Cover art for "The Crate Escape: Seamus Unleashed"

The founders of Dogs Against Romney, the PAC that has been, well, dogging Mitt Romney for the infamous tale of the time he strapped his Irish Setter, Seamus, to the roof of his station wagon during a family road trip in 1983, are releasing a new mobile game about the incident. The Crate Escape: Seamus Unleashed will be available as a free download for iPhone and iPad users late next month.

"We have over 65,000 passionate supporters in Dogs Against Romney whom I know will love this game,” Dogs Against Romney co-founder Scott Crider said in a statement. “In addition to being fun and hilarious, it raises awareness about a shocking incident of animal cruelty.”

A still from the "Seamus Unleashed" game.

The Crate Escape: Seamus Unleashed will be released on August 26, which is "National Dog Day" and also happens to be one day before the Republican National Convention in Tampa. According to the game's Facebook page, the storyline involves "Seamus get[ting] revenge against his arch enemy, Mitt Romneya. A photo included in the press release shows and angry Seamus chasing Mr. Romney by a bank on the beach as the presidential candidate drops dollar bills, a clear reference to the ongoing controversy over Mr. Romney's offshore assets.

Watchdog Interactive, LLC, a company owned by Mr. Crider and his fellow Dogs Against Romney co-founder Morgan Robinson teamed with app-maker Censault to promote and market the game. According to the press release, The Crate Escape: Seamus Unleashed will "offer upgrades and in-game purchase opportunities that will let players help raise funds for important causes ranging from breast cancer research to veterans causes and more."

Dogs Against Romney poster (Photo: Dogs Against Romney)

Dogs Against Romney, the stealth PAC backed canine-inspired protesters hounding Mitt Romney for once strapping his dog to the roof of his car, unleashed their newest salvo at the presumed Republican nominee this morning with a web video highlighting Mr. Romney's presence in databases of animal users.

"Abusing animals has consequences--consequences not even Mitt Romney can avoid. In the wake of his campaign’s 2007 revelation of the 'dog-on-roof story,' Mitt Romney’s name was listed by two national animal cruelty registries used to track animal abuse offenders," the Dogs Against Romney statement announcing the video said. "Both registries are maintained so that animal welfare organizations, Humane Law Enforcement officials, animal shelters, rescue operations, and breeders can share information about animal abuse offenders and conduct background checks before allowing people to adopt or purchase a pet."

The databases referred to in the Dogs Against Romney video are Pet-Abuse.com and Inhumane.org, two sites that catalogue alleged incidents of animal cruelty from court records and press coverage. Neither Pet-Abuse.com or Inhumane.org is affiliated with any official agency, but both sites listed Mr. Romney for the 1983 incident where he put his dog in a crate on the roof of his family car.

In their video, Dogs Against Romney, which exists solely to highlight the "crate gate" scandal, cited recent polling that found 68 percent of voters believe Mr. Romney's actions were "inhumane." The video, which is entitled "Registered Pet Offender," ends with the question, "Should we have a president who isn’t even qualified to adopt a pet?"

For his part, Mr. Romney and his wife, Ann, have maintained their dog, Seamus, "loved" his rooftop rides. Though The Politicker has uncovered new evidence the dog in question may have run away after the 1983 trip, Ann Romney claims it went on to live to "a ripe old age" with Mr. Romney's older sister in California.

Watch the "Registered Pet Offender" video below.

Mitt Romney petting a dog (not Seamus) during a campaign stop in 2008. (Photo: Getty)

In an interview with Diane Sawyer on ABC News last night, Mitt and Ann Romney addressed one of the more persistent topics of this presidential campaign—the infamous 1983 road trip when they strapped their dog, Seamus, to the roof of the family car. Ms. Romney told Ms. Sawyer the Irish Setter "loved" riding on top of the car, but The Politicker has uncovered new information indicating the Romneys may not have been honest about the canine controversy.

Back in January, a tipster told us that one of the Romney sons said that rather than spending the rest of his days in California, as the family has claimed, Seamus actually ran away after the rooftop road trip.

