The Romney Fumble

   By now, everyone is aware of all the mistakes made Romney made in staging his canned goods drive for Disaster Relief. But it gets even worse when you consider what Romney COULD have done. As a former Republican, I still look at the GOP as a potentially viable political party. But that all depends on whether they can shake their reliance on revisionist history, religious extremism and blind obstructionism (a tall order indeed). In the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, the Republican "standard-bearer" had an opportunity to demonstrate the practical application of the Private Sector in Crisis Management...and he blew it off for a "Victory Rally" instead.
  We all know Romney has deep, Global connections in the Private Sector with deep pockets (remember that 47% event?). Hurricane Sandy provided Romney with the opportunity to put together commitments for resources, including supplies and equipment and project planners, and lay out a real PLAN for rebuilding the damaged areas on the East Coast. He could have requested a meeting with the President to discuss the plan and present the commitments. He could have pre-released the plan to the media. As a "whiz-bang, He Built That" kind of candidate, he should have gone BIG. He should have invited the President to reject the meeting (which could be justified, of course), but with the plan outline released to the media it might be more difficult for the President to just brush it off without some potential for political damage. Romney had a shot at the big time, but his true character showed through in the final analysis. The Wimp Factor is real.
   To make matters worse, Romney is back to campaigning as usual without a continued emphasis on collecting donations (preferably checks) for the Red Cross. But this is the "new" Republican Party. A party that shouts their "principles" and provides no real evidence that these principles have any practical application in the real world. The real world that exists outside of their "bubble".