Missteps and Misquotes on the Republican Campaign Trail

The campaign trail's full of obstacles, some self-inflicted.

Michele Bachmann - In a major shakeup, veteran Republican strategist Ed Rollins stepped down from his role as Rep. Michele Bachmann’s campaign manager, citing health reasons. The timing couldn’t be worse, given Bachmann’s declining popularity since Texas Gov. Rick Perry entered the GOP presidential race. "Legitimately, it's a Romney-Perry race," Rollins said Monday in an interview on CNN. "I think she's the third candidate at this point in time, which is way different and better than we thought when we started this thing.”(Photo: AP Photo/ Mary Ann Chastain)

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Michele Bachmann - Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann has made a few gaffes on the campaign trail, from wishing Elvis Presley “Happy Birthday” on the anniversary of his death to signing a pledge that said African-American families fared better during slavery.(Photo: AP Photo/ Mary Ann Chastain)

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Herman Cain -  It’s one of the oldest stories in the book. Just as he was beginning to resonate with Republican voters, former presidential candidate Herman Cain was knocked off of the campaign trail due to allegations of improper behavior with women outside of his marriage. How cliché!(Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Newt Gingrich - T: The start of former House speaker Newt Gingrich’s campaign was rife with missteps, most notably a mutiny of his top campaign aides that took place during an ill-advised luxury cruise to the Greek Islands with his wife. Most recently, he’s given several different explanations for the more than $1 million he was paid by mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac that played a role in the foreclosure crisis. Gingrich says it was for his advice as a “historian,” but to others it was lobbying by another name.(Photo: Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

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Newt Gingrich - T: The start of former House speaker Newt Gingrich’s campaign was rife with missteps, most notably a mutiny of his top campaign aides that took place during an ill-advised luxury cruise to the Greek Islands with his wife. Most recently, he’s given several different explanations for the more than $1 million he was paid by mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac that played a role in the foreclosure crisis. Gingrich says it was for his advice as a “historian,” but to others it was lobbying by another name.(Photo: Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

Rick Perry - Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s rise to the top of the GOP nominating race was almost as meteoric as his fall. Now, days before the key Iowa caucuses, the Texas lawmaker is scrambling to help voters forget his poor debate performances, including the “Oops” heard ‘round the world when he forgot the name of one of the three federal agencies he would eliminate, and other brain freezes. (Photo: Rob Kim/Getty Images)

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Rick Perry - Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s rise to the top of the GOP nominating race was almost as meteoric as his fall. Now, days before the key Iowa caucuses, the Texas lawmaker is scrambling to help voters forget his poor debate performances, including the “Oops” heard ‘round the world when he forgot the name of one of the three federal agencies he would eliminate, and other brain freezes. (Photo: Rob Kim/Getty Images)

Mitt Romney - Although rival Rick Perry has experienced a significant dip in the polls since entering the presidential race, Mitt Romney is keeping his eye on the Texas governor and unleashing attacks in the states that Perry visits. In California, the Romney camp unveiled an ad that said Perry is “an inspiration” for the liberal state, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. "Romney realizes that Perry is the guy who could take it away from him," said Marc Hetherington, a professor of political science at Vanderbilt University.(Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

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Mitt Romney - Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney has run the most disciplined campaign of the potential candidates but still struggles to connect with voters. Is that any wonder, when he says things like, “Corporations are people, too”? Offering rival Rick Perry a $10,000 wager didn’t help endear him to voters, either.(Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Ron Paul - Texas Rep. Ron Paul unveiled an economic plan on Monday that proposes $1 trillion in government spending cuts and calls for the elimination of the departments of Energy, Housing and Urban Development, Commerce, Interior and Education, and the repeal of President Obama’s health care and Wall Street reform bills, CNN reports. In addition, as president, he would reduce his salary to $39,336, which he says is the median salary earned by the average American worker.(Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

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Ron Paul - Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) (C) speaks as former Massachusetts Texas Rep. Ron Paul was one of four candidates found to have their campaign T-shirts made overseas. "I wasn't aware of it ... but I wouldn't change it," said an unapologetic Paul.(Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)