Romney would bring family to Sochi

Former GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney said he would not hesitate to take his family to the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, despite security concerns.  

The former Massachusetts governor said there had never been a more targeted Olympic site than Sochi, but he maintained the level of security has been unprecedented.

“The answer is yes,” he said on NBC’s “Today Show” when asked if he would take his family to the games.

{mosads}He added: “I believe the games will be safe. That doesn’t mean there’s a 100 percent guarantee anywhere in the world today. But this is, after all, a dangerous corner of the world.”

Romney, who headed up the 2002 Winter Olympics in Utah, said the arenas and stadiums where the athletes compete will likely be secure, but the most concern comes from “soft sites.”

He said Russia had likely done “everything humanly possible to protect the games,” reiterating that intelligence gathering is likely the most important security preparation at a site as big as Sochi.

“You need extraordinary intel work — that’s what happened with our games that gave me confidence they’d be safe,” he said. “Now and then, we’ll hear reports of an individual they are looking for. That suggests they have pretty good intelligence. All in all, it seems to be a very effective security program, but again, no 100 percent guarantee.”

Read more from The Hill.