5 Reasons Why Mitt Romney Should Hire a Publicist

Election Season is upon us and, as previously mentioned, it's no secret which candidate I support. My obvious bias aside, there are a few things Mitt Romney needs to learn when it comes to PR.

In response to some recent unfavorable maneuvers made by Romney on the campaign trail, I've compiled a list of the top 5 reasons why a publicist is desperately needed in the Republican camp:

1. Writing off half the American population as "lazy victims" does nothing for your public image: Romney's mouth might as well be his shoe for as often as his foot is in it. When a secret video of Romney speaking at a fundraiser was leaked, it captured the Presidential hopeful sharing what he really thought of 47% of Americans. In the video, Romney refers to the 47% of Americans who are voting for Obama as "lazy victims" who feel they are "entitled to healthcare, food and housing." Call me a left-winged liberal, but aren't healthcare, food and housing some pretty basic necessities? For a Presidential candidate to slam half of the population on the eve of an election isn't just tasteless, it's bad PR.
2. Ignoring a crisis doesn't make it go away: Following the immediate backlash from the now infamous 47% video, Romney's camp and other top Republicans said nothing about the incident. Instead, they released a video on the national debt in an effort to divert attention from the leaked footage. Rule number one in crisis PR: Admit you were wrong and tell people how you'll fix your mistake. Did no one on Romney's team feel it was important to address the derogatory comments the Govenor made about nearly half the people who will decide his Presidential fate?  Ignoring the crisis has only resolitified Romney's view of half Americans as lost causes.
3. Imitation is NOT the sincerist form of flattery: Only days after the 47% video surfaced, Romney made headlines yet again for his offensive, out-of-touch approach to voters. The candidate sat down with Univision, a popular Spanish-speaking station, in an effort to address Hispanic voters looking a bit darker than usual. It appears that Romney invested in a spray tan before his Hispanic T.V. debut in what seems to be a very misguided effort to relate to his darker-skinned viewers. Considering this audience knows full well that Romney is Caucasion, with absolutely no Hispanic heritage, it is both insulting and incredibly ill-concieved to appear on a Hispanic television show with a darker skin tone than your natural one, in a transparent attempt to prove to Hispanic voters that you are the right choice for President. Being out of touch with your audience is the kiss of death in public relations and Romney may have kissed his chance at the Presidency goodbye with this manuever.
4. International Affairs Are Delicate Matters (and You're Running for President of the United States, so STOP OFFENDING OTHER COUNTRIES) : During the 2012 Summer Olympics, Romney notoriuosly made comments referring to London's lack of prepartation for the games.  Not only did his ill-advised comments spark a response from Prime Minister Cameron, but they also made Londoners a bit peturbed. Why, on an international visit as a U.S. Presidential candidate, would you make any allusion to another country's incompotence? International relations are crucial to many businesses in the U.S., and especially to the President. Had Romney hired a trained professional to issue statements for him and to redirect such absurd comments, he might have successfully vistied our nation's closest ally without earning the tabloid nickname "Mitt the Twitt".
5. Obama Just Has a Better Team: Whether you're a Democrat or a Republican, you cannot deny that Obama has a far better team behind him than Romney. From speech writers, to social media startegists, to First Lady-- it's just better. This is perhaps the best argument for Romney to hire a publicist. A good publicist can make even the slimiest of politicians appear heart-warming and compotent. It's all about the spin.

While I'm sure Mitt Romney has a few [and far between] strong points, there is no denying that the Presidential candidate could use a good publicist and a serious lesson in public relations.