Newsmax Twitter Watch: Trump Surprise, Obama’s Des Moines Register Snub

As Mitt Romney and President Barack Obama head to Iowa, there is lots of handwringing over Obama’s request to stay off-the-record with the Des Moines Register.

Also, Benghazi moves back to the center of campaign focus, a movie about the killing of Osama bin Laden will hit just in time for the election and building anticipation, angst, and everything in between about Donald Trump’s big noon announcement — via social media — of the mysterious "October surprise."

From former White House spokesman Ari Fleischer:
“Unthinkable: Trump breaks real, hard news and MSM has to chase it. I'm no Trump fan, but it wld b fun 2c media's head xplode” - (@AriFleischer)


Columnist S.E. Cupp:
“Anyone else dreading having to address the Trump story tomorrow? I am. Whatever it is.” - (@secupp)


Breitbart News editor-in-chief John Nolte:
“Donald Trump should consider holding off tomorrow. He could step on this Libya email story.” - (@NolteNC)


Liberal commentator Donna Brazile:
“Oh, please don't forget to watch Donald Trump revive some lie or make believe stuff today. Again, let's us focus on turnout.” - (@donnabrazile)


The Des Moines Register, “paper of record in the all-important battleground state of Iowa,” penned an editorial “exposing President Barack Obama's refusal to address their editorial board on the record,” according to Politico.

Josh Gerstein of Politico tweeted a solid observation:
“Unforced pre-election error demonstrates how Obama team never took transparency talk to heart, default still secrecy” - (@joshgerstein)


Dylan Byers of Politico, who wrote the story, weighed in with the Republican National Committee response:
“UPDATE: RNC: DMR off-rec ‘raises questions about what he was hiding and betrays the President’s lack of confidence’” - (@DylanByers)


Joe Pounder, director at the RNC, tweeted:
“Most transparent president in history does his interview w/ Des Moines Register editorial board OFF THE RECORD”
And then later:
“Thank goodness Obama's Leno interview will be ON THE RECORD." - (@PounderFile)


And Ed Henry of Fox News, along the same lines:
“Transparency? Des Moines Register Hits Obama: Iowa Newspaper Told Endorsement Pitch Was Off The Record” - (@edhenryTV)


Terry Moran of ABC News tweets a poll observation:
“The firewall is melting. @jamiedupree: Rasmussen poll shows tie in Ohio; 3 of the last 7 polls in Ohio have been Obama-Romney ties” - (@TerryMoran)


Jim Roberts, assistant managing editor for the New York Times on the Osama kill film:
“Film on killing of Bin Laden has been recut; strengthens Obama's role; will air 2 nights before election.”
And on Clint Eastwood’s re-emergence:
“Clint Eastwood is back, in new pro-Romney swing-state ad, funded by American Crossroads.” - (@nytjim)


Speaking of the Times, the Weekly Standard’s Stephen Hayes raises a point about Libya coverage in this tweet:
“No story about the Benghazi emails in the New York Times?" - (@stephenfhayes)


All the refocusing on Benghazi today has RedState.com’s Mike Paranzino urging a shift back to the topic of the economy:
“13 DAYS: Benghazi is an Obama failure + coverup, but it's the economy that moves undecideds to Romney. Let's try to talk economy!" - (@mikeparanzino)


And, regarding those photos on Vanity Fair’s website showing Romney mocking gay people with a Liberace impression…they’re fake, according to this tweet from Chris Donovan of NBC News:
“@mikeallen VF confirms photos inc limp-wristed Liberace impression aren't real - believable-looking-young-Romney VF assistant posed for them” - (@chrisdonovannbc)