Mitt Romney admits Trump will likely be the Republican presidential nominee in 2024 if he runs and calls him the ‘leader of the party’ – despite admitting he wouldn’t vote for him
- ‘It’s hard to imagine anything that would derail his support,’ said Romney
- ‘So if he wants to become the nominee in ‘24, I think he’s very likely to achieve that’
- ‘He’s the leader of the party, that’s clear … If he decides to run, he will be the nominee,’ said Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley
- Comments come after Trump-backed J.D. Vance won Ohio GOP primary
Sen. Mitt Romney is predicting Trump will be the GOP’s nominee in 2024 if he runs.
The Utah Republican – who twice voted to impeach former President Donald Trump – made the statement following the victory by Trump-backed candidate J.D. Vance in the Ohio Republican primary for Senate.
He will succeed Sen. Rob Portman, a more conventional establishment Republican who nevertheless immediately threw his support to Vance following his win Tuesday.
‘I don’t delude myself into thinking I have a big swath of the Republican Party,’ said Romney, who was the party’s presidential nominee in 2012 and was defeated by President Barack Obama.
‘It’s hard to imagine anything that would derail his support,’ he said, in comments reported by Axios. ‘So if he wants to become the nominee in ‘24, I think he’s very likely to achieve that,’ Romney said.
‘He’s the leader of the party, that’s clear … If he decides to run, he will be the nominee,’ Romney said.
Utah Sen. Mitt Romney is one of the few Senate Republicans who has been willing to take on former President Donald Trump. He called Trump ‘the leader of the party’ and said ‘if he decides to run, he will be the nominee’
Romeny’s comments are hardly out of the mainstream when it comes to political observers.
A ABC News / Washington Post poll this week found 60 per cent of Republicans and GOP-leaning independents think Republican leaders should follow Trump, with just 34 per cent saying they should lead the party in a different direction. That comes in a survey where a 52 percent overall majority said Trump should be charged with crimes over January 6.
There have been other demonstrations of Trump’s power through his sway in primaries and in the way other leading Republicans have deferred to him.
Trump through his support to Vance in the three-way primary, and his son Donald Trump, Jr. campaigned with Vance. Trump-alligned tech investor Peter Thiel poured millions into the race.
Trump has been using his influence in primaries and trying to take down opponents within the GOP
Romney’s comments come a day after the victory of Trump-backed J.D. Vance in the Ohio Republican primary for Senate
‘If he decides to run, he will be the nominee,’ Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) said of Trump
House Minority Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) can be heard on tape two days after Jan. 6th talking about use of the 25th Amendment to remove Trump from office. McCarthy said it takes too long
Vance repeatedly praised Trump after condemning him in the past, and took up his attacks on government officials he called ‘corrupt.’
Immediately after his win, Portman, who had backed rival Jane Timken, said he supported Vance’s reelection.
Agreeing with Romney’s take was Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), who was photographed raising his fist to protesters outside the Capitol on Jan. 6th.
‘He’s the leader of the party, that’s clear … If he decides to run, he will be the nominee,’ he said, Politico reported. Hawley is himself considered a potential candidate for president.
Romney said last year he wouldn’t vote for Trump if he is the GOP nominee.
But Senate Minority Leader said in February he would ‘absolutely’ support Trump if he is the nominee.
That came despite McConnell accusing Trump of ‘disgraceful dereliction of duty’ on Jan. 6.
On Wednesday President Joe Biden called MAGA ‘the most extreme political organization in American history,’ White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Biden would continue to make the case against it around the country in the coming weeks.
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