Well, Obama and Romney are going to have lunch on Thursday. Although inevitably there will be some massively awkward elephants in the room (no GOP pun intended), the event is somewhat heartwarming. Two battle-hardened rivals, one leaving politics bitterly defeated, having his last shot at president taken away, and the other facing the honor and responsibility of another 4 years in office. I think these friendly gestures are especially valuable for Romney, because although he isn't running for political office anymore, gracious public appearances are his last chance to leave a favorable impression on the American people. The gracious loser is especially commendable, like McCain in 2008, who vowed to work with Obama moving forward at a similar post-election meeting. However, McCain had a Senate seat to return to, unlike Romney who is presumably leaving the political scene. This puts Romney in an interesting situation where he is not necessarily beholden to any party pressure. He has already earned berate from fellow Republicans, including Newt Gingrich, over his remarks that Obama won the race by essentially bribing interest groups. That's not a nice note to go out on.
But Romney's concession speech was so nice! (there were some rumors about him not writing the speech beforehand, although I feel like he did and made that remark as a sort of lighthearted confidence-booster sort of thing). Despite all the mean political battles that characterize the election, can the candidates simply forget it all after the election is over? How much of these larger-than-life people do we not see, given the intense pressure of political campaigning? I think it's comforting to imagine that Romney and Obama will have a genuinely nice lunchtime together, maybe as a symbolic representation of a bipartisan future, and maybe for the sake of knowing our political icons are gracious humans.
9 comments:
I'm not sure how "nice" a lunch with the man you've campaigned and debated against for the last year could possibly be. However, Obama's symbolic gesture towards Romney is to me another example of him trying to "reach across the aisle" and prove to Republicans that he isn't some Muslim demon out to poison America (okay that may be a bit of an exaggeration). If anything this lunch will help Obama's reputation more than Romney's. Also, I'm not fully convinced that Romney won't return to politics in some way. He's already proved himself a very capable politician (despite some gaffes during his campaign), and while it's possible public opinion is against his return to politics, I think he could still be a beneficial member of the American government.
Romney's life has been consumed by the campaigning process for nearly 4 years now. Having a meal with Obama will not change the tremendous personal and financial losses that Romney endured in his bid for the presidency. I disagree with Garrett that he could be a "beneficial member of the American government." The American people spoke on election day; we do not want a xenophobic, uninformed or dishonest leader and that is how Romney appears to me.
I think that it is great that they are having lunch. The reality is that they probably know a lot about each other after campaigning for so long. I'm sure Obama and Romney welcome the change to just get together and talk without the pressure of the election. I think it is very gracious from both sides.
I don't think Romney should return to politics. I agree with David, people chose Obama for a reason. Regardless of Romney's future political aspirations, them having a lunch is very civil and reminds the American people that they are both still human. It is a little part of their lives that is more normal and civil. People can relate to them having lunch just as two people.
Well, approximately 48% of America's voters did want "a xenophobic, uninformed or dishonest leader" and voted accordingly. Considering that voter turnout was lower ( about 57.5% of eligible voters cast their ballots) this year compared to the past two presidential elections, it would seem that Romney still would have plenty of support if he decided to continue his political career. Nonetheless, point taken. Romney's presidential aspirations may be over, but as Garrett pointed out there still is room for him elsewhere in the political world.
However, Romney had a long and trying campaign,so I wouldn't surprised if he actual did retire entirely from politics as Wyatt's post originally suggested. This image has been appearing all over the internet lately ad nauseum, but it still suggests that Romney is tired, defeated and ready to throw the towel in. While I disagree fundamentally with many of his views, I still feel that Romney still deserves respect, and I am happy to see that President Obama has made this gesture.
I read something interesting somewhere about how Obama might invite Romney to head a commission or engage in some special projects . Well, if he really serves in any similar positions in the future, America will make a huge jump toward a truly bipartisan future. I think this is not totally impossible, considering how Obama invited Clinton to join his cabinet in 2008 and, less relevant, how Carter served as an emissary at the end of the hostage crisis. Also, it would really help Obama's image a lot.
I really doubt that Romney would just retire entirely from politics right after. If I were him, I would not want to leave politics with a battered image ( considering how his reputation was further damaged after talking about how Obama won by giving special favor to various groups.) And then merely having a dinner with the winner would really not do much.
As others have said, this seems more like a symbol than anything else. However,it does present a chance for reconciliation between the two parties, who have grown increasingly hostile towards one another in the past months. This lunch allows for Obama and Romney to briefly be viewed as more human than politician, which hopefully will inspire similar humanization for opposing party members. It's been a divisive year for America, and people need to make peace with one another.
As for Romney's future in politics, it seems reasonable for him to continue in government--after all, this was a close election (at least as far as popular votes go), so much of the country most likely still supports Romney. Picking himself up off the floor and doing something to help mend his wounded ego and reputation will probably benefit Romney in the long run.
Sincere or not, I think it is very important for the politicians in this country to start transitioning to more of a bipartisan legislature and such. Grid locks are such a waste of time and they accomplish absolutely nothing. While I imagine a majority of their lunch will be about how horrid the weather is and how much they enjoy Christmas season, I think it is important to recognize the bipartisanship of the lunch. Due to the past comments on how divided this country is and how close the election was, I am not surprised that the nations celebrities for the past year are going to lunch. Seeing that America is a world leader, this lunch could be potentially for more of an international scene. Whatever the reason I see no harm in this lunch.
However, I can't see why Romney would go through the hassle of getting back into politics, if he could sail around the world and live in a castle.
Whether this lunch is just a plot for media attention or not, I think it's good that Romney and Obama are able to get together for lunch. Given all the grid-lock problems in Congress, it's nice to see this kind of interaction between politicians of different parties. Seeing two politicians who disagree on almost every level meeting in such a casual and friendly way, gives me a little bit of hope despite all of the party conflicts that you hear about in Washington. Maybe this is too much to expect from one little lunch meeting, but maybe this good even be the start of more party cooperation, which is definitely something that we need.
I agree with Andrew, in that, I think that if Romney wanted to get back in the political scene he would definitely have the support he needed. Romney got 48% of the vote, which is a pretty huge chunk of America. I don't personally agree with Romney's policies, but I think that he should get back into politics and maybe even use his support to get more republicans to work with Obama instead of against him. One of the reasons that Romney got so much support was that people were fed up with the way that Obama handled things during his first term as president. If people want to see change so much, I think that they should work with Obama to get that change and make compromises with him, instead of constantly trying to stop and slow him down.
Like a lot of the people above, I too feel that it is not such a bad thing that these two men have lunch with one another. It can kind of be looked at like the post-game high fives in sports. They battled for so long and now they are really just showing respect for the competition.
I agree with Sam, in that Romney probably won't want to return to politics. What would be the point of it? He has all the money he could possibly want and if he could just retire to his numerous houses and just relax, why wouldn't he?
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