Mitt Romney was coy, as expected, about his intention to run for president for a third time in 2016, but much more direct in his criticism of the favorite for the Democratic nomination, Hillary Clinton.
“There’s some speculation about whether I’m about to embark on a political endeavor, in which I had previously been unsuccessful,” Romney told a gathering of Republican party leaders Friday at the Republican National Committee winter meeting, held aboard the USS Midway in San Diego.
“Let me state I have no intention of running for U.S. Senator of Massachusetts,” Romney joked.
Romney has fueled speculation that he plans to try again for the GOP nod. He has reportedly reached out to donors and is in the beginning stages of developing a campaign team.
Though he did not answer that burning question — he would be the first candidate to do so if he had — Romney heavily signaled his intentions, aiming many critiques of Obama’s tenure at Clinton, who served as Secretary of State from 2009 to 2013.
“And the results of the Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama foreign policy have been devastating,” Romney told the crowd. “Terrorism is not on the run. As a matter of fact, the radical violent jihadists in their various forms are terrorizing and brutalizing people all over the world, just in the last several days.”
Romney cited growing unrest around the world — from the terrorist attacks in Paris to violence in the Middle East and the recent actions of China and Russia.
“I used to joke during the campaign that President Obama didn’t have a foreign policy,” Romney said. “And of course that was a joke because he did have a foreign policy. And the foreign policy was one that was crafted by he and his Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.”
“Their foreign policy was based in part on the premise that if we are friendly enough to other people, and if we smile broadly enough, and we press the reset button, peace is going to break out around the world,” Romney said. “This is a foreign policy that said that we should walk back from red lines. This is a foreign policy that said that we should lead from behind. This is a foreign policy that was characterized by speaking loudly and carrying a small stick.”
Romney concluded his speech, in which he also covered domestic policy, admitting that he was giving “serious consideration to the future.”
“Now, I should tell you that the last few days that the most frequently questions I get asked is ‘what does [wife Ann Romney] think of all of this,'” Romney said.
“She believes that people get better with experience, and heaven knows I have experience running for President.”
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