Romney's miserable foreign policy tour: Part One

Mitt Romney’s long planned European tour got off to a rocky start. Before he even boarded his private jet to the London Olympics he managed to insult the entire British population. The unfortunate Telegraph article quoting an unnamed Romney foreign policy advisor about Mitt’s special understanding of the special Anglo-Saxon relationship might have been forgiven. But the televised interview with Brian Williams where Mitt questioned the readiness of London to pull this event off is what set the stage for the next 48 hours.

Still, even that might have been walked back. Instead, Mr. Romney proceeded to blunder through an entire day of inept insults. Mitt used a common English reference for buttocks in describing his visit to 10 Downing Street. He managed to forget the name of one of the most important office holders in England, Labour’s Ed Miliband, calling him “Mr Leader” in a press conference. And candidate Romney disclosed a meeting with M16 that was supposed to remain unannounced. Even worse, he spilled the details:

“I appreciated the insights and perspectives of the leaders of the government here and opposition here as well as the head of MI6,” Mr. Romney told reporters Thursday. “We discussed Syria and the hope for a more peaceful future for that country.”

By the end of his visit, nearly the entire population of Great Britain was mocking Mitt Romney. They were calling him a Ken doll. Devoid of warmth or personality. I feel reasonably confident in counting that as a statesmanship fail.