Romney tops off London trip with Olympic Games
(CBS News) Ready or not, the 2012 London Olympic Games are finally here. And while Mitt Romney voiced his doubts about just how ready the U.K. would be, he and his family seemed to be enjoying Friday night's Opening Ceremony.
"Awesome," the presumptive GOP presidential nominee's son Tagg Tweeted on Friday from the stands, sharing a photo of a lit-up Olympic Park. Doug Mills of the Associated Press Tweeted around 4 p.m. local time that Romney had arrived, and was "shaking hands with others in the VIP section."
(Romney meets with British leaders in London.)
As the ceremony kicked off, Romney and his wife Ann - who has a horse in the Dressage event of the Games - stood and waved, smiling at the crowd. (First lady Michelle Obama also attended.)
But a series of missteps since Romney's arrival in London earlier in the week, including a comment questioning London's preparedness that set off a tirade in the British press, hadn't been forgotten. Twitter users in both the United States and Britain reported that booing erupted in several Olympics viewing parties when Romney appeared on the TV screen.
(Romney dodges Olympics traffic in London.)
One day earlier, British Prime Minister David Cameron took a swipe at Romney's own experience in helping organize the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah. After Romney critiqued that he found London's security efforts for the Games "disconcerting," Cameron defended his city as "one of the busiest, most active, bustling cities anywhere in the world.
"Of course, it's easier if you hold an Olympic Games in the middle of nowhere," Cameron said.
Romney on Saturday stopped by the men's 400 individual medley heats swimming event before he was scheduled to travel to Israel, the next stop on his foreign trip where he may have a chance to redeem himself on the world stage.
