Romney Looks for a Breakout Moment in Israel to Salvage Foreign Trip
Mitt Romney’s Friday was better than his Thursday.
He did very little.
The highlights: Romney walked half a mile on a public sidewalk here (driving would have made him late, because of the gridlock), met with Ireland’s prime minister and sat in the Olympic Stadium to watch the Games’ Opening Ceremonies.
Missing, however, was the breakout moment Romney may need to salvage his overseas tour, which got off to a rocky start when the presumptive Republican presidential nominee openly questioned Britain’s readiness to host the Olympic Games.
Romney’s missteps have drawn extensive mockery in Britain and public consternation from both Republicans and Democrats in the United States, and his campaign advisers were at a loss Friday to put a positive spin on the story — other than to look ahead to the next two stops on his tour.
Romney arrived in London under a bright spotlight, as expected, but apparently without a strategy for conveying a message to voters back home — such as reminding Americans of his widely lauded stewardship of the 2002 Winter Olympics or promoting his foreign-policy vision.
As a result, there is now immense pressure on him to find better footing in Israel and Poland. Romney’s advisers hope his events in Jerusalem on Sunday — when he will lock arms with Israeli leaders — could create a moment of strength that might redefine the candidate’s intensely scrutinized audition as a statesman.