Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley

Robert Bentley had to backtrack this weekend after saying GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney should release his tax returns, but the awkward moment in national spotlight left the Alabama governor talking in circles.

First, the Associated Press reported this.

On the sidelines of the National Governors Association meeting in Williamsburg, Alabama’s Republican governor, Robert Bentley, called on Romney to release all the documents requested of him.

“If you have things to hide, then maybe you’re doing things wrong,” Bentley said. “I think you ought to be willing to release everything to the American people.”

Then BuzzFeed came out with a story saying the Bentley was doing an about-face on the tax returns issue, in that story, reporter Zeke Miller reported this.

BuzzFeed caught up with Bentley at the National Governors Association and asked him about his call for Romney to release his tax returns. He responded by saying he did not call on Romney to do anything, but that everyone should release their tax returns.

“I didn’t call on him to do that. That’s not the question that was asked,” he said. “The question that was asked was do you believe that Gov. Romney should release his tax returns. I said I believe in total transparency, I believe that everyone should release their tax returns.”

And ABC News has the governor saying this.

So, in summary, Gov. Bentley didn’t call on Romney to release his tax returns. Instead, he said that Romney should release his tax returns. Got that?