Ann Romney, wife of former Massachusetts governor and current Republican presidential aspirant Mitt Romney, is considered the expert on happy homemaking. She raised the five brothers, she's active in causes, and she wins over voters with her charm, beauty, grace, and recipes. She's kept her handsome husband hopelessly devoted to her for decades. What's her secret?

Horses. She loves dressage. In fact, she might love it a little too much:

Last Christmas, Josh Romney presented his father with a rubber horse mask. “It’s remarkable how much it makes him look like a horse,” the younger Mr. Romney said. Wear the mask, he told his father, and “maybe Mom will pay as much attention to you as she does to the horses.”

Paging Dr. Ruth! Paging Dr. Phil! Paging anyone with expertise in these matters! That's plain old weird. TBogg is already making comparisons to Equus, but National Velvet might be more appropriate.

Jodi Kantor at the New York Times put the "horse mask" quotation at the end of a puff piece on how Ann Romney "travels well" (as if you can just put her in a satchel and carry her around everywhere). She missed the story! A quotation like that speaks volumes--or it encourages readers to draw unsavory conclusions.

Michael Femia contributed to this post. Mashup by Caroline Roberts.