Think you are having a rough week? I can almost guarantee that Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney is having a worse one.
For nearly two weeks now, Romney has consistently topped social media charts and received an obscene amount of press coverage. But you know what they say – “any press is good press.”
Except it’s not. At least not for Romney.
Nearly every mention of the former Massachusetts governor’s campaign involves some recent gaffe. From screwing up and then defending a press release concerning Middle Eastern embassy riots to writing off 47 percent of the U.S. population as government freeloaders who have no reason to support him, Romney hasn’t been making the best impression.
Plus, who can forget his upstaging by an empty chair during the Republican National Convention? (Thank you, Clint Eastwood.)
Maybe it’s just me, but Romney’s idea of campaigning and winning the masses isn’t exactly working. And with only seven weeks left until Election Day, time is running out for ol’ Mitt to pull something, anything together.
And it seems I’m not alone in thinking this.
Wall Street Journal columnist and noted conservative Peggy Noonan said Romney’s campaign was “too small for the moment” and called for an intervention.
Romney says he’s on the same page, at least with the intervention.
Following the hidden camera footage released by Mother Jones Monday and the “turbulence” it caused, Romney is attempting to refocus his campaign.
Some of the new focus include repeatedly reaffirming crowds in Miami that his “campaign is about the 100 percent in America” and then hitting traditional campaign spots like the eternal swing state of Ohio.
Personally, I’m not sure what the Mittster was thinking when he announced the refocus. It’s not like merely shifting a message will cause the entire U.S. population and a swarm of reporters to forget his previous bumbling statements.
Of course, there has been a slew of people from either side of the aisle that continue to comment on his faltering steps. But some of Romney’s greatest critics are in his own Republican Party, not just ones from the cable comedy circuit.
Look at Senator Dean Heller of Nevada, who openly stated that Romney’s remarks do not fall in line with his own view of the world.
You know it’s bad when someone from his own party is essentially calling your comments idiotic.
In her column, Noonan also referred to Romney as the new kid who thought he had the “inside lowdown” on party operations.
This part may be true. I’m not sure. But I do know Romney’s actions and remarks during fundraisers like the one captured in the Mother Jones video lacked not just tact, but strategy.
While Romney continues to attend several of these $50,000 a plate fundraisers, he is merely increasing his interaction with his peers. Unfortunately for him, he needs more votes than theirs to win an election now less than two months away.
How does Romney expect to win when his “off the cuff” comments imply nearly half the country can’t relate to him or even appreciate a personality trait of his because of his lack of interaction?
But what do I know – I don’t even have $50,000 for lunch.