Now it's time to discuss the political ramifications of yesterday's events. In my post yesterday, I
was incorrect in saying that Gov. Romney criticized the President’s initial
response to the extremist attacks in Libya and Egypt. That is not what the Republican/Conservative
presidential contender did. In point of
fact, what Romney did was much worse and demonstrated a level of bad political
judgment and timing that should give every American “independent” and “undecided”
voter serious pause. It wouldn’t hurt if
it gave a few Republican voters pause, too.
What actually happened was
this. The American Embassy in Cairo got
wind of possible pending attacks in response to a movie trailer that had
appeared on the Internet. In an effort
to avert the attacks, the Embassy
issued a statement on its own authority (e.g., without the knowledge or
approval of The White House). This is
the statement they issued:
“The Embassy of the United States in Cairo condemns
the continuing efforts by misguided individuals to hurt the religious feelings
of Muslims -- as we condemn efforts to offend believers of all religions.
Today, the 11th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the
United States, Americans are honoring our patriots and those who serve our nation
as the fitting response to the enemies of democracy. Respect for religious
beliefs is a cornerstone of American democracy. We firmly reject the actions by
those who abuse the universal right of free speech to hurt the religious
beliefs of others.”
Right after Romney learned
of the attacks and without the full facts about their resulting fatalities –
and without waiting to hear to anything directly from The White House – he
issued this statement:
“I'm outraged by the attacks on American diplomatic
missions in Libya and Egypt and by the death of an American consulate worker in
Benghazi. It’s disgraceful that the
Obama Administration’s first response was not to condemn attacks on our
diplomatic missions, but to sympathize with those who waged the attacks.”
Needless to say – or,
rather, in this political climate, unfortunately necessary to say – this in no
way was a reply to the President’s actual response (made later in the day after the facts were in), nor “the
Administration’s” response. This was an
uninformed politician’s effort to make premature political hay out of a
sensitive, dangerous, international event – thus proving that to Mitt Romney,
understanding and speaking about America’s foreign policy really is “a distraction” (as he recently,
stupidly said).
Some Republicans (to my
surprise) have quickly spoken out against Romney’s untrue and untimely
remarks. Others (hardly to my surprise)
are standing firm, parroting the “official” support statement. As Gail Collins explained in her New York
Times column this morning:
“The Romney
campaign, according to CNN, helpfully passed out suggestions for supporters who
might want to defend Mitt. (When asked whether he was too quick on the attack,
loyalists were supposed to say: “No. It is never too soon to stand up for
American values and interests.”).”
Folks, this incident may hurt Mitt Romney’s chances of
winning the presidency, but it very well may not – because millions of
Americans are still not paying attention and still think all politics and
politicians are the same, and what they say or
do makes no difference in their own lives or those of others.
I don’t know who or what
is most disheartening: Mitt Romney’s clear lack of presidential intelligence,
strategy and gravitas, or the American people’s clear lack of active
citizenship by watching, analyzing, and engaging in the political process (voting!!!). I fear that between both of them, we may all
be seriously screwed.
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