Romney/Ryan 2012! Motto: It Seemed Like A Good Idea At The Time

So, there's a terrible tragedy in Libya and Bob 2.0 decides to make some political hay out of it. Turns out he zigged when he should have zagged though because the statement he bases his attack on actually was issued before the attack.

Don't you hate it when that happens?

Well, it's not like this is the first time this has happened and it probably won't be the last, so we have to figure team Mittbot is pretty good at damage control by now.

But the embassy's statement was issued before violence broke out—prompting Democrats to claim Romney launched a misguided political attack. Asked whether he "jumped the gun" in attacking Obama before he knew all the facts, Romney defended his response, insisting the administration's initial statement was "reiterated" after the embassy in Cairo had been "breached" and the administration stood by the "inappropriate" statement for hours.

Yeah, except no. Here's what the President said:

I strongly condemn the outrageous attack on our diplomatic facility in Benghazi, which took the lives of four Americans, including Ambassador Chris Stevens. Right now, the American people have the families of those we lost in our thoughts and prayers. They exemplified America's commitment to freedom, justice, and partnership with nations and people around the globe, and stand in stark contrast to those who callously took their lives.

I have directed my Administration to provide all necessary resources to support the security of our personnel in Libya, and to increase security at our diplomatic posts around the globe. While the United States rejects efforts to denigrate the religious beliefs of others, we must all unequivocally oppose the kind of senseless violence that took the lives of these public servants.

On a personal note, Chris was a courageous and exemplary representative of the United States. Throughout the Libyan revolution, he selflessly served our country and the Libyan people at our mission in Benghazi. As Ambassador in Tripoli, he has supported Libya's transition to democracy. His legacy will endure wherever human beings reach for liberty and justice. I am profoundly grateful for his service to my Administration, and deeply saddened by this loss.

The brave Americans we lost represent the extraordinary service and sacrifices that our civilians make every day around the globe. As we stand united with their families, let us now redouble our own efforts to carry their work forward.

OK, so another day, another blunder. Time to move on, right?

While Romney stood behind his initial criticism of Obama, not everybody on the Romney team appeared to agree. In an interview with National Journal's Major Garrett, John Sununu, a top Romney surrogate, said the campaign should have been more cautious. "They probably should have waited," the former New Hampshire governor told National Journal. "You look at the way things unfolded, you look at the timing of it, they probably should have waited."

Peggy Noonan: "I don't feel that Mr. Romney has been doing himself any favors in the past few hours." — @CPHeinze via web

 MSM CW on Romney: "One of the most craven and ill-advised tactical moves in this entire campaign," says Halperin. http://t.co/... — @GrahamDavidA via TweetDeck

 If you think the eye-rolling at Romney is just coming from the MSM, call up some Republican foreign policy hands.— @BuzzFeedBen via TweetDeck 

Romney appears to have launched a political attack even before facts of embassy violence were known. Then uses day to issue vague FP vision
— @davidgregory via Tweetbot for iOS

In the House and Senate, top Republican leaders refrained from mentioning Obama, and instead offered messages of sympathy, unity and even praise for the State Department.

A joint statement from three of the Senate’s most prominent foreign policy hawks, Sens. John McCain (R-AZ), Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Joe Lieberman (I-CT), took a similarly measured response that acknowledged that the full story of what happened on Tuesday had not yet emerged.

Ruh Ro. Hey professional journalist, trained the the journalistic science of journalism Gary Langer, looks like you're going to need to make another late night visit to those both registered and certain to vote.