‘Mad Men’ Takes a Swipe at a Politician Named Romney

It’s no easy feat for a show set in the 1960s to comment on an election taking shape in 2012. And while the writers of “Mad Men,” the popular AMC period drama, haven’t officially endorsed any candidate in this year’s presidential contest, they did find a way to take a sly dig at the Republican front-runner – or at least a progenitor who shares his name.

In a brief scene from Sunday’s latest installment of “Mad Men,” written by Erin Levy and the series creator Matthew Weiner, the character Henry Francis (played by Christopher Stanley) is shown in a telephone call with an unseen colleague. Francis, a fictional character who is the public relations director for Mayor John Lindsay of New York City, tells the off-screen figure: “Well, tell Jim his Honor’s not going to Michigan.”

After a pause, Francis adds: “Because Romney’s a clown and I don’t want him standing next to him.”...