UT-SEN 2024: Romney retiring

[Senator Incitatus]

It is darkly comic, exhausting to watch some of my political allies celebrate this when the Romney child benefit bill is something they'd have worshipped had it been proposed in some Catholic backwater country.

I will be sorry to see him go, but his position did become untenable after the first impeachment. I'd really liked to have seen how he'd have done as Secretary of State; he always had a statesman's mind. He was just a little too late to catch the wave.

[ηєω ƒяσηтιєя]

Good riddance. His replacement will vote the same way on almost every issue. Mittens just pretended like there was nothing he could do to stop Trump, whereas his replacement will actively encourage Trump. So six of one, half a dozen of the other.

Uh, Romney literally voted to convict and remove Trump from office twice (the only Republican to do so). So, what are you talking about?

[Pres Mike]

Please, run for President

Biden vs Romney 2024

Imagine telling people that in 2013!!!

[President Johnson]

Disappointing. Mittens was one of the last voices of reason in the Republican caucus, despite all differences on other political issues.

[Vosem]

He should've run in 2016 instead of Jeb. (My guess is that he would've thrown the nomination to Cruz rather than winning, but between him and Ted they could've boxed Trump out of the first four contests and polarized the race between the two of them.)

Anyway, this is a Utah primary and so we have to consider the possibility that the winner will be some random academic or staffer that no one has ever heard of (or even the possibility that the entire field will be random academics and staffers that no one has ever heard of), but the obvious immediate frontrunner is Sean Reyes, who has been known to have Senate ambitions for a while and was exploring challenging Romney in a primary.

[Tekken_Guy]

He should've run in 2016 instead of Jeb. (My guess is that he would've thrown the nomination to Cruz rather than winning, but between him and Ted they could've boxed Trump out of the first four contests and polarized the race between the two of them.)

Anyway, this is a Utah primary and so we have to consider the possibility that the winner will be some random academic or staffer that no one has ever heard of (or even the possibility that the entire field will be random academics and staffers that no one has ever heard of), but the obvious immediate frontrunner is Sean Reyes, who has been known to have Senate ambitions for a while and was exploring challenging Romney in a primary.

Reyes is not the frontrunner. That would be Trent Staggs or Brad Wilson.

[Kung Fu Kenny]

Good riddance. His replacement will vote the same way on almost every issue. Mittens just pretended like there was nothing he could do to stop Trump, whereas his replacement will actively encourage Trump. So six of one, half a dozen of the other.

Uh, Romney literally voted to convict and remove Trump from office twice (the only Republican to do so). So, what are you talking about?

Yeah, waiting until a conviction is put to a vote and then voting for it knowing full well it's not going to pass is the only thing a US Senator can do to block an entire legislative agenda. Obviously he couldn't have put partisan politics to the side, taken a stand and said "I'm not going to enable this President in any way because I believe he is fundamentally corrupt" and effectively caucused with Democrats until Trump was out of office. He's retiring after one term anyway, so it's not like doing that would have been any more or less impactful on his decision to run for re-election.

If he really believed Trump was unfit for office and a threat to our country, he would not have voted to implement his policies. He would not have parroted the same talking points about "socialism" because he knows full damn well that Democrats are not socialists. He would not have limited his actions to reactions if he actually wanted to stop Trump. He just did what was politically expedient and it still won him no respect from the majority of his constituency. He's useless. He went about business as usual in the most unusual Presidency ever.

[Minnesota Mike]

I can't wait for his biography with McKay Coppins comes out this fall. Supposedly it names names of the Republican Senators who praise Trump in public and and rip him in private. A lengthy excerpt from The Atlantic.

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2023/11/mitt-romney-retiring-senate-trump-mcconnell/675306/

[Senator Incitatus]

Good riddance. His replacement will vote the same way on almost every issue. Mittens just pretended like there was nothing he could do to stop Trump, whereas his replacement will actively encourage Trump. So six of one, half a dozen of the other.

