Boehner Criticizes Romney's Russia Remarks If you're a Republican candidate for the presidency, and you're trying to figure out if you've reached the limits of acceptability in attacking Barack Obama, here's an easy marker: Even House Speak John Boehner thinks you're tactless. "Clearly while the president is overseas, he's at a conference and while the president is overseas I think it's appropriate that people not be critical of him or our country," Mr. Boehner said. The context here is Mr. Obama's open-mic remark at Monday's nuclear arms summit in South Korea. At the end of a 90-minute meeting with Russian President Dmitri Medvedev, Mr. Obama failed to realize the microphone was on and said: "On all these issues, but particularly missile defense this, this can be solved, but it's important for him [Vladimir Putin] to give me space...This is my last election. After my election, I have more flexibility. Mr. Obama probably would not have been that candid if he'd known the mic was live, but really all he was doing was describing reality. There's no way to have an intelligent discussion about American anti-missile systems in Europe in the midst of this presidential campaign. As if to prove his point, Mitt Romney, who's fond of claiming that the president's weak on national security, didn't miss the chance to pounce. During an interview with CNN's Wolf Blitzer, he said: "It is alarming. It is troubling. ... Russia is not a friendly character on the world stage, and for this president to be looking for greater flexibility, where he doesn't have to answer to the American people in his relations with Russia is very, very troubling, very alarming. I'm very, very concerned. He went on to call Russia "without question our number one geopolitical foe," which should come as a surprise to anyone who hasn't been in a coma since before the September 11th attacks. Mr. Boehner's savvy enough to know that mouthing off about our "foes" isn't great for international relations. So is President Medvedev, who responded to questions about the kerfuffle with good humor: "I always get very cautious when I see a country resort to phrasings such as "No. 1 enemy. It is very reminiscent of Hollywood in a certain period of history," he said through a translator in South Korea today. He also said that presidential candidates should "listen to reason when they formulate their positions," and advised them "to check their clocks from time to time. It's 2012, not the mid-1970s. No matter what party a candidate represents, he has to take the current state of affairs into account. At least, Mr. Boehner might add, if the president's abroad. There will be plenty of time when the president returns home to throw reason to the wind and attack whatever he may say or do.