AFTER AN UPROAR followed Mitt Romney banning U.S. press at his Israeli fundraiser, which broke the agreement the campaign made to the press, the Romney campaign was forced to reverse itself. Casino mogul Sheldon Adelson was expected to attend the event, along with other Americans flying in for the event.
These stories play out as Tina Brown unloads her latest Newsweek cover on Mitt Romney, asking: “The Wimp Factor: Is He Just Too Insecure to Be President?”
From Jonathan Martin on the press reversal:
Mitt Romney’s campaign has reversed a decision to not allow the media into a fundraiser here Monday morning, bowing to reporters’ demand that they be allowed to record the Republican’s address to some of his top donors.
Romney press aide Rick Gorka told the candidate’s travelling press corps Sunday afternoon that they’d be allowed to have a pool reporter at the breakfast event in the King David hotel.
Mr. Romney’s visit to Israel comes as a senior foreign policy adviser Dan Senor, who is closely associated with Pres. Bush’s Iraq policy, makes a line in the sand statement on Iran in order to bolster Romney’s security image.
“Gov. Romney believes we should employ any and all measures to dissuade the Iranian regime from its nuclear course, and it is his fervent hope that diplomatic and economic measures will do so,” said adviser Dan Senor, previewing a speech Romney is scheduled to make Sunday afternoon. ”In the final analysis, of course, no option should be excluded. Gov. Romney recognizes Israel’s right to defend itself, and that it is right for America to stand with it.” – Romney would back Israeli strike against Iran, senior adviser says
Israel is a sovereign nation that has every responsibility to defend itself against a clear and present danger that is verifiable. But as we saw with Iraq, the current standards for this aren’t always impressive, let alone based in fact.
That Mr. Romney feels his campaign needs to ratchet up the rhetoric on Iran is once again the age old competition on Who Is More Pro Israel? It does no service to Israel or Middle East peace to have dialogue like this, because it’s really none of our business what Israel does to protect its citizens. It shouldn’t come as a shock that any senior surrogate of a presidential candidate would say “it is right for America to stand with [Israel]“, because anyone hinting otherwise would render their candidate unelectable. But coming as Romney visits Israel, amid a foreign policy trip that’s been a debacle, it’s tantamount to yelling “squirrel!” Translation: Look over here, hint-hint, Romney would engage U.S. military to help Israel on any threat from Iran.
Can’t you already game the foreign policy debate this fall? All fantasy RISK and swagger on a calamitous for all Middle East confrontation, no actual discussion of real foreign policy challenges in the 21st century, beginning with economics, energy and climate change.
It’s interesting that Mr. Romney’s efforts to look tough on national security, while continually revealing his secrecy fetish against transparency, whether it’s with the press or his own disclosure on his tax returns, doesn’t include talks with MI-6. Discussions of these types are rare and expected to not be discussed, let alone personally reported by someone inside the room. But Romney just couldn’t help preening in public.
“I can only say that I appreciated the insights and perspectives of the leaders of the government here and opposition here as well as the head of MI6 as we discussed Syria and the hope for a more peaceful future for that country.” – Mitt Romney, press conference [Daily Caller]
As even the Daily Caller was forced to report, the Brits were not amused, nor should they be. It’s rich that it’s these guys who blasted Obama over the bin Laden raid and information that came out of that killing.
This is all worth noting for the next time the Romney campaign squeals about national security prowess, or leaks, while also remembering they hired a man who was embroiled in the Scooter Libby scandal to be a surrogate on these standards.
This is why I said the other day that Romney’s foreign policy is downright scary. He’s playing to the tea party crazies who want a war with Iran no matter how flawed the neocon policy has been shown to be.
Ah! You referenced a running joke from one of my very favorite movies ever, “UP!”
Is this the scene to which you refer? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HxoWHeoYU3g
Squirrel indeed. I believe Team Romney will be using the squirrel tactic lots between now and November.
Thanks for finding that clip. Cultural illiterate that I’m becoming, I had no idea what that was about. I think if someone put a device like that on a dog’s collar, that’s about what you’d hear.
Interesting that he should have a fund raiser at the King David hotel, the hotel the Irgun blew up; the original middle east terrorists.
” It’s really none of our business what Israel does to protect it’s citizens. ” Let’s see, how many of my tax dollars have gone into the billions and billions we have thrown away to subsidize a state that usually turns around and spits in our face. Their endless human rights abuses should be enough to warrant our oversight of how they protect their citizens.
GA6thDem and fangio-Totally agree. Seems the wealthy corporations-are-people folks just lurves to start wars and then send the poor and middle class to fight them.