Uh, Romney literally voted to convict and remove Trump from office twice (the only Republican to do so). So, what are you talking about?

...

If he really believed Trump was unfit for office and a threat to our country, he would not have voted to implement his policies. ...

This just doesn't make any sense at all; it's a child's mimicry of adult courage. The policies he voted for were not "Donald Trump's policies"—they were the shared policies of Trump and a Republican Congress, almost certainly would have been signed by Mike Pence as well, and had nothing to do with fitness to serve.

[xavier110]

For all his quirks (and for all the lashings the Obama team gave him, portraying him as some Batman villain in 2012), Romney fundamentally seems to be a decent person. He appears to be relatively normal, given his background and wealth. I’m sad he’s leaving us so we’ll have to settle with even more craven DC politicians.

[President Johnson]

For all his quirks (and for all the lashings the Obama team gave him, portraying him as some Batman villain in 2012), Romney fundamentally seems to be a decent person. He appears to be relatively normal, given his background and wealth. I’m sad he’s leaving us so we’ll have to settle with even more craven DC politicians.

Agreed, he's definitely a good man, even when you disagree with him on stuff like healthcare, taxes and deregulation. Also, both as governor and senator, he was able to work across the aisle and get things done. Remember that he initially passed Romneycare, and in the senate was a key player to get the bipartisan infrastructure law and electoral count reform act passed. He also showed some backbone in voting to convict Trump in both impeachments. He also voted against a Trump nominated judge that was on record supporting that birther nonsense in public.

I never thought I would praise this guy, given how I disliked him in 2012.

[Kung Fu Kenny]

Good riddance. His replacement will vote the same way on almost every issue. Mittens just pretended like there was nothing he could do to stop Trump, whereas his replacement will actively encourage Trump. So six of one, half a dozen of the other.

Uh, Romney literally voted to convict and remove Trump from office twice (the only Republican to do so). So, what are you talking about?

...

If he really believed Trump was unfit for office and a threat to our country, he would not have voted to implement his policies. ...

This just doesn't make any sense at all; it's a child's mimicry of adult courage. The policies he voted for were not "Donald Trump's policies"—they were the shared policies of Trump and a Republican Congress, almost certainly would have been signed by Mike Pence as well, and had nothing to do with fitness to serve.

Yes. Exactly. Which is why rejecting those policies would be an especially poignant way to tell Donald Trump specifically that he sucks and that he does not need to be the guy. By voting for them anyway, it reinforces the idea that those policies ARE Trump's policies because the Republican Party IS the party of Trump. Passing those policies while Trump is President only further normalizes him and gives fuel to the people who think they can control Trump just to get tax cuts and judges. Maybe sacrificing tax cuts and judges for a few years while the worst guy ever is in charge is a very principled, proactive way of saying that the issue is Trump specifically

[TPIG]

A sad day for the country. His voice of sanity, decency, and conscience will be sorely missed in the senate. God bless you, Mitt Romney.

[oldtimer]

MAJOR BREAKING: Romney not running for second term

https://twitter.com/senatorromney/status/1702013849707106380?s=46&t=XC6qQa4m...

He never had a chance to win the GOP primary, but at least he accepted the inevitable with grace at least for now.

[Warren 4 Secretary of Everything]

I can't wait for his biography with McKay Coppins comes out this fall. Supposedly it names names of the Republican Senators who praise Trump in public and and rip him in private. A lengthy excerpt from The Atlantic.

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2023/11/mitt-romney-retiring-senate-trump-mcconnell/675306/

I highly suggest reading through this excerpt. Romney is one of the most candid politicians I’ve seen, and my respect for him increased immensely after reading.

[Ricardian1485]

He was the first Senator in US history to vote to convict a president from his own party, he wasn't afraid to stand up against the extremist tide in the party, even if it destroyed his reputation, friendships, or political future.

People like him are the last ones trying to pull the Republican party back to what it once was. The Senate will be worse off without him.

