Quote:Seeking to quell criticism of his earlier comments on the London Olympics, Mitt Romney reiterated his faith in the host city's Games work on Thursday as he emerged from a meeting with British Prime Minister David Cameron and other officials.

Speaking from his experience as an organizer for the Salt Lake City Olympics in 2002, Romney said a few things will always go wrong.

"When the games themselves begin and the athletes take over, all of the mistakes that the organizing committee -- and I made a few -- all of those are overwhelmed by the many things that the athletes carry out that capture the spirit of the games," Romney told reporters.

"What I've seen shows imagination and forethought and a lot of organization and expect the games to be highly successful," he added.

Cameron had earlier expressed displeasure with Romney’s public remarks that he found some of the events leading up to the games "disconcerting."

“We are holding an Olympic Games in one of the busiest, most active, bustling cities anywhere in the world,” Cameron said, according to The Telegraph. “Of course it’s easier if you hold an Olympic Games in the middle of nowhere.”

Sitting down with NBC’s Brian Williams on Wednesday, Romney at one point called certain mistakes he has noticed “disconcerting.” The former Massachusetts governor ran the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City.

“You know, it's hard to know just how well it will turn out,” he said. “There are a few things that were disconcerting, the stories about the private security firm not having enough people, the supposed strike of the immigration and customs officials. That obviously is not something which is encouraging.”

His statement in front of 10 Downing Street, however, was the presumptive Republican nominee's second walk-back of those comments. He had a similar message about the real Olympic spirit when he met with Labour leader Ed Miliband at Parliament.

Romney plans to attend the Opening Ceremony on Friday.

Quote:"While those of us who have had the fortune of visiting London know it is certainly a wonderful city, Prime Minister Cameron's comments likely reflect his lack of familiarity with Salt Lake City," Art Raymond, a spokesman for Mayor Ralph Becker, said in a statement sent to BuzzFeed. [...] "He can stop by any time. We'd love to have him and are happy to send a map so he doesn't run into any trouble locating the middle of nowhere."

Quote:PIERS MORGAN: (chuckles) I thought he was absolutely right, wasn't he? I mean, it's no secret over here that for the last three weeks, the security at the Olympics has been in shambles. The outside firm they got in to run it has been all over the place, they didn't have enough people, and the army had to be drafted in. So Mitt Romney was only saying exactly what's been happening. And he's run an Olympics, so I thought he was perfectly entitled to be critical. Clearly, he had to slightly change his rhetoric after the Brits pointed out, hang on a second, old boy, you've got to talk us up a bit. But I thought it was a bit of a fuss about nothing. They have had some issues here, especially about security, and he was just speaking the truth, which sometimes can be rather unpalatable.

(07-26-2012 02:57 PM)SumOfAllFears Wrote:  Did I miss the Apologies? Sounds a little ginned up. At least we won't hear and see Romney bowing down to anyone.

(07-26-2012 02:35 PM)Max Power Wrote:  And on the heels of his apology tour, Mitt also appears to have caused an international incident, with the British PM and Salt Lake City Mayor sparring with each other.

http://www.nationaljournal.com/2012-presidential-campaign/romney-walks-back-olympic-comments-20120726

Quote:Seeking to quell criticism of his earlier comments on the London Olympics, Mitt Romney reiterated his faith in the host city's Games work on Thursday as he emerged from a meeting with British Prime Minister David Cameron and other officials.

Speaking from his experience as an organizer for the Salt Lake City Olympics in 2002, Romney said a few things will always go wrong.

"When the games themselves begin and the athletes take over, all of the mistakes that the organizing committee -- and I made a few -- all of those are overwhelmed by the many things that the athletes carry out that capture the spirit of the games," Romney told reporters.

"What I've seen shows imagination and forethought and a lot of organization and expect the games to be highly successful," he added.

Cameron had earlier expressed displeasure with Romney’s public remarks that he found some of the events leading up to the games "disconcerting."

“We are holding an Olympic Games in one of the busiest, most active, bustling cities anywhere in the world,” Cameron said, according to The Telegraph. “Of course it’s easier if you hold an Olympic Games in the middle of nowhere.”

Sitting down with NBC’s Brian Williams on Wednesday, Romney at one point called certain mistakes he has noticed “disconcerting.” The former Massachusetts governor ran the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City.

