Romney not campaigning. Photo: Emmanuel Dunand/AFP/Getty Images

The storm may have passed, but the devastation it left behind is far from over — streets are flooded, power is out, homes are destroyed, and life for many people along the East Coast is basically in shambles. Which means that some delicate decisions need to be made by President Obama and Mitt Romney about how and when to resume the dirty business of returning to the campaign trail. It’s a much easier decision for Obama because he doesn’t need the campaign trail. His No. 1 priority right now, politically at least, is to appear presidential and in control of things, which is not all that hard when you are the president and you are in control of things. Take some Serious Photos with Serious People, make some announcements about the federal government’s response, visit a couple of disaster zones with your sleeves rolled up, and you’re good. Consequently, Obama isn’t holding any campaign events today or tomorrow.

But Romney, as a self-described “unemployed” person, has no actual power. He can’t direct FEMA, he doesn’t have a Situation Room in which to take Serious Photos with Serious People. And by most measures, he’s trailing still trailing in the electoral college vote, so he also doesn’t have the luxury of time. Which is why Romney already resumed the campaign again today in Ohio. Oh, wait, sorry, he held a, uh, “Storm Relief Event” to collect “flashlights, batteries, diapers, toothbrushes, mini-deodorants, fleece blankets, cereal, toilet paper and canned goods” bound for New Jersey. It was just a coincidence that the “Storm Relief Event” happened to take place in the country’s most important swing state.