GOP insists show will go on as Isaac grows, heads to Gulf Coast

TAMPA, Fla. — Republican organizers sought to project an air of reassurance Monday as rumors swirled that the party was considering pulling the plug on the entirety of its convention with Tropical Storm Isaac nearing hurricane strength and bearing down on New Orleans.

“We are continuing to go ahead with our program of Tuesday, Wednesday [and] Thursday,” said Mitt Romney aide Russ Schriefer at a press conference in Tampa. “However, we are going to make sure we monitor the storm as it proceeds and see what happens over the next few days.”

Republicans were initially relieved when forecasts showed the storm skirting west of Tampa, largely sparing the convention site from serious wind or rainfall. But the storm now seems on a path eerily similar to that of Hurricane Katrina, which caused unprecedented destruction seven years ago to the day.

{mosads}”Obviously, our first concern is people in the path of the storm,” Schriefer said.

According to the National Hurricane Center, the storm is “getting a little better organized as it moves west-northwestward over the eastern Gulf of Mexico,” with warnings and watches in effect for much of coastal Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida. Forecasters are predicting as much as 18 inches of rain in southern Louisiana, the possibility of tornadoes and storm surges that could reach a maximum of 12 feet.

That could mean serious devastation along a Gulf Coast still rebuilding from recent years — and a serious optics issue for Republicans, who have acknowledged that the week’s proceedings in Tampa are crucial for introducing their candidate to the American people.

“You’ve got an hour before the nation to lay out your priorities,”
former Federal Election Commission Chairman Michael Toner said on a
breakfast panel hosted by The Hill and sponsored by Holland &
Knight. “That 60-minute period of time is the most important moment for
the governor in the coming weeks.”

Top Republicans reportedly expressed concern that the convention could turn into a net negative for Romney, with networks planning split-screen coverage between the event and the storm — and reminding viewers of President George W. Bush’s controversial handling of Katrina.

Already, CNN announced it was sending anchors Soledad O’Brien and Anderson Cooper to the Gulf Coast, while Fox News was dispatching Shepard Smith.

And The Boston Globe reported Monday that convention organizers were considering scrapping the remaining three days of the convention entirely out of concern that the destruction caused by Isaac would create difficult optics for the GOP ticket.

On Monday, Schriefer said so far there were no plans to significantly change the content of the program, but acknowledged that planners were closely monitoring the weather.

“If we’re not anything, we’re quick and nimble,” Schriefer said.

But the senior Romney aide refused to entertain specific questions about whether organizers were considering again shifting the convention to Friday or scaling back events, even as reporters peppered him with questions about optics and logistics.

“I’m not going to answer the sort of hypothetical ‘what if,’ ” Schriefer said.

Romney, asked at his New Hampshire home if he was considering canceling the convention, remained evasive but upbeat.

“Our thoughts are with the people that are in the storm’s path and hope that they’re spared any major destruction,” Romney said, according to The Washington Post. He added that Republicans have “got a great convention ahead,” and said his wife, Ann, was “going to do terrific.”

The convention will officially open Monday with RNC Chairman Reince Priebus gaveling in the proceedings. The program is expected to last just 10 minutes — Priebus will start a rolling debt clock that will stay active throughout the convention, and show a short video — before adjourning until Tuesday.

— Cameron Joseph contributed.