“You know, it's hard to know just how well it will turn out,” he said. “There are a few things that were disconcerting, the stories about the private security firm not having enough people, the supposed strike of the immigration and customs officials. That obviously is not something which is encouraging.”

His statement in front of 10 Downing Street, however, was the presumptive Republican nominee's second walk-back of those comments. He had a similar message about the real Olympic spirit when he met with Labour leader Ed Miliband at Parliament.

Romney plans to attend the Opening Ceremony on Friday.

http://www.buzzfeed.com/mckaycoppins/salt-lake-mayors-office-invites-british-pm-to

Quote:"While those of us who have had the fortune of visiting London know it is certainly a wonderful city, Prime Minister Cameron's comments likely reflect his lack of familiarity with Salt Lake City," Art Raymond, a spokesman for Mayor Ralph Becker, said in a statement sent to BuzzFeed. [...] "He can stop by any time. We'd love to have him and are happy to send a map so he doesn't run into any trouble locating the middle of nowhere."

(07-26-2012 03:06 PM)JerryJeff Wrote:  

Quote:LONDON—On day three of his overseas tour, Mitt Romney woke up to unfriendly headlines from the British media, who continue to trash him for telling NBC News that he found preparations for the Olympics here "disconcerting."

"Mitt the Twit," declared The Sun tabloid, condemning Romney as a "wannabe president."

The Independent headlined their take on Romney's trip, "Romneyshambles"—accusing him of not only committing a diplomatic gaffe but later "the cardinal sin of U.S. politics, flip-flopping" on his criticism.

The Daily Telegraph suggested Romney's "Olympic gaffe" had overshadowed his trip to London.

Meanwhile, the conservative Daily Mail slammed Romney as "devoid of charm, offensive and a wazzock."

Romney's comments led newscasts on both Sky News and the BBC on Thursday night and early Friday morning, just hours ahead of the Olympic opening ceremonies here.

"Is this guy really prepared to be president?" one Sky News reporter asked in his Thursday night report about Romney's day in London. The reporter trashed the GOP candidate's comments as "just daft."

(07-27-2012 09:25 AM)Max Power Wrote:  Here are the London headlines on Mitt Romney's foibles (which also includes forgetting the Labor Party leader's name, and mentioning his meeting with the super-secretive MI6, and being booed by 80,000 people in Olympic Park when London Mayor Boris Johnson mentioned his comments)....

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/ticket/british-media-hammer-romney-olympic-comments-103800909.html

Quote:LONDON—On day three of his overseas tour, Mitt Romney woke up to unfriendly headlines from the British media, who continue to trash him for telling NBC News that he found preparations for the Olympics here "disconcerting."

"Mitt the Twit," declared The Sun tabloid, condemning Romney as a "wannabe president."

The Independent headlined their take on Romney's trip, "Romneyshambles"—accusing him of not only committing a diplomatic gaffe but later "the cardinal sin of U.S. politics, flip-flopping" on his criticism.

The Daily Telegraph suggested Romney's "Olympic gaffe" had overshadowed his trip to London.

Meanwhile, the conservative Daily Mail slammed Romney as "devoid of charm, offensive and a wazzock."

Romney's comments led newscasts on both Sky News and the BBC on Thursday night and early Friday morning, just hours ahead of the Olympic opening ceremonies here.

"Is this guy really prepared to be president?" one Sky News reporter asked in his Thursday night report about Romney's day in London. The reporter trashed the GOP candidate's comments as "just daft."

(Sky News is owned by Rupert Murdoch)

Can't wait for his trip to Middle East!

(07-27-2012 09:43 AM)Max Power Wrote:  Obama: Cheered by 250,000 in Europe while touring as a candidate in 2008
Romney: Booed by 80,000 in Europe while touring as a candidate in 2012

(07-27-2012 10:11 AM)Max Power Wrote:  It's probably true but you don't go into someone else's home as a guest and insult them, even if there's a legitimate reason to insult them ("Where did you get those cookies? The 7-11?"). Especially when you're a statesman, representing an ally, on broadcast television. You don't see foreign leaders come to the US and criticize us, even though we're hardly above reproach. That's why every time diplomats talk it's in short, stunted sentences that are complimentary.

(07-27-2012 09:43 AM)Max Power Wrote:  Obama: Cheered by 250,000 in Europe while touring as a candidate in 2008
Romney: Booed by 80,000 in Europe while touring as a candidate in 2012