After Mitt Romney’s campaign rally faux “storm relief” event / photo op on Tuesday in Ohio, the Red Cross has stated that they do not want or accept donations of items and goods like food, clothes, blankets, etc. Not only do goods create a huge burden on volunteers because of the necessary storage, sorting and distribution, but many items may not even be needed. It’s a request that has been posted to their website for … forever.
Of course there are no photo-op moments in writing out a check to the Red Cross, so what can Team Romney do if they want press attention for pretending to help victims of the recent weather disaster?
From Zeke Miller | Buzzfeed:
“Start Packing.” The order was given by a campaign staffer about 20 minutes before Paul Ryan entered the GOP victory office here. Two dozen campaign staffers and volunteers pulled boxes from under six tables laden canned food and dry goods to be shipped to New Jersey for storm relief. Just across the tables were an equal number of reporters, videographers and photographers.
[...] In Hudson, the packing was proceeding too quickly, and the supporters wearing red “Team Wisconsin” t-shirts were given the order to slow down and then to stop to be sure there were still goods to be packed when Ryan entered. One by one the boxes were filled and loaded into a waiting U-Haul, and then they stopped to wait for the candidate.
“Thanks a lot, thanks for doing all this,” Ryan said to the supporters when he arrived. More than a hundred supporters waited outside to cheer Ryan — many of them bringing supplies — chanting “Ryan, Ryan, Ryan.”
“Go home, and if you can, donate to the Red Cross,” Ryan said outside, standing on a metal chair next to the truck. He noted that victory centers across the state and the country are accepting donations of non-perishables.
As Ryan walked back through the office to the motorcade volunteers finished packing the supplies, which are being driven to a Red Cross facility in New Jersey. As supporters walked out the door they were handed a flier about the GOP’s election night party.
The items will be driven to a Red Cross facility in NEW JERSEY. Does that destination have anything to do with Gov. Christie and Pres. Obama touring the storm’s devastation together yesterday?
The Romney Campaign is directing their supporters to go spend their money on goods that may never get to victims of Hurricane Sandy, much less help them. Romney is having his supporters engage in this craven political stunt of collecting-of-the-goods-and-packing-the-goods-and-transporting-the-goods-to-New-Jersey, when instead they could actually be helping people by donating the money they spent on props for the Romney Campaign’s photo-ops directly to the Red Cross.
Maybe Romney supporters are aware of all of this and, like their candidate, they just don’t care. Maybe they’re as opportunistic and cynical as Mitt… and maybe that’s part of the reason they support him.
http://www.redcross.org/charitable-donations
