Romney: Middle East tumult "hardly" a bump in the road

Updated at 5:40 p.m. ET

(CBS News) Mitt Romney told CBS News Monday that the turmoil in the Middle East -- that's spanned not only the past few weeks, but the past few months -- is "hardly" just a "bump in the road," as President Obama characterized it on CBS News' "60 Minutes."

"Let's look at the broad themes in the Middle East over the past several months," Romney said in an interview with CBS News chief political correspondent Jan Crawford. "What's happening in the Middle East is hardly characterized in my view as a bump in the road. Not with Egypt electing a Muslim Brotherhood president. Not with Libya seeing the assassination of an American ambassador. Not with Syria, with 20,000 people killed by Mr. Assad. Not with Pakistan in tumult and of course, not with Iran on the verge of becoming nuclear capable. This is a far - far from a bump in the road."

In the "60 Minutes" interview that aired Sunday, Mr. Obama told Steve Kroft that he still supports the political upheaval and movement toward democracy in the Middle East, even after the recent violence that left four Americans dead, including U.S. Ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens.

"I think it was absolutely the right thing for us to do to align ourselves with democracy, universal rights, a notion that people have to be able to participate in their own governance," Mr. Obama said. "But I was pretty certain and continue to be pretty certain that there are going to be bumps in the road because, you know, in a lot of these places, the one organizing principle has been Islam. The one part of society that hasn't been controlled completely by the government. There are strains of extremism, and anti-Americanism, and anti-Western sentiment. And, you know, can be tapped into by demagogues."

Romney told Crawford that recent developments show "that events are spinning to a certain degree out of the kind of influence that we'd like to have. Where we're seeing ourselves at the mercy of events rather than shaping events. And we need an administration that is up to shaping events in the Middle East and not seeing them as 'bumps in a road' - likewise domestically."

Romney said it's "very clear" that the evidence at this point suggests Stevens was murdered by al Qaeda or al Qaeda affiliated individuals. "This was a terrorist attack," he said. "It's tragic."

The Obama administration initially said the attack was a spontaneous event as the result of an anti-Muslim movie, Crawford pointed out.

"I think increasingly the reports suggest that there was a planned effort to assassinate the ambassador, but I'm not going to pre-judge the results of careful scrutiny," Romney responded. "We'll see what develops over time, what kind of information comes forward. But I think it's pretty clear that the White House jumped the gun. The administration immediately dismissed any prospect of this being a coordinated or pre-planned effort, and I think it's very likely that it was pre-planned and it was an assassination and it was a terrorist event."

For more of Jan Crawford's interview with Mitt Romney, watch The CBS Evening News Monday night and CBS This Morning on Tuesday morning.

[tshabalalamakelele]

I'd rather not have an administration that tries to "shape events" in the middle east. I think I've seen that one already.

[nygurl1]

I agree entirely. You can't use a war to change people.
They have been this way for centuries. Their beliefs are ingrained. All we can do is wait. The people are learning more and more how the world works. They will decide when the time is right to either remain the same, or try to change it.
We should not be kingmakers.

[Ec2012]

This whole campaign from Romney has been a a big joke! Even his campaign people and your vice president choice what a big joke. what has gone wrong with U.S. people putting up with all this campaign . Thank god that Obama keeps his head focus on what we need to hear is what are your plans Obama for u.s. and you tooRomney , you really have not answered any questions on anything .just you worrying about Obama and bad mouthing the president . You have to stoop so low cause you have nothing .you and your vice president choice on your campaign , and campaign are acting like a bunch of school kids . What are we teaching our young people? This has been the worst campaign in my life time and I don't call it a campaign . I call it school kids that need to grow up . Romney you haven't given U.S. any straight answers on anything! And stop stooping so low to try and win votes !

[nygurl1]

I tend to think of reps as cranky old men who have an agenda, and Obama and we the people, keep stopping them....Too bad.

[TJphoto]

Mitt, have you noticed that you criticize a lot, but NEVER offer up any solutions. This one of your BIG problems in this campaign. I'm just saying.

