Striking while the issue is hot, the Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney reminds voters that he played tough as Massachusetts governor when Mohammad Khatami, the former Iranian president, came to visit Harvard University a year ago.

A 60-second radio ad airing this week in several states with early primaries calls Harvard’s decision to invite Mr. Khatami to speak on campus last fall a “disgrace,” according to The Harvard Crimson.

The ad also praises the former governor for refusing to provide the former Iranian leader with “VIP treatment at taxpayer expense.” That refusal included no police escort.

This week the speech of Iran’s current president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, at Columbia University was a hot topic among many of the 2008 presidential aspirants.