Dirty Harry meets Obama in primetime, but did he make (or break) Mitt's day?!

I watched the goings on of the recent Republican National Convention (RNC) with great interest this week, not least because we were finally going to get a closer look at the two candidates whose mandate is to replace the increasingly ineffective duo of Obama/Biden.

One of the main critiques of Mitt Romney has been that no one truly knows who he is, that he does not form an emotional connection with people, and can just appear to be another talking head, albeit one who seems  to be a star with budgets and numbers, but also one who is a rather cold fish in many other regards. Therefore, one of the greatest challenges for the candidate at the RNC was to resolve such "misconceptions" if they were indeed inaccurate. 

So what's the verdict? Well, unquestionably, we did get to hear a ton more testimony with respect to both how great a businessman he is, as well as what an incredible husband and father he has been. One point of great import is that unlike the many who can barely wait 24 hours after doing some charitable deed before making sure it is publicized, it is clear that Mitt has quietly been helping people and families for years, but has kept very quiet about it. This does tell one something about the character of the man, who prefers to help quietly rather than using that help as a tool to further his own popularity and ambition. It's a very rare thing today. 

One of the stars of the show was his wife of over 40 years, Ann Romney, who did what everyone hoped she would do by simultaneously humanizing Mitt and making a strong case that he should be a choice for women, who are a key demographic in the campaigns of both parties. It was a very strong speech from a clearly strong woman, and the performance aspect of it made her look like a seasoned pro, and someone who was not going to take "no" for an answer. Any fears that Mitt/Ann would not be seen as equally a powerful couple and team as Barack/Michelle were put to bed, quite early. 

The keynote speech of Chris Christie, even if it was out of sync with what came before it due to rescheduling issues, was interesting to say the least. Christie seemed way more focused on his achievements, New Jersey, and the way forward for the Republican movement in general, rather than supposedly promoting the candidacy of one Mitt Romney as the next POTUS. It took him forever to even mention the name Mitt Romney, and once he did, he went straight back to himself once more. Many were shocked, and I think Rachel Maddow of MSNBC said it best:

"It was a remarkable act of political selfishness, and one which was Christ Christie accepting the Republican party's nomination for 2016!"

And by the way, Rachel is a fan of Chris Christie! Former Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice gave a much less controversial speech, and it was also not tinged with the negativity and nastiness of Christie, but focused more on optimism and leadership. Chris Matthews of Hardball said that he felt it was both presidential in nature and was also the best speech of the convention, on Twitter. 

But therein lies the problem, again. Both Christie and Rice did as much (or more) for their own political futures as they did for Mitt Romney's. So are they simply saying that the Republican party has the wrong candidate up there on the big stage in 2012, and we will all jump in 2016? Both Christie and Rice have denied, occasionally vehemently, that they have any such ambitions, but where have we heard that before? I couldn't help but feel that Mitt was overshadowed by a few big players, and you could almost sense his uneasiness.

The VP candidate, Paul Ryan, did pretty much what both the Republican and Democratic parties expected of him: he either did a fairly solid attack dog job on Obama or he stretched truth so far that it was even over the grey area and spilled over into outright lies, depending on who you ask. But he did manage to please the conservative base, and did so without coming across as scary or crazed which will be needed to maintain interest from the swing voters. He has come up against some severe criticism since for actually being dishonest (I thought that was part and parcel of being a good politician?), but as far as the delegates at the RNC were concerned, he was a star performer at the big show, on the night. 

Mitt himself gave a pretty good speech, even if it was short on specifics and there was no mention of the military, whom Obama is currently courting once again. He came to the stage via the convention hall floor, shaking hands presidentially along the way, which I felt was unnecessary: the speech was his place to connect with delegates, and the handshaking showboating should have been saved for after it. Ultimately, it was more a good salesman/journeyman convention speech than a rabble-rousing passionate cry for a new dawn and a new future for those devastated by a brutal economy in recent years. We did get to see his clear love of family, both for his own parents as well as his kids, and he even showed some emotion, but overall it began to drag on and you could sense the restlessness in the room. Was it acceptable? Yes. Was it the speech of a future president? Probably not. 

The last item, of course, has to be the one that overshadowed them all: Clint Eastwood. He was hilariously irreverent, even if it appeared to be completely ad-lib and he fumbled his thoughts/words on a regular basis. We have to remember that he is in his 80's now, so that's fine, and he never was a man of words; more a man of few words in fact. But as crazed and rambling as it was, one could not help but ask what the hell were the organizers thinking? If it had been light relief earlier in the week, okay, but as the headline-grabbing big Hollywood star's speech just before the candidate's? It was a huge miscalculation. 

It was headline-grabbing alright, and not in a way that will help get Romney elected. It even has led to the creation of a new term on the internet and Twitter, known as #Eastwooding. Talking to an empty chair in an improvised sketch might fit SNL, but not the RNC, and most definitely not as the last thought before finally getting to see/hear the candidate. Everyone was supposed to be "Romneying" after the convention, instead of being sidetracked completely by a big gun and loose cannon: one that blew a big hole in the credibility and professional image of the party and one which also trivialized what is at stake. "Go ahead, make my day", indeed! - Kevin Mc