A senior adviser to Mitt Romney's presidential campaign said Tuesday there was "nothing new" in President Obama's address to the United Nations, where he called for an end to the "violence and intolerance" surrounding attacks on American diplomatic missions and said the United States will prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons.
"It's a version of what he said before," said Romney adviser Dan Senor, adding there was "nothing new" in the president's remarks.
"If you look at the president's U.N. General Assembly speeches over the years — 2009, 2010, 2011 — he cites the biggest challenges facing America and the U.N. and world. He said Iran in 2009, cited the Israeli peace process, cited Syria before. All these situations are in disarray."
Senor contended that there has been "no progress" on many of the issues.
"There is no progress. There is a sense that there's an unraveling going on abroad, and the president citing these doesn't mean we're making progress," Senor added.
The Romney adviser also defended the Republican nominee from those who questioned his statements critical of the Obama administration response to the violent protests at American diplomatic missions in the Middle East.
"I think the reaction to his reaction was disproportionate," Senor said. "At the end of the day he criticized a statement that came out of the administration, that the White House ultimately distanced themselves from."
The Obama administration has pushed back on Romney challenges to the president's foreign policy, accusing the Republican of bluster, especially in regard to Iran. Obama has previously challenged Romney to say explicitly if he believes war should be waged against Iran, a point on which Senor was challenged.
"Gov. Romney has not advocated military action and any suggestion that he has by the president or his surrogates is a mischaracterization," Senor said. "What Gov. Romney's concern is, is a weak posture in the region makes war more likely."
