Mitt Romney to "temporarily not be a candidate" during London Olympic visit.

US Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney has announced that during his late July visit to the London 2012 Olympic Games, he will temporarily cease to be a candidate and have "no contact" with his campaign. "I will be very busy visiting the Olympics and have asked that my campaign back home continues independently and without my guidance while I am away," said Romney in a statement published on his website on Monday.

However, the news was greeted with skepticism and derision by political opponents almost as soon as it was made public. "Governor Romney is and will continue to be the presumptive Republican nominee while in London - and not only that but he has even scheduled two fundraisers during his stay in the UK. This is utterly preposterous," said Sally Royson, a spokesperson for President Obama's reelection campaign.


The statement by Romney comes amidst ongoing controversies over the former venture capitalist's post-1999 role at the company Bain Capital. The candidate has insisted that he played no active role at Bain while he was on leave assisting the 2002 Olympics held in Salt Lake City. The current statement regarding London appears designed to further reinforce this narrative. "We won't speak to him while he is gone and will make all decisions without his input," said David Lober, a senior Romney strategist, adding "the separation has been planned very precisely."

Desecrated coconut...

Nick Clog...

Is this the proof that Paul McCartney is not dead?

Then...

And now...?

BREAKING: Mitt Romney captors release new hostage video.

BREAKING:

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney appeared broken and beleaguered in a new video made public by his captors on Friday. In the 20 second video, the clearly uncomfortable and terrified hostage is mockingly asked by one of his off-screen captors "What's for breakfast, Gov?".

The former Massachusetts governor - with pancakes in a Styrofoam container perched awkwardly on his lap - then nervously confirms that "I am [being held somewhere] in Rosemont, Illinois," before describing the meal he is supposedly eating. The FBI believes he is being coerced into presenting a normal facade in an effort by his captors to prove to the public that he is not being mistreated and remains well fed.

Forced to smile.

However, Professor Lee Harrington of the Massachusetts School of Professional Psychology believes that the video easily shows that all is not well. "I've studied the video several times since it was released hoping to decode any unconscious and also covert body-language and facial signals that the captor may be trying to convey," says Harrington. "And there are clear signals here, which suggest that Mr. Romney is under an extraordinary amount of psychological stress - this is a horrendous ordeal for him, despite the superficial and forcibly affected rosy facade."

Terrified - Mitt Romney forced to perform for the camera.

The professor pointed to several specifics he spotted in the tape. "Notice the cowed position and the forced smile at the end. Also notice that Romney doesn't even swallow the food before him - perhaps the pancakes are just for show too and his captors won't really allow him to eat them. This is someone who is really at the end of their tether - an absolutely broken man. I'm really not sure how much longer he can take the humiliation of this."

The brief video released by Mitt Romney's captors on Friday.

Mr. Romney has been held hostage since June 2, 2011. For months, his captors have been releasing increasingly incoherent (and often contradictory) "statements" and videos by their captor. However, the authorities - who have thus far failed to locate where Romney is being imprisoned - continue to remain in the dark over the demands of the hostage takers. "This whole thing is truly weird," said one FBI source who requested to remain anonymous. "But despite the creepy and odd nature of this whole affair, our main focus remains on releasing the Governor from this clearly horrendous ordeal."