Ms. Romney has previously said that, following the trip, the dog lived to a "ripe old age" in California, with Mr. Romney's older sister, Jane. However, Jane Romney's ex-husband, Bruce H. Robinson, told us that can't be true.

"That's not correct," Mr. Robinson said of Ann Romney's explanation of what happened to Seamus.

Seamus's story first emerged in a 2007 Boston Globe profile of Mr. Romney, which revealed he put the dog into a carrier strapped to the roof of his car for a 12-hour drive to the family vacation home in Canada. During the trip, the dog defecated on himself and Mr. Romney responded by hosing down the car and putting the dog back into his case. The story sparked a fluffy kerfuffle, inspiring jabs from the Obama campaign, persistent protests and a stealth PAC backed group, Dogs Against Romney, dedicated to keeping the story in the news.

Mr. Robinson, a doctor and nephew of the late president of the Mormon Church Gordon Hinckley, married Jane Romney in 1958. In 1968, he flew to France to care for Mr. Romney after the future White House hopeful was nearly killed in a car crash while working as a Mormon missionary. Mr. Robinson told us he and Jane Romney did indeed take Seamus to live with them in California, but that it was before 1980 (the vacation in question happened in 1983), and they gave the dog back prior to the notorious rooftop road trip.

Mr. Robinson said Mitt and Ann Romney gave Seamus away because they "couldn't handle" the dog, which Mr. Robinson described as "a wanderer" who had a propensity for running away.

"They had a couple of their little boys at that point," Mr. Robinson said. "So they gave him to us."

Mr. Robinson said he can't recall the exact year Seamus came to live with him and Jane, but he's sure it was well before the roof ride.

(The Romney campaign did not respond for comment by publication time, and Jane Romney could not be reached.)

"We were living in the Sacramento area, and so, Jane and I, in the 70's, I'd say '78 or so, but I'm not 100 percent sure about that," Mr. Robinson said. "So, we took care of Seamus, a beautiful, magnificent dog. We had three other dogs of our own, but we had an acre of property overlooking the American River, so we had lots of land to take care of these dogs and for them to roam around in."

Mr. Robinson said he's certain they gave the dog back to the Romneys when he and Jane got divorced in 1980. At that point, Jane went to live in Southern California, and Mr. Robinson said she was unable to "handle the dog" on her own.

"We had him for three or four years, but I couldn't swear on that exactly how long it was, but it was years anyway," Mr. Robinson said. "Then we gave him back to Mitt again and I think, actually Jane and I broke up. We got divorced in 1980, so I think, at that point, she couldn't handle the dog anymore and I think that's when she gave him back to Mitt, sometime in the period of time after we separated. So, Mitt ended up with the dog again, and then, this episode that has been so widely popularized throughout the country."

During the time he and Jane had custody of Seamus, Mr. Robinson said the dog had a history of absconding.

"He ran away from us a couple times, but we tracked him down and the police reported him. He had a tag on, of course, you know, so they were always able to identify him and bring him back," Mr. Robinson said. "He was a delightful dog, but he was a bit of trouble that way because he was wandering, a wandering dog."

Mr. Robinson reportedly had an "acrimonious" divorce with Jane Romney, but he said there is no bad blood with the family. Mr. Robinson told us he was recently invited to "a special dinner" with the Romney campaign and that he plans to vote for Mr. Romney, whom he described as "wonderful." He also said he doesn't believe Seamus' rooftop ride was abusive.

"Mitt wouldn't be actually capable of abusing anybody or anything. He's too kindhearted for that, whatever you want to say about him he's a kindhearted person," Mr. Robsinson said. "I don't think that Seamus was ever abused in any way."

In yesterday's ABC News interview, Ms. Sawyer asked Mr. Romney if he would put a dog on the roof of his car again.

"Certainly not with the attention it's received," he said.

We imagine not.

Fred Malek (Photo: FredMalekBlog.com)

Mitt Romney's latest canine controversy involves his bundler Fred Malek who was arrested over 50 years ago in conjunction with an incident where a dog was killed and barbecued in an Illinois park. Mr. Malek is hosting a fundraiser for the Romney campaign on Monday in honor of Ann Romney's birthday. Dogs Against Romney, the stealth PAC backed group dedicated to dogging Mr. Romney about the 1983 incident where he put his Irish Setter on the roof of his car, sent a press release this morning pointing out Mr. Romney's upcoming fundraiser is hosted by "fellow animal abuser Fred Malek."