For those of you that are still into chasing sticks and balls beings thrown, let’s recap: Mitt has become quite adroit at manipulating the press. Over the last seven days Romney has taken Bain Capital, felonious acts of white collar crime, and his taxes off the front page of the news with “a white man’s burden” comment, London ain’t ready for the Olympics, a MI6 slip of the tongue, and a tired hoary it’s ok to bomb Iran screed.
Attack me on what I want you attack me on, not want I should be attacked on. Mitt has learned how to drive the media bus. He is a quick learner.
Go fetch.
Romney’s gaffes in London matter, as does what he said on a secret meeting with MI-6. It’s called news. As someone who covers these things and has for a long time, the press isn’t supposed to keep talking about Bain or taxes when the Republican candidate is on a foreign policy tour that has turned into a marketing disaster.
Remember, the only thing Romney had to do was LOOK presidential and he couldn’t even pull that off
Nothing is going to take anyone’s attention off Bain and taxes. I live in a battleground state and I’m seeing the subject throughout the Olympics in negative ads.
TPAZ, Read the article. Holy Guacamole! If this meme of Mitt the Wimp catches on, Romney is done for. We like our politicians Strong and Wrong. This is especially true for Republicans.
People like thee and me can yammer about Bain until the cows come home and not make a dent in an undecided voter. But forward the proposition that one should not vote for Mitt because he is a Panty-waist, chicken-poop, yellow bellied sap sucker and even the lowest of lowest information voters can latch on to that.
Team Chicago is going to run with this baby; run with it hard, run with it long, run with it all the way to November.
ladywalker68 said:
GA6thDem and fangio-Totally agree. Seems the wealthy corporations-are-people folks just lurves to start wars and then send the poor and middle class to fight them.
Second. I am so sick of people like Romeny and Palin and Bachmann etal who continue to use and fictionalize and magnify Ronald Reagan’s stint as our 40th POTUS to their own advantage for their own power hungry reasons and to scandalously elevate Reagan to sit aside the truly worthy leaders of our country on Mt. Rushmore.
Perhaps these cretins (and I am being kind to Romney/Palin/Bachmann etal), should read “Dutch: A Memoir of Ronald Reagan by Edmund Morris, the only bio authorized by a sitting POTUS who didn’t pull his punches. But, even if they had read it, I doubt they would have spoken the truth about Reagan, the most fictionalized/aggrandized POTUS who ever served.
To paraphrase Wineston Churchill’s infamous speech during about WW2 “ Never was so much owed by so many to so few”, Romney’s comment about Reagan and the implication that he is Reagan’s rightful heir:
“Never was so much bullshit said by so many about Ronald Reagan” And, “Never was so much bullshit said by anyone running for POTUS until Mitt Romney.
I am also sick of this dangerous game Amerian pols play with Israel and that includes the Dems as well.
I try to read as much as I can about foreign policy and watch what is availble to me such as the BBC (which needs to do much better with its coverage and analysis about American politics but does for the most part gets it right about foreign affairs etal).
There is a program on the BBC World News called “Dateline London” which has journalists from around the world discussing current events. On yesterday’s program they spoke about Romney, Syria and Israel without the usual American broadcast and cable TV BS/reticence. I tried to find this on the BBC internet site but had no luck. If you are lucky eoough to recieve the BBC, look at their schedule to find “Dateline London”. It’s usually on Saturday’s. It’s truly worth a look and listen.
By the spring of 2004, GWB was done for as POTUS; there were no WMDs found in Iraq, talk of impeaching Alberto Gonzales was thick, the US Attorney scandal was breaking and pictures from Abu Ghraib were beginning to leak out. Oh yes, $9 billion in cash on wooden pallets flown into Iraq in a C-130 went missing while L. Paul Bremer’s CPA was out of control with crony capitalism.
Then, St. Ronald died. The GOP buried him for a week on television, from coast to coast, and by the time the GOP convention was held, Bush and Cheney were the heroes of 9/11. The right plays the media in this country in ways the left cannot even imagine. We let W get away in 2004 and Mitt is changing the meme of his campaign as I write this reply.
Let’s not forget, the Democratic candidate for President said that he would not have gotten us out of Iraq, he just would have managed things better. There wasn’t much choice on that issue, and it mattered to a lot of us even back then.
Not to mention the rise of China as a military power, the continued authoritarianism in Russia, etc.
If I were an Israeli citizen, I think I’d be appalled at this sort of debate, because it’s bound to give the local thugs in charge the idea that no matter what trouble they get themselves in with Iran, the U.S. will be there to back them up. Counting on something like that happening is a great way to find oneself in a heap of trouble, with no way out.