Probably not. But according to Trump spokeswoman Katrina Pierson, Mitt Romney was a lousy choice for Republicans in 2012 because he was “pro-abortion, pro-gay marriage, [and] pro-adoption.” (For the record, the first accusation is half-true — Romney flipped on the issue — and the second is false.)

A generous reading would offer that perhaps Pierson, who issued the odd critique on CNN on Friday, misspoke. Perhaps she was trying to suggest that Romney is in favor of allowing same-sex couples to adopt (his position is ambiguous). Perhaps she meant to say something else altogether.

But here’s the problem: Can anyone be sure anymore?

After all, Trump’s rise has been endorsed and facilitated by a small but vocal contingent of racists, a key part of whose activities has been using social media to harass people such as actor Nick Searcy for adopting a non-white child. And Trump, for his part, has been willing to flirt with them by casting aspersions on entire racial groups and by shrugging at an endorsement from former Ku Klux Klan-chief David Duke, at least initially. Mitt Romney is the grandfather to an adopted black boy, Kieran. Might Pierson have been playing to the most extreme elements in Trump’s base?

I doubt it. I think (and I hope) Pierson misspoke. But Trump’s reckless rhetoric has made it difficult for even the fairest-minded listener to give him the benefit of the doubt. Going forward, that’s a huge problem.