Mr. Malek, who was 22-years-old at the time, was one of five men arrested in August 1959 after police in Peoria, Illinois found them around a grisly scene in a public park where a dog had been skinned, disemboweled and barbecued on a spit. Charges against Mr. Malek were eventually dismissed after one of his companions testified they were solely responsible for killing the animal and attempting to cook it. In 2006, Mr. Malek told Washington Post columnist Colbert King  he and the other men arrested at the site of the canine cookout were "drunk out of their minds at the time" and that he merely watched the proceedings and was in no position to stop them. This explanation has not satisfied Dogs Against Romney.

"Malek just…watched.   What is it with Mitt Romney and animal cruelty?" the group's statement said.

Mr. Romney 's alleged mistreatment of animals has been a persistent issue for him on the campaign trail since the publication of a 2007 Boston Globe profile that revealed he once strapped his family's Irish Setter, Seamus, into a carrier on top of the family car for a more than twelve hour road trip. Seamus responded to his roof ride by defecating and, according to our sources, running away once the family arrived at their destination.

Mr. Malek, who worked with Presidents Richard Nixon and George H.W. Bush and served as National Finance Committee co-chair of John McCain's 2008 White House bid, is also no stranger to controversy. During his time in the Nixon administration, Mr. Malek compiled a list of "ethnics," specifically Jews, in the federal government. In recordings released in 2010, President Nixon was taped instructing Malek "to particularly check the Jews throughout the administration ... and see what we can do about them." In 1988, Mr. Malek resigned from the Republican National Committee over questions about his role in President Nixon's push to oust Jews from the federal government. Mr. Malek apologized for his involvement, but denied playing a substantial role in the scheme.

(Photo: Dogs Against Romney)

Throughout his quest for the Republican nomination, Mitt Romney has been haunted by the infamous tale of the time he put his dog on the roof of his car during a long road trip and Dogs Against Romney, a protest group dedicated to keeping the story at the forefront of the campaign conversation. In the past month, Dogs Against Romney garnered a dramatic surge of attention. However, while much of the coverage of Dogs Against Romney characterized the group as a purely grassroots movement, its recent notoriety got a substantial boost from the behind-the-scenes support of Americans United for Change, a super PAC-like group with extensive ties to the Democratic establishment.

Dogs Against Romney spokeswoman Kitty Hendrix admitted the group's much talked about protest outside the Westminster Kennel Club dog show in Manhattan last Tuesday was planned and executed with a discreet push from AUC.

"They basically wanted more grassroots people with dogs to talk about this issue, because it just made sense. It’s always suspect when someone is a professional political operative getting in front of the camera trying to pull emotional content out of anyone," Ms. Hendrix said. "People are always a little more suspect of that."

Dogs Against Romney does indeed have grassroots origins. Its ranks include many dog-loving volunteers and the group was started by Scott Crider, an Alabama-based digital marketer and social media strategist. Mr. Crider launched Dogs Against Romney in 2007 as a response to a Boston Globe profile which included the anecdote about Mr. Romney placing his Irish Setter, Seamus, in a carrier on top of the family car for a twelve hour road trip from Boston to his vacation home in Canada. Although it began as a simple website hosted on a free blog-publishing service, today the group has a rapidly expanding Facebook page with over 29,000 fans and a store selling everything from official t-shirts to bumper stickers and clothing made for dogs.

AUC, on the other hand, is hardly a grassroots operation. Its Executive Director Tom McMahon was previously the Executive Director of the Democratic National Committee, and its Deputy Executive Director Caren Benjamin was an aide to Nancy Pelosi during her time as Speaker of the House. FactCheck.org describes AUC as a "liberal group whose message closely mirrors that of the Obama White House." According to its website, AUC aims to use "aggressive earned and paid media outreach, grassroots and online organizing" to "build broad public and congressional support for policies that move America in a new, better direction."