[JMT]

https://twitter.com/benwinslow/status/1702053215679004685?s=46&t=-r8JGlJno4t...

[Holmes]

I don't care for him but his successor will be much worse so that's unfortunate.

[Shaula🏳️‍⚧️]

Called it.
Also WE ARE SO BACK!!!

[Shaula🏳️‍⚧️]

He should've run in 2016 instead of Jeb. (My guess is that he would've thrown the nomination to Cruz rather than winning, but between him and Ted they could've boxed Trump out of the first four contests and polarized the race between the two of them.)

Anyway, this is a Utah primary and so we have to consider the possibility that the winner will be some random academic or staffer that no one has ever heard of (or even the possibility that the entire field will be random academics and staffers that no one has ever heard of), but the obvious immediate frontrunner is Sean Reyes, who has been known to have Senate ambitions for a while and was exploring challenging Romney in a primary.

Reyes is not the frontrunner. That would be Trent Staggs or Brad Wilson.

Stages barely has any name recognition while Reyes is polling first and is likely to get the Trump endorsement.

[Tekken_Guy]

He should've run in 2016 instead of Jeb. (My guess is that he would've thrown the nomination to Cruz rather than winning, but between him and Ted they could've boxed Trump out of the first four contests and polarized the race between the two of them.)

Anyway, this is a Utah primary and so we have to consider the possibility that the winner will be some random academic or staffer that no one has ever heard of (or even the possibility that the entire field will be random academics and staffers that no one has ever heard of), but the obvious immediate frontrunner is Sean Reyes, who has been known to have Senate ambitions for a while and was exploring challenging Romney in a primary.

Reyes is not the frontrunner. That would be Trent Staggs or Brad Wilson.

Stages barely has any name recognition while Reyes is polling first and is likely to get the Trump endorsement.

Well, Reyes is out so it’s all moot anyway.

How about they guy who made Sound of Freedom?

[The Economy is Getting Worse]

He was the first Senator in US history to vote to convict a president from his own party, he wasn't afraid to stand up against the extremist tide in the party, even if it destroyed his reputation, friendships, or political future.

People like him are the last ones trying to pull the Republican party back to what it once was. The Senate will be worse off without him.

He's also supporting the impeachment of Biden. He's wrong on both Trump and Biden.

[Utah Neolib]

He should've run in 2016 instead of Jeb. (My guess is that he would've thrown the nomination to Cruz rather than winning, but between him and Ted they could've boxed Trump out of the first four contests and polarized the race between the two of them.)

Anyway, this is a Utah primary and so we have to consider the possibility that the winner will be some random academic or staffer that no one has ever heard of (or even the possibility that the entire field will be random academics and staffers that no one has ever heard of), but the obvious immediate frontrunner is Sean Reyes, who has been known to have Senate ambitions for a while and was exploring challenging Romney in a primary.

Reyes is not the frontrunner. That would be Trent Staggs or Brad Wilson.

Stages barely has any name recognition while Reyes is polling first and is likely to get the Trump endorsement.

Well, Reyes is out so it’s all moot anyway.

How about they guy who made Sound of Freedom?

There is absolutely no source saying that Reyes is out. Wikipedia says so but provides n explanation as of why. Brad Wilson is weirdly moderate and will get pushed out by a moderate and a MAGA populist. He simply can’t carve a lane out. Reyes is the FrontRunner and has MAGA money and name recognition. Staggs has some influential endorsements already and could spoil Reyes in favor of John Curtis who is strongly considering running and would be by far the least bad.

[Progressive Pessimist]

Am I actually going to miss Mitt f***ing Romney?

I still stand by how I voted in 2012 and how much of a sell-out to the Tea Party Romney appeared to me as, but when push came to shove and he was tested as his party sank into insanity, he was a voice of reason...mostly. Again, this is still by midern GOP standards especially since his successor will likely be worse by default.

[Rat]

I know it won't happen, but fingers crossed that Jon Huntsman comes out of retirement and runs for this seat.