Utah Republican Sen. Mitt Romney, a longtime critic of President-elect Donald Trump, on CNN on Sunday “praised” Trump for transforming the Republican Party with the Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement. did.
Romney has long been a vocal critic of Trump, writing an op-ed for the Washington Post in 2019 questioning the former president's “character.” On Sunday's “State of the Union,” host Jake Tapper asked Romney if he thought MAGA was “now the Republican Party,” or if there was a possibility of a post-Trump Republican Party.
“Oh, MAGA is the Republican Party, and Donald Trump is the Republican Party of today. If you ask me who the nominee will be in 2028, I think it will be this. [Vice President-elect] J.D. Vance. he's smart I spoke well. It's part of the MAGA movement,” Romney said.