CNN
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Sen. Mitt Romney, a frequent critic of Donald Trump and soon to retire from Congress, supported criticism of the president-elect’s character, but Trump and his MAGA movement now define the Republican Party. said.
“As you know, I’m not a supporter of President Trump. I didn’t support him in this election. Last time he ran, I didn’t run either. Mainly because of personality issues. ,” the Utah Republican, a 2012 Republican presidential candidate, told CNN’s Jake Tapper in a wide-ranging interview on Sunday’s “State of the Union.”
But Mr. Romney acknowledged that Mr. Trump is in control of the party he once led.
“MAGA is the Republican Party, and Donald Trump is the Republican Party of today,” he said.
When asked about his sustained criticism of Trump since the president-elect’s first election in 2016, Romney described himself as “somewhat blunt” and said Trump was “wrong for the country and wrong for our country.” “It’s wrong for the party as well,” he said. “We wouldn’t win,” he said, “but I was wrong about that.”
“I think most people don’t agree with me, and I’m going to live with that. I’m just focusing on things that are different than what the public is currently thinking.” he said.
But Romney insisted the president-elect deserves a “chance” to return to the White House and follow through on what he promised.
“I agree with him on a lot of policy points. I disagree with him on some things,” Romney said of Trump. “But I’m like, okay, let’s give him a chance to do what he said he was going to do and see how it goes.”
Asked about the fact that Trump had made some unconventional Cabinet appointments, Romney said it was “an unusual group of individuals, not people I would have chosen,” but that Trump He said that since he had won the election, he had the “right” to make cabinet appointments.
Romney says Trump administration is ‘not the kind of person I would choose’ But I lost. he won. ”
However, Romney said, “The Senate has a responsibility to make sure that these people are legitimate and that there are no people who are a disgrace to them or to the country.” He said that there is.
Elected to the Senate in 2018, Romney has become known as a unique voice in the chamber willing to confront his own party. Romney was the only Senate Republican found guilty of abuse of power in President Trump’s first impeachment trial. In 2021, he was one of seven Senate Republicans who voted on a bipartisan basis to convict President Trump of inciting the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol.
Asked what impact he thought the Jan. 6 attacks would have, Romney said he thought it would be seen as “a very dark day in American history.” “It’s unfortunate that there are people in the MAGA world who are trying to hide the paper,” he said. But I don’t think that’s possible. ”
But Romney also said he thinks the American system will hold up for years to come. “When people are faced with the reality of what’s at stake, they want to protect the roots of freedom. I guess so.”
President Trump and his allies have signaled that he could attack the Justice Department against political opponents in his second term.
Asked if he was worried that he or his family would be targeted by Trump’s political retribution, Romney said: “No, actually, I’ve been pretty clean all my life.” I answered. I’m not particularly worried about a criminal investigation. ”
“By the way, I don’t know to what extent the president’s statements are an exaggeration,” he said, adding, “I think President Trump is likely to try to focus on the future.”
Romney: Despite Trump’s victory, January 6 will be remembered as a ‘very dark day in American history’
The Utah Republican also had words of praise for Vice President-elect J.D. Vance, calling the Ohio senator “smart” and predicting he will be the Republican nominee in 2028.
“If you were to ask me who the candidate would be in 2028, I would say J.D. Vance, okay?” Romney said. “He’s smart, he’s well-spoken, he’s part of the MAGA movement.” He downplayed past criticisms of Vance as “old” comments, saying, “We’re not going to rehash history and we’ve been working together for many years.” The Senate has since been together. ”
Reflecting on the results of the recent presidential election, Romney said Trump deserves “praise” for drawing working-class voters from the Democratic Party to the Republican Party.
“The Republican Party has become the party of working-class, middle-class voters, and I have to give Donald Trump credit for taking that away from the Democratic Party,” he said.
Romney said “my party is going to have to pivot” after some voters shifted from Democrats to Republicans, but added: “It’s the Democrats who have the problem.” said.
He also reflects on his long career as a politician on the national stage, including his failed bid against Barack Obama in the 2012 presidential election, and how he went from being the focus of high-profile attacks by Democrats while running for president. He also reflected on how he came to be praised by the Democratic Party. He praised his willingness to break with Trump when he was a senator.
“When I look back on the campaign and think about the mistakes that I and my campaign staff made and the anxiety that came with the little things, those things became a big part of it,” he said. “It’s kind of funny how it looks old-fashioned when you look back on it.”
Mr. Romney said Mr. Obama was “in some sense wise to come after me and say, “This is a wealthy businessman, and we’re going to label him as a plutocrat who doesn’t care about people.” ” he said. He aligned himself with that story, put it out there before I could really respond effectively, and he succeeded in doing that. ”
Mr. Romney has brushed aside questions about how he would like history to remember him, downplaying his accomplishments as “a footnote to people who read ancient history,” but he said his family He said he wanted people to remember him.
“To my family, as someone who stood up for what I believed in, was unashamed of my fundamental beliefs, loved my country, and did what I believed was right to preserve the greatest nation on earth.” I want you to remember me,” he said. .
CNN’s Clare Foran and Morgan Rimmer contributed to this report.
