Romney chides Obama for'open mic' Slip with Russia's Medvedev
Published October 23, 2012
FoxNews.com
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When President Obama met with Russian
President Dmitry Medvedev in Seoul on March, 26, a live microphone picked up an
indiscreet aside from Obama. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
"This is my last election ...
After my election I have more flexibility."
- President Obama, in aside to
Russian president in March
Mitt Romney took a swipe at President Obama in Monday's foreign policy
debate, invoking an infamous aside to Russian President Dmitry Medvedev that
was caught on a live microphone.
"This is my last election. After
my election, I have more flexibility," Obama told Medvedev when the pair met
in Seoul in March to discuss plans by the U.S. and NATO for an anti-ballistic
shield with participation by
Romania, Poland and Turkey. Moscow was adamantly opposed to the shield.
Obama urged Moscow to give him "space" until after the
November ballot. Medvedev dutifully pledged to relay the message to then-Prime
Minister Vladimir Putin, who was in the process of switching jobs with
Medvedev, but who is seen as the real power in Russia.
At the time, Romney called the whispered exchange "alarming and troubling." And at the debate in
Boca Raton, Fla., the GOP nominee raised it again after reiterating a past
stance that Russia poses the greatest "geopolitical threat" to the
U.S.
“I’m not going to wear rose-colored
glasses when it comes to Russia or Mr. Putin, and I’m certainly not going to
say to him, ‘I’ll give you more flexibility after the election,’” Romney said.
“After the election, he’ll get more backbone.”
Obama's open-mic slip came as U.S. plans for
an anti-missile shield raised tensions between Washington and Moscow despite
Obama's and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's vow to "reset" ties between the former Cold War foes. The
exchange, picked up by a White House pool of television journalists as well as
Russian reporters, followed Obama's plea for "space," and went like
this:
"I understand
your message about space," replied Medvedev.
"This is my last
election ... After my election I have more flexibility," Obama said,
apparently confident of winning re-election.
"I will transmit this
information to Vladimir," said Medvedev.
The White House was initially caught off-guard when reporters asked
about the exchange, but later released a statement recommitting to implementing
missile defense "which we've repeatedly said is not aimed at Russia"
but also acknowledging election-year obstacles on the issue.
"Since 2012 is an election year in both countries, with an election
and leadership transition in Russia and an election in the United States, it is
clearly not a year in which we are going to achieve a breakthrough," White
House deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes said at the time.
"Therefore, President Obama and President Medvedev agreed that it
was best to instruct our technical experts to do the work of better
understanding our respective positions, providing space for continued
discussions on missile defense cooperation going forward," he said.
