Penn. GOP Official Implies Driver Is 'Mentally Retarded Person' Because of Obama Bumper Sticker

Jim Roddey, reportedly a long-time Pennsylvania GOP official and county chair, is making headlines after implying that a driver is "mentally retarded" for having an Obama bumper sticker on his car.

Speaking at an election night party Tuesday, the man described by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette as a "Silver Fox [with a] suave demeanor" reportedly said:

"There was a disappointment tonight.  I was very embarrassed ... I was in this parking lot and there was a man looking for a space to park, and I found a space for him.  And I felt badly -- he looked like he was sort of in distress.  And I said, 'Sir, here's a place.'  And he said, 'That's a handicapped space.'  I said, 'Oh, I'm so sorry, I saw that Obama sticker and I thought you were mentally retarded.'"

According to the Post-Gazette's Tim McNulty, the crowd "hollered and clapped" in response.

McNulty elaborates:

Roddey has long been a vocal supporter of Mitt Romney, even before the GOP presidential field was settled, and has joined GOP voices supporting the state's strict new voter ID rules -- at a Romney event last month he joked he had re-done is will so he could be buried in Philadelphia and vote from the grave.

Huffington Post commenters have gone into a frenzy, with nearly 1,000 comments in just a few hours.

"And these people get to vote?" one wrote.

Another added that, after "attacking women and minorities," it is only "natural" to attack the mentally handicapped.