Coulter explains debate: Romney was 'kind and gentle to the retard' Obama

Conservative columnist Ann Coulter explained Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney's lack of aggression at the third presidential debate on Monday by saying he was trying to be "kind and gentle" to the president, who she called a "retard."

Although President Barack Obama was aggressive throughout the debate, Romney used a softer strategy, repeatedly endorsing the current administration's positions on Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, Syria and the use of drones. The tactic clearly worked for the president because instant polls conducted by CBS News and CNN showed that he won decisively.

Coulter, however, was apparently in the minority who thought highly of the Republican candidate's tacitc.

"I highly approve of Romney's decision to be kind and gentle to the retard," she tweeted following the debate.

Former Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin has been critical of the use of "retard" as a slur because her son Trig has Down Syndrome.

Last year, after the Fox television show Family Guy presented a mentally challenged character whose mother was the former governor of Alaska, Palin wrote on Facebook that the episode felt like a “kick in the gut.”

Palin also called for then-White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel to be fired after he suggested that some liberals were “retarded."

[Photo: Gage Skidmore]