AUC Deputy Communications Director Lauren Weiner distributed the press release announcing this week's Westminster protest. Before the statement was sent out, The Politicker received an unsolicited e-mail from Ms. Weiner asking whether Mr. Romney would be in New York on the day of the planned protest.

"We’re working the Dogs Against Romney folks for a small protest tomorrow outside the Westminster Dog Show to draw attention to Romney’s treatment of his dog," she wrote.

Members of Dogs Against Romney said AUC encouraged them to hold the Westminster protest and aided with media outreach. Kitty Hendrix, a spokeswoman for Dogs Against Romney, said AUC "was definitely interested in us having a little demonstration."

"They knew this organization existed and it could be a powerful organization," Ms. Hendrix said. "They got the ball rolling and, certainly, the press probably paid a little more attention, but this is very much an organic organization that was created by dog lovers who felt it was important for people to understand what kind of man Mitt Romney is."

AUC's media efforts on behalf of the protest were an unqualified success as more reporters attended the event than protesters.

In an email last night, Ms. Weiner said AUC believed it was important to work with Dogs Against Romney because "bringing up this issue is exemplary of Romney's character." She added Mr. Romney is "having a hard time relating to others, including animals, and this is a perfect example of that."

As a 501(c)(4) organization, AUC plays a similar role to the super PACs that have been the subject of intense debate during this presidential race. Like super PACs, these so-called "stealth PACs" are allowed to accept donations of unlimited size and apply that money to political campaigns, as long influencing the outcomes of elections is not their primary purpose. However, unlike super PACs, 501(c)(4)s don't disclose any information about their donors and are regulated by the I.R.S. rather than the Federal Election Commission. Critics argue the I.R.S. is doing a poor job monitoring stealth PACs.

Along with help from AUC, Dogs Against Romney has received social media support from several top-level members of the DNC who directly promoted the group and its message on Twitter this week. On Monday, DNC Communications Director Brad Woodhouse and DNC Political Director Jeffrey Lerner both tweeted links to the group's website. On Tuesday, DNC Executive Director Patrick Gaspard sent a tweet to one of President Obama's closest advisers, David Axelrod, calling the New York Knicks' recent winning streak the "greatest joy ride since Romney's dog on hood." Mr. Axelrod sent his own memorable tweet about the canine controversy last month.

Yesterday, the head of the DNC, Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, posted five different tweets about Mr. Romney's dog dilemma.

"If you agree that dogs should not be treated like luggage, tweet @MittRomney a picture of your dog w/ #thisisnotluggage," Ms. Wasserman Schultz wrote in one of her flurry of anti-Romney, Seamus-related postings.

A top Democratic strategist told The Politicker the story about Mr. Romney's dog is catnip to high-level Democrats and political consultants because they view it as the type of "moment" that can define forever a political candidate for the general public in a high profile campaign.

"People tend to talk about those campaigns afterwards, they remember moments. There’s always moments. There’s a moment when John McCain said that the fundamentals of the economy are strong. There’s a moment where Sarah Palin winks," the strategist said. "This is the kind of stuff that sears into their memories that they don’t forget, that they will be talking about for years and years from now, whatever happens in the primary and whatever happens in the general. There’s just these moments of clarity where people really size up, and it speaks to something bigger, speaks to who they are."

A staffer who worked on President Obama's 2008 election effort confirmed the campaign was instantly attracted to the Seamus story when it first came out.

"When I first heard this story in 2007," the staffer said. "It just jumped off the page. Because, to me, that constitutes animal abuse. It’s animal cruelty."

This time around, according to Politico, "Barack Obama’s aides and advisers are preparing to center the president’s reelection campaign on a ferocious personal assault on Mitt Romney’s character and business background." This will be a two front war focused on characterizing Romney as "weird" using "awkward public encounters and famous off-kilter anecdotes, first among them the tale of Romney having strapped his dog to the roof of his car" and painting him as "the very picture of greed in the great recession — a sort of political Gordon Gekko."