[nygurl1]

You are right TJ - he has said nothing substantive except wanting to start a couple of wars and kill Obamacare, that was HIS idea!

Rocky - since there are so many out of work, would you rather they all starve to death?
Or do you think it's ONLY dems using them?
News for you pal, anything he does to hurt people, will happen to reps too.
Of course he could always do what Hitler did and tattoo them!

[grumpas]

Romney is out of touch with reality!!! This guy can't even run a campaign and do it right. What is he going to do if he gets to be President???? It's hard to imagine any responsible person actually voting this airhead into office. He can't even tell us what his policies are, let alone how he is going to create jobs and solve the economic problems his party created!!!

[nygurl1]

But he doesn't think his people did anything bad!!!!

[Dancing-in-the-Streets]

Yeah Romney I'm sure we need someone who has already given up on the Middle East and thinks we can get away with "kickin the ball down the road"! : /

[no1blonde]

The only feeling of foreign experience from Mr. Romney is the offshore hiding of funds and shipping jobs to other nations. He does not have a clue and his kind of fierce tirade is not the way America needs to head. We cannot continue to flex might across the globe. We need a better plan. So instead of everyone calling each other names, come up with solutions. This sounds like a game of 'nanny, nanny, boo, boo'. I hope none of you aspire to be in a leadership position because it takes more than name-calling to get the job done.

[nygurl1]

Rocky dork - They have been dealing with those agencies since day one with no problems!
They are all reps out to keep every penny in their own pocket.

They don't care if we get poisonous food, or clothes that don't fit and fall apart after 2 washings, or furniture that falls apart, as long as we keep buying that junk at even higher prices than they were before they were shipped out!

[all-gores]

Obama is selfish & self-centered.
We have no leadership in the WH right now.
We must vote Obama a permanent holiday in November to save ourselves.

Progressive Lefties are ignorant of and have no sense of reality when it comes to money.
Plus, Progressive Lefties have a child-like lack of understanding regarding what must be accomplished to counter the weight that evil has in our world.

This November, will Americans give up, join the hive of mindless Lefties only seeking a Mommy/Daddy govt to care for them, or will Americans pick to be individuals with a strong sense of personal empowerment & responsibility ?

[nygurl1]

Only mindless drones I've ever seen were reps!

Like you. Guess their paycheck must be pretty big.

[joe1022joe]

After driving the U.S. more deeply into debt than any other President, this should make you shake your head. If George Bush's daughters or Bill Clinton's daughter had done this, it would have been all over the news and the voter's would have been calling for heads to roll 24/7. But with the "chosen one", you hear nothing in the major media.

Want to know where Obama's 13 year-old daughter went with 12 friends?

On "spring break" in Oaxaca, Mexico; on your dime, she took two jets, 12 friends and 25 secret service men.
A thirteen year-old?

Why haven't you heard about it?

The Obama Administration has had the Secret Service scouring the web ordering that any website mentioning this be taken down because letting the travel plans out could have endangered the president's daughter's security.

Nonsense, the "royal couple" just want to hide the way they are ripping off the U.S. taxpayer. Only a few Canadian Web-sites still have it up. (both below)

The Obama's are laughing at the "suckers" who are funding their Imperial Lifestyle.

This trip cost more than most Americans make in their entire lifetimes.

[BUDDYofPA]

Mitt promises to end all wars with his Apocalypse War ...
and then he will reign as God over His ordained Planet
Earth... you will all just need to get a 666 tatoed on your head or hand !!!

[Lerianis4]

Agreed there. If there was an Anti-Christ, Romney would sure as hell fit with his plans for America.

[Dancing-in-the-Streets]

White Horse Prophecy.

[johnlockesghost]

You know, our government, and especially those members of the Coalition of Crackpots, ought to keep their nose out of the internal affairs of other countries and leave intelligence gathering up to the pros and, then, only act on creditable threats to the United States itself.