A Speech in Search of a Moment in History.

Mitt Romney gave his much-hyped "Faith in America" speech today, and to this listener it was a real dud. Rife with mediocre platitudes about religous freedom and the role of religion in public life (interrupted by plenty of gratuitous applause), one was left to ask "just why is he giving this speech?" Has there been a crescendo of panic that he would, if President, take his orders from Salt Lake City? No. Has there been a campaign to discredit Mr. Romney for his beliefs? No. Perhaps the moment in history for which this speech was written awaits us in the future? And if that moment should arrive, this speech will be like so much meat thrown against a wall - blah.

Norm Podhoretz expresses a similar sentiment: "...Who is the audience for this speech, aside from people like me who make their living in part watching them and reading their texts and writing about them?..."