In the shadows

Seven years to the week Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans,even as Hurricane Isaac made landfall in Louisiana,former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romneys quest for the Republican presidential nomination ended in Tampa,Florida a day late and in the eye of the storm. The Republican campaign now has as clear a shape as it could under circumstances that have ranged from the Tea Partys sustained challenge,to Ron Pauls small but loyal band,and the conservative rants of Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum. But the campaigns biggest challenge remains the enigma called Mitt Romney.

National conventions are usually less substance and more choreography. Romneys wife,Ann,emphasised why the voter can trust her husband. Naturally,since the GOPs primary concern was humanising a candidate who still hasnt convinced voters in the crucial swing states that he can do a better job than President Barack Obama. Romney is unwilling or unable to describe how he will bring about his tax cuts without emptying the state coffers. Instead,the Romney platform which,incidentally,reiterated Indias status as a geopolitical and a strategic partner hinged on the essential Republican ideal of individualism. The man who built Bain Capital out of nothing will not fail.

The takeaway was the rise of younger Republicans,such as Governor Chris Christie and Nikki Haley. In a speech that may have brought her closer to the national spotlight,Haley attacked the president for harming American business,telling the tale of how her parents set up a multi-million dollar business out of their living room. These narratives of individual enterprise are true. Yet,a Romney victory would also depend on the voter forgetting the extraordinary context in which America has been functioning since 2008.