Arianna Huffington: Obama's bin Laden Ad 'Despicable'

Arianna Huffington, founder of the liberal leaning news site The Huffington Post, has criticized the Obama campaign for an ad suggesting that Mitt Romney wouldn’t have killed terrorism kingpin Osama bin Laden, calling the move "despicable."

In May 2011 President Barack Obama authorized the raid that did away with the al Qaida leader. But a video ad released by the Obama campaign last week, which included former President Bill Clinton trumpeting Obama’s achievement, also had wording which suggested that presumptive GOP presidential nominee Romney might not have made the same decision.

"I don't think there should be an ad about that," Huffington told "CBS This Morning" Monday. "I think it's one thing to celebrate the fact that they did such a great job [with television specials]. All that is perfectly legitimate. But to turn it into a campaign ad is one of the most despicable things you can do."

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Huffington equated the ad with a Hillary Clinton spot from 2008 that asked, “Who do you want answering the phone” in the White House, when it’s 3 a.m. and a problem has arisen. That was a reference to her opponent Obama’s inexperience. “It’s the same thing . . . 'You're not ready to be commander-in-chief,'” Huffington said.

“It's also what makes politicians and political leaders act irrationally when it comes to matters of war because they're so afraid to be called wimps. They make decisions, which are incredibly destructive for the country.”

Indeed, Obama wouldn’t have increased U.S. troop levels in Afghanistan if he and other Democrats weren’t so concerned that Republicans would make a campaign issue out of a decision not to escalate, Huffington said.