TAMPA, Fla.

Mitt Romney doesn’t elicit passion, as Ronald Reagan did in Detroit. Or respect, as Poppy Bush did in New Orleans. Or excitement, as W. did in Philadelphia. Or admiration, as John McCain did in St. Paul.

The emotion he evokes is pity. Romney slogged and spent his way to the G.O.P. convention his dad craved for himself only to find that his role is not so much leading man as forgotten man.

Following an adulatory promotional video about himself, Chris Christie splashed in the Narcissus pool, giving a preening keynote speech that gassed on for 1,800 words and 16 minutes before he even deigned to mention “our actual nominee,” as Sarah Palin sardonically put it on Fox News.

Christie, who has already said he may run in 2016 if Romney loses, urged “sacrifice” and “tough choices” even though the blurry Romney beckons with an all-you-can-eat buffet of defense spending and tax cuts.