For all its struggles to break through into open field, the Romney campaign has made few mistakes. It has been methodical, disciplined, and on-message.  So it’s surprising to read this morning that the campaign made a freshman error in redacting portions of a Detroit News editorial endorsement of Mr. Romney this week. The Detroit News is now up in arms about it, turning a winning news cycle for Mr. Romney into a mixed one and highlighting the critical portions of the editorial endorsement which were probably overlooked in the first place. And endorsement is an endorsement after all. 

It’s an instinct that has to be fought on every campaign, from dog catcher to the presidency — the urge to edit out any adverse mention of one’s candidate and avoid all pain. Both will bite you on the you-know-what every time.