By now, most of you know about the attacks on our embassy in Libya which “took the lives of four diplomatic officials, including U.S. ambassador to Libya Christopher Stevens.”
Romney hastily, eagerly, desperately took to the mic (a full hour and a half before the 9/11 “embargo” regarding political attacks was over), not to offer a “presidential” presence in the face of a calamity, but to lob criticism – criticism that runs contrary to the facts – at the Obama Administration; criticism that has been harshly condemned as “irresponsible” and “rash”:
“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 . . . When our grounds are being attacked, and being breached, that the first response of the United States must be outrage at the breach of the sovereignty of our nation. And apology for America’s values is never the right course . . . .”
President Obama responded to Romney’s attack today on CBS, saying ”There’s a broader lesson to be learned here: Governor Romney seems to have a tendency to shoot first and aim later, and as president, one of the things I’ve learned is you can’t do that . . . It’s important for you to make sure that the statements that you make are backed up by the facts and that you’ve thought through the ramifications before you make them.”
Watch:
Tonight, on Air Force One, press secretary Jay Carney gave reporters more quotes from the President’s CBS interview:
President Obama: “I think most Americans, Democrats or Republicans, understand that there are times when we set politics aside, and one of those is when we’ve got a direct threat to American personnel who are overseas . . . .”
“And so I think that if you look at how most Republicans have reacted, most elected officials, they’ve reacted responsibly, waiting to find out the facts before they talk, making sure that our No. 1 priority is the safety and security of American personnel.”
“It appears that Gov. Romney didn’t have his facts right. The situation in Cairo was one in which an embassy that is being threatened by major protests releases a press release saying that the film that had disturbed so many Muslims around the world wasn’t representative of what Americans believe about Islam.”
“In an effort to cool the situation down, it didn’t come from me, it didn’t come from Secretary Clinton, it came from people on the ground who are potentially in danger. And my tendency is to cut folks a little bit of slack when they’re in that circumstance, rather than try to question their judgment from the comfort of a campaign office . . . .”
“I do have to say that, more broadly, we believe in the First Amendment. It is one of the hallmarks of our Constitution that I am sworn to uphold, so we’re always going to uphold the rights of individuals to speak their minds. On the other hand, this film is not representative of who we are, and our values, and I think it is important for us to communicate that. That’s never an excuse for violence against Americans, which is why my No. 1 priority and my initial statement focused on making sure that not only are Americans safe, but that we go after anyone that would attack Americans . . . .”
Romney’s attack on President Obama – followed by President Obama’s classic calm, unflappable, studied approach – simple serves to remind voters that Romney is Sarah Palin redux. Romney is well on his way to his never-gonna-be-president legacy: ”Business guru” to “foreign policy fool.”
