Update: Sesame Workshop, which produces Sesame Street, has asked the campaign to take down the ad, according to a statement by the nonprofit. "We do not endorse candidates or participate in political campaigns. We have approved no campaign ads," it wrote on its blog.
The Obama campaign released a new ad starring Sesame Street's Big Bird that pokes fun at a Mitt Romney line from last week's first presidential debate.
Romney promised during the debate to "stop the subsidy to PBS," the network that broadcasts Sesame Street. "I love Big Bird...But I'm not going to keep on spending money on things to borrow money from China to pay for it," he added.
The new 30-second spot from the president's re-election campaign dismisses Romney's stance on PBS and Big Bird as overblown paranoia.
"Bernie Madoff. Ken Lay. Dennis Kozlowski. Criminals. Gluttons of greed," the ad begins. "And the evil genius who towered over them? One man has the guts to speak his name."
Cue Romney at the mic saying "Big Bird" over and over again.
"Big, yellow, a menace to our economy," the ad continues. "Mitt Romney knows it's not Wall Street you have to worry about, it's Sesame Street."
Cut to a benign, sleeping Big Bird cuddled up with a stuffed teddy bear.
msnbc's Chuck Todd pointed out during Daily Rundown that the ad is not a serious one for the campaign given that it is playing on national cable and broadcast stations rather than in battleground states where it could have a real impact on the race.