Matt Lewis & The News

Everyone knows it’s not wise for a male candidate to invade a female candidate’s personal space during a debate. I think we all learned that — for sure — when Rick Lazio made that mistake with Hillary Clinton.

But what about when a male candidate does it to another guy? Is that okay?

This is a question being asked this morning because Mitt Romney put his hand on Rick Perry’s shoulder during a contentious back-and-forth during last night’s debate.

It’s unclear whether or not this will matter, but my guess is that it is at least possible this could backfire on Romney, just as Al Gore’s attempt to intimidate George W. Bush during a 2000 debate seemed to backfire on him.

Video here: