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Romney's Blunders
Mitt Romney, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, has virtually disqualified himself as a strong competitor to President Barack Obama thanks to his just-concluded three-state international tour to underline his acumen in foreign policy. His self-damaging gaffes have both shocked and upset many people worldwide, especially in the US.
More importantly, his trip to Israel, unlike his stops in London and Warsaw, was a shameless effort at pandering to American Jewish money — and evangelical Christian support — thanks to the presence of Sheldon Adelson, the casino billionaire, other Jewish-American millionaires as well as Israeli colonist leaders. (Adelson has pledged to give Romney $100 million (Dh367 million) in his bid to oust Obama from the White House in the November general election).
In London, Romney made his first slip when he ineloquently wondered aloud if the Olympic Games, now under way in London, will be safe. His remark earned him a slap in the face when the London mayor referred to him, mockingly, as “a guy called Mitt Romney”. He also earned a rebuke from British Prime Minister David Cameron, who noted that the Games were being held “in one of the busiest, most active, bustling cities in the world” adding that, “Of course, it’s easier if you hold an Olympic Games in the middle of nowhere” as Romney did in Salt Lake City, Utah, in 2002.
The British media also lambasted the visiting American leader, bestowing on him the title, ‘Mitt the Twit’.
But it was in occupied Jerusalem that Romney blundered. He said: “It is a deeply moving experience to be in [occupied] Jerusalem, But it was the capital of Israel,” obviously disregarding the fact that the city is not internationally recognised as such because the Palestinians claim it as their capital.
An Israeli commentator, Barak Ravid of Haaretz, observed that Romney’s speech at the breakfast meeting “seemed grey and uncharismatic”. He added that “even from his hand-picked, extreme friendly audience he wasn’t able to extract thunderous applause [although] the speech itself sounded as if it could have been written by [Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu’s bureau”.
Romney also dropped a bombshell with what was considered a slanderous observation. He wrongly attributed the Israeli economic accomplishments in comparison to the Palestinians to the advantages of “culture”. A Romney aide refused to elaborate what Romney meant by ‘culture’. But a top Palestinian official, Saeb Erekat, retorted that “to talk about the Palestinians as an inferior culture is really a racist statement”, adding that “all I can say is that this man needs a lot of education”.
The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund are on record as saying that Israeli restrictions on Palestinian trade and movement as well as a blockade on Gaza have curtailed Palestinian economic growth.
The Washington-based American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) said in a statement that it was “appalled at the continued bigotry and racism coming from factions from within the Republican party”, including Romney.
The ADC, founded in 1980 by former Senator James Abourezk, is the largest grassroots Arab-American civil rights and civil liberties organisation in the US.
“The failure of the leadership within the Republican party,” the statement continued, “to eliminate xenophobia from their platform is one of the single biggest reasons the party is losing support amongst minority groups such as Arab Americans.” It noted that “recent actions within the Republican party go against the basic and fundamental foundations which make this country great”.
The ADC cited a recent statement by Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, a former Republican presidential nominee — among others by key Republicans — alleging that the State Department’s deputy chief of staff, Huma Abedin, has ties to the Muslim Brotherhood — an accusation that was dismissed by the State Department.
Romney, ADC lamented, “has yet to distance himself from such political rhetoric, rather he has continued to engage in shameful tactics, and surrounds himself with extremists, bigots, and racists”.
No wonder Newsweek’s most recent issue had Romney on the cover with the disparaging title: ‘Romney: The Wimp Factor’, Is he just too insecure to be president?
George S. Hishmeh
Gulf News