LEXINGTON, Va: Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney offered a sweeping critique of President Barack Obama’s handling of threats in the Middle East yesterday in a foreign policy address in which he tried to present himself as a credible mainstream alternative.
Romney departed from his focus on the US economy to talk about how he would handle foreign policy if elected on November 6. The speech allowed Romney to lay out his national security positions ahead of his October 16 debate with Obama, which will include discussion of foreign policy.
His aim was to portray himself as having the presidential stature needed for the world stage, and he sought to convince Americans that he would project strong American leadership around the world but not rush blindly into armed conflict.
The address was intended to reframe Romney’s approach following harsh criticism he drew last month for inserting campaign politics into the killing of the US ambassador to Libya, Chris Stevens, and after a gaffe-filled trip to Britain, Israel and Poland in July.
In a speech to white-uniformed cadets at the Virginia Military Institute, Romney raised questions about Obama’s handling of Libya and accused him of failing to use US diplomacy to shape events in Iran, Iraq, Israel, Syria, Russia, and elsewhere.
“The president is fond of saying that ‘The tide of war is receding,’” Romney said. “And I want to believe him as much as anyone. But when we look at the Middle East today...it is clear that the risk of conflict in the region is higher now than when the president took office,” he said. REUTERS
