Mitt Romney has been a GOP presidential nominee, governor of Massachusetts and is a senator from Utah. But President Donald Trump says that Romney’s opposition to him has ruined his future with the Republican Party.
“Romney couldn’t be elected dogcatcher in Utah right now,” the president said to laughs and cheers during an election rally Thursday in Latrobe, Pa.
Trump said Utah “is the home of our worst senator.” He clarified, “That’s Mitt Romney. Mike Lee is doing excellent. I didn’t want to get them confused.”
Romney, of course, was the only Republican senator to vote to remove Trump in the impeachment trial.
“It’s very personal when they do that,” Trump said at the rally.
He said all other Republicans in Congress stuck with him on impeachment — and Romney essentially gave him half a vote by supporting only one of the articles of impeachment, abuse of power. “That was Romney, what a beaut,” Trump said.
The president also criticized Romney for marching recently with Black Lives Matter protesters.
“Remember he was walking with the Black Lives Matter, saying, ‘Yes, I’m a member of Black Lives Matter,’” Trump said. “He had a lot of mask on, I’ll tell you that.”
Romney’s office declined comment Friday about the president’s latest attacks. Recent polls have shown that a majority of Utah voters approve of Romney’s job performance.
Trump’s comments came after The New York Times found this week that Romney was the only GOP senator willing to speak out about a series of the president’s inflammatory comments this week — including wrongly blaming Black Lives Matter for a New York subway attack and saying protests against police violence were a secret “coup attempt” by anarchists.
Romney said then that the president’s comments and tweets “are simply jaw-dropping.”
Romney also has been a sharp critic recently over other Trump actions against protesters and on his foreign policy. Trump in April acknowledged a grudge against Romney as he left him off an economic recovery task force, saying, “I really don’t want his advice.”
Romney did not vote for Trump four years ago, voting for his wife instead. He has said he will not vote for Trump this year but has not yet said whom he will support.
Trump was not the only Utahn attacked by Trump at the rally in Pennsylvania. The president also went after Evan McMullin, the independent who ran for president four years ago.
“What a loser,” Trump said. He complained that polls suggested that McMullin might win in Utah, although he finished third. “Even Hillary [Clinton] beat him.”
Trump had trouble remembering McMullin’s name and said it was “McMuffin, I think, something like that,” and described the bald McMullin as “the guy with the shaved head.”
