(Image source: The New York Times)

BY ZACH TOOMBS

Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign is parting ways with a debate coach — the man credited with the candidate’s recently improved on-stage performance. In Team Romney’s eyes, that might have been too much credit. POLITICO reports.

“After (debate coach Brett) O’Donnell was ... highlighted … as being one of the reasons behind the former Massachusetts governor’s improved debate performances, Romney campaign officials grew uneasy ... it was made clear that there was severe discomfort about how his role was being portrayed in the media ...”

O’Donnell formerly served as a debate coach at Liberty University, and also coached Michele Bachmann. Stories such as this one from Bloomberg last week labeled O’Donnell a “potential game-changer” for Romney.

“The call went out the night Mitt Romney lost the South Carolina primary ... O’Donnell was in Tampa the next day, and less than 48 hours later, a pithier and more combative Romney showed up Jan. 23 to debate Newt Gingrich ...  Romney’s feistier delivery and more aggressive style that night ... may have helped turn the tide for him in Florida ...”

The solid debate performances were much-needed for Romney after a huge loss to Gingrich in South Carolina. The frontrunner seemed to have a newfound energy — delivering attacks such as this one on Newt’s role as a historian for mortgage giant Freddie Mac.

“You could have spoken out aggressively. You could have spoken out and said ‘These guys are wrong, this needs to end.’ But, instead, you were being paid by them. You were making over a million dollars at the same time people in Florida were being hurt by millions of dollars.”

Afterward, the praise came flooding in for O’Donnell, with NPR calling him an MVP ...

… and Prospect.org naming him the real winner in Florida.

But it was this article from The New York Times, referencing O’Donnell’s role as part of Romney’s Florida surge, that became a large point of tension for the campaign — this, according to POLITICO reporter Jonathan Martin, appearing on CNN.

“One of the Romney advisers — Stuart Stevens — called Brett O’Donnell ... and had O’Donnell call Jim Rutenberg, one of the story’s co-authors, to have his — O’Donnell’s — role in the comeback downplayed in the piece.”

Team Romney has faced some backlash for not retaining O’Donnell. A political contributor to Yahoo! News writes:

“If people working for Romney fear being punished for being too good at their job, one cannot but fear for the success of Romney either in his campaign going forward or in his prospective presidency.”

O’Donnell himself has refused to comment on the story.