AUC has played a key role in both aspects of President Obama's strategic assault on Mr. Romney. Prior to teaming with Dogs Against Romney, AUC launched a "Romney-Gekko 2012 campaign" portraying Mr. Romney as a greedy corporate executive through a series of websites, TV ads and protests.

And Democrats aren't the only ones hoping to score points off the canine conundrum. Mr. Romney's Republican rival Newt Gingrich previously created a website called "Pets With Newt," highlighting his love of animals as a conspicuous response to Mr. Romney's doggie dilemma.

As Mr. Romney's enemies continue to capitalize on the tale of Seamus' rooftop road trip, the story continues to evolve. The candidate has repeatedly insisted his dog enjoyed traveling on top of the car and his wife Ann said Seamus survived the voyage and went on to live to a “ripe old age.” However, last month, The Politicker reported two of Mr. Romney’s sons had an off-record conversation with reporters where they revealed the dog ran away when they reached their destination on that fateful journey. Mr. Romney and his campaign didn’t respond to multiple requests for comment on that story.

Clearly, there's still a lot of fight left in this dog.

Sake the pug protesting Mitt Romney outside Madison Square Garden. (Photo: Hunter Walker)

A small group of protesters and a pair of pups inspired a media frenzy in front of the Westminster Kennel Club dog show at Madison Square Garden today. The demonstrators were assisted by the liberal political consultancy Americans United for Change under the umbrella of the group, "Dogs Against Romney," which was created after the Boston Globe published a 2007 profile of the perennial Republican presidential candidate revealing he put his Irish Setter, Seamus, on the roof of the family station wagon for a twelve hour road trip from Boston to his vacation home in Canada.

A press release announcing the "Dogs Against Romney" protest promised a pack of " passionate canines and humans," however, when we arrived at Madison Square Garden shortly before the demonstration's appointed noon start time, there were only two protesters carrying signs reading "Mitt is Mean" and "Dogs Against Romney." Nary a dog was in sight, but the media was out in force. We spotted more reporters than we could count including representatives from the Huffington Post, Gothamist, Daily News, CNN's "off-beat" correspondent Jeanne Moos and, of course, the Observer.

One of the protesters, Veronica Cedeno, told us she has an eight-week-old Scottish Terrier at home, that was too young to bring to the demonstration.

"I feel like I have to do this because it's just not right to treat a dog like that," Ms. Cedeno said.

Nearby, we spotted a man named Paul Getsos calling for reinforcements on a cell phone.

"Do you know anyone with dogs in the Midtown area? Because I'm doing this Dogs Against Romney protest," Mr. Getsos said into his phone.

Mr. Getsos told us why he thought Seamus' story should be a major issue in this year's campaign.

"I think it's a character issue and just a question about decision making," Mr. Getsos said. "I mean, it's mean. it's weird, it's just, like, unreal. If he treats a loving pet like that how is he going to be empathetic? He lacks empathy, a president needs empathy."

Seamus' story has dogged Mr. Romney throughout this election as well as his 2008 campaign. Mr. Romney  has repeatedly insisted his dog enjoyed traveling on top of the car and his Ann, has said Seamus survived the trip and went on to live to a “ripe old age." However, last month, The Politicker reported two of Mr. Romney’s sons had an off-record conversation with reporters where they revealed the dog ran away when they reached their destination on that infamous journey. Mr. Romney and his campaign didn't respond to multiple requests for comment on that story.

Though Mr. Getsos described the dog issue as a "significant problem," he said it was "the least of the problems" with Mr. Romney.

"The problem I have with Mitt Romney is he has no policy options," Mr. Getsos said. "He's talking all about these issues that are nothing about policy or politics, it's all about character, you know the fact that he's married to his wife. But it's like, this is a character issue. If you're going to run on your character then, you should be attacked on your character."

Eventually, a pair of protesters with dogs joined the demonstration including a bull terrier and "Sake," an eight-year-old pug who rode in her owner, Tate Hausman's, backpack.

"We live in Brooklyn, but she comes to work with me on 27th Street," Mr. Hausman said. "She travels safely in the backpack."

After about twenty minutes, we left the protest. By that point, there were about ten protesters, the two dogs and more reporters than we were able to count.