm picking up from several sources--Comedy Central, word of mouth as to a Facebook cartoon--that there's a new Romney meme gaining some traction.
More below the curlicue.
I gather there's a cartoon that shows President Obama, grinning, telling Michelle Obama a story. It goes something like this.
"So he says he's already released 'sufficient documentation,'" Obama tells Michelle.
"And I say, 'No, we want to see the long-form tax returns.'"
Heh, heh.
I like the phrase "long-form tax returns" for several reasons.
1. It mocks the birthers.
2. It exposes the double standard that President Obama has had to deal with--the only president who had to release his birth certificate to prove he's an American, for chrissakes.
3. The phrase "long-form tax return" underscores the point that when Romney releases more returns (which he is bound to do at some point), he ought to release the entire returns, with all the schedules.
4. Did I say it mocks the birthers?
5. By mocking the birthers, it reminds people who went aggressive first, and why. As Charles Blow says, some people have brain explosions when they see Obama in "their" White House. By turning the tables, this joke shows why the Obama campaign has every right to be aggressive about Bain, and about Romney's personal finances.
I'm sure you all can think of more reasons. But the point is that this brief joke helps us in so many ways.
Given all that it does for us, let's give this "long-form tax return" joke a little help. Some wider play. It's the least we can do for a friend.