While I personally don't feel that any of his actions were cringe-worthy, the media panned it as a gaffe-a-thon.
The trip, nonetheless, missed the mark. Instead of building Romney's bona fides on foreign policy, it demonstrated that Romney can raise money, pander to Jewish voters, and travel via airplane.
Romney should have simply remained overwhelmingly positive on this trip. He already looks the part of an America president. Why not match it with some idealistic rhetoric?
"Is London ready for the Olympics?"
"Yes! You know the Brits--Hitler couldn't stop them, and neither will rain and poor private security contracting."
Had I been an adviser to Governor Romney, I would have urged him to speak in Belgium or Switzerland. In Belgium he could have visited a battlefield and in Switzerland he could have stumped at an international NGO. He would have been able to speak in French and English. I think it would have made for good optics--imagine a bilingual American presidential candidate talking to a European crowd in their own tongue! Sure beats Obama's "foreign policy" experience eating dog and waking up to the calls of the Muezzin in Indonesia as a child.
Mitt, I trust you will learn from this experience.
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