What's most remarkable about RomneyFacts.com is that it is a first-of-its-kind Web site, according to the lead story in this morning's Boston Globe.
I find it difficult to fathom that no one has thought of this before, given the ferocity of politics - especially regarding opposition research - and the fact that the Internet, while still relatively young, wasn't exactly born last night.
From the Globe story:
Party officials and political specialists say they know of no other effort to consolidate such a wide range of detailed information about a single candidate. But they said it is not likely to be the last.
"It's obviously a new application of the Internet, and it strikes me that . . . we'll probably soon have equivalent sites for all the candidates," said F. Christopher Arterton, dean of the Graduate School of Political Management at George Washington University.
That sounds like a safe bet, especially considering that the Massachusetts Democratic Party, which built the anti-Romney site, says it has spent under $20,000 on the effort. That's chicken feed in an era of multimillion-dollar campaigns.
Oh, there will be more such sites, all right. Whether that's a good thing, a bad thing, or just a thing will depend on the quality of the sites. Those that provide well-documented information that the fair-minded among us will consider reliable can expect to have an impact in terms of swaying voters and attracting press attention.
Those that collect and spew slime may draw traffic, but they won't be trusted.
As for my take on the Romney site: It's potentially devastating.
The homepage scroll of past quotes and positions - labeled "Massachusetts Mitt or Red State Romney" - will be tough reading for social conservatives as it lays out how the candidate's views have "evolved" over the years on such hot-button issues as abortion, immigration and gun control.
But I make no claim to being unbiased here. As a lifelong Massachusetts resident/Democrat who has met every Bay State governor since the late Ed King - except for Mitt - I'm here to tell you that there are only three ways to look at Romney: Either he deceived Massachusetts voters when he ran for governor in 2002, he's deceiving Republican voters today as he seeks their 2008 nomination for president ... or both.
I lean toward Door No. 3 but if forced to choose one of the others it would be No. 2.
But you can go look for yourself.
