Shortly after the 2022 midterms, Sen. Mitt Romney was asked whether he could support Donald Trump’s comeback bid. “Absolutely not,” the Utah Republican said, adding that he’d oppose the former president in both the primaries and the general election.
“It’s not just because he loses,” Romney said. “It’s also [that] he’s simply not a person who ought to have the reins of the government of the United States.”
A year later, the Utahan went further. “I will not be voting for former President Trump. I must admit that I find sexual assault to be a line I will not cross in the people I select to be my president,” the senator said, pointing to the E. Jean Carroll case.
As the 2024 election cycle was taking shape, Romney made little effort to hide his contempt for his party’s presidential nominee, even marveling publicly at Trump’s willingness to lie.
With all of this in mind, is there any chance that the retiring lawmaker will endorse Trump’s opponent? Evidently not. As my MSNBC colleague Clarissa-Jan Lim reported:
Sen. Mitt Romney once again declined to say whether he’s voting for Kamala Harris in the election, suggesting that his reticence now will enable him to have some influence over the direction of the Republican Party in a hypothetical post-Trump future.
“I’ve made it very clear that I don’t want Donald Trump to be the next president of the United States,” Romney said at an event this week. “I want to continue to have a voice in the Republican Party following this election. I think there’s a good chance that the Republican Party is going to need to be rebuilt or reoriented.”
The senator went on to say, “I believe I will have more influence in the party by virtue of saying it as I’ve said it.”
There are a couple of problems with this. For one, it’s difficult to justify Romney saying he wants Trump to lose while simultaneously balking at endorsing the only candidate standing between Trump and the White House. If the Utahan needs further clarification on this, I’d refer him to former Republican Liz Cheney’s recent comments.
For another, Romney might very well want to have “a voice” and “influence” in GOP politics going forward, but Trump clearly intends to prevent that from happening. Trump: Aren’t you glad we’re getting Mitt Romney the hell out of the Republican Party? pic.twitter.com/aJ9pC7CpXl At his latest campaign rally in Pennsylvania, the former president not only referred to the senator as “stupid,” Trump added, “How about him? How do you like having him as a partner? Mitt Romney? Aren’t we glad we are getting him the hell out of here?” The audience, predictably, cheered with approval. There’s nothing wrong with a retiring politician looking for ways to maintain his influence as he heads toward the exits, but if Romney is serious about making a real difference, he’d be better off extending support to Trump’s rival instead of looking for ways to steer a Trump-led GOP.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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