While the effects of the recent riots continue to spread across the Muslim world, and details are slowly emerging about its filmmaker, ramifications of the controversial film, The Innocence of Muslims, have also been playing out on the political stage of the presidential elections.
With six weeks to go until the election, campaigns will go into hyper-drive as every little detail and response will be dissected, spun, and analyzed. Presidential candidate Mitt Romney can speak first hand on this.
Only a couple of hours after militants attacked the US consulate in Benghazi, killing Ambassador Christopher Smith and three other members of the diplomatic mission, Mr. Romney came out with a statement condemning President Obama’s response to the attack as being sympathetic to the attackers. Regardless of how a person would have interpreted the Cairo Embassy’s response, many were quick to note that the timing of Mr. Romney’s remark might not have been appropriate.
Many, including the Obama campaign, accused Mr. Romney of using the Ambassador’s death as an opportunity for political gain – a fine display of poor taste from a man who is so often portrayed without a personality. Throughout the day both sides went back and force with various officials jumping in to support their candidates. The notable difference here was that many waited at least 12 hours before releasing their comments.
Even some of the most partisan players in congress like John Boehner and Senate Minority leader Mitch McConnell showed more restraint than would have been expected. Senator and former presidential candidate John McCain was among those reluctant to jump into the domestic politics of the event and refrained from commenting much beyond remarks of sympathy and remorse.
A highly praised response came from Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in a speech where she pointed out that all religions have been subject to mockery and ridicule, “Think about it. When Christians are subject to insults on their faith, and that certainly happens, we expect them not to resort to violence. When Hindus or Buddhists are subject to insults to their faith, and that certainly happens, we expect them not to resort to violence. The same goes for all faiths, including Islam.” Regardless of the treatment given to a religion, violence is never condoned.
Obama’s handling of this political crisis has and will more than likely be tailored around the implications of the pending election. This is because the election cycle has an interesting effect on the actions and policy pursued by the incumbent.
Every statement from Obama and Romney will be analyzed
The American election cycle has an array of characteristics that many feel don’t necessarily lend themselves to benefitting the country, like an exceptionally long election season, 1-2 years (if you include initial exploration and fundraising). With regard to the issue of policy making and implementation, the election season makes it much more difficult for an incumbent president to execute policy because it makes him vulnerable to an attack from his opponent. This means that over a quarter of a president’s time in office will be subdued and lost because of the politics of campaigning. In this case, Romney has the luxury (if used well) of being able to capitalize on Obama’s response without actually having to provide one himself, as Obama must.
The election season means that some issues will be pushed aside because they are too risky to pursue when you have an opponent waiting for you to make a mistake. Take, for example, last March when President Obama, unaware that his microphone was turned on, urged Russian President Dmitri Medvedev to give him more space until after the elections when he would have more “flexibility” to deal the controversial issue of missile defense. Medvedev understood. Engaging in complex issues is a risk that candidates prefer not to take once the elections have begun.
On the other hand, some issues will be brought to the forefront because officials like Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu realize that they can use political leverage to solidify a candidate’s position, as many analysts have accused Mr. Netanyahu of currently doing.
Regardless of which side of the pendulum an issue might find itself, the last thing the incumbent wants on the eve of his election is a political crisis and will typically adhere to a low-key, safe line of policy. That being said, this recent political crisis has shown Obama the minefield he is currently walking in.
As events continue to unfold it will be worth paying attention to not only how the Obama administration responds, but also how the Romney campaign reacts to the president’s actions.
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