Romney to Visit Iraq and Afghanistan in the Next Couple Months

I don’t think many of our readers doubt that Romney is setting the stage for a second run at the presidency in 2012. For those few that do, perhaps this news will lay those doubts to rest.

From CNN Political Ticker:

Mitt Romney says he wants to return to Iraq and Afghanistan

Eric Fehrnstrom, an adviser for the the former Massachusetts governor and 2008 Republican presidential candidate, tells CNN that “we are working through the appropriate channels to make this happen.”

“I’m going to Afghanistan and Iraq in a couple of months,” Romney declared in an interview published Sunday in the Washington Examiner. “I’ll get an assessment of what’s happening there and what the prospects are. But I certainly would support our troops with the additional troops which are being called for by General McChrystal, and provide the equipment and the manpower and the budgetary support which our troops deserve.”

The article states that Romney once visited Iraq and Afghanistan in May of 2006, as Governor of Massachusetts in a trip that was sponsored by the Department of Defense. I’d also like to point out the Fehrnstrom, mentioned in the article, is Romney’s official spokesperson and a current adviser.

Recently, I wrote the post entitled Romney Burnishes His Defense Credentials noting that Governor Romney has recently taken several opportunities to highly criticize President Obama and his missteps on foreign policy. He did so in interviews, in several media appearances, at the Values Voter Summit, and particularly at his “conversation” at the Foreign Policy Initiative luncheon. This news about Romney’s visit to the war zones is a clear indication that when he runs in 2011 he will be as knowledgeable and experienced as possible on foreign policy to ensure he can lock up the DefCon vote. It seems to be working as he is already receiving great reviews concerning his “grasp” on policy.

I reiterate the fact that there is currently a void amongst potential POTUS candidates as the obvious go-to person for DefCon voters, which void was previously split between McCain and Giuliani. DefCon voters will be looking for a place to go. More and more we will see them gravitating to Romney. This week’s fundraiser that McCain is hosting for Romney might be one of the first steps in that process.

Good luck on your trip, Governor.

(Hat tip to Bill at GOP Toast for the news. You can read his blog here.)

UPDATE: Romney Afghan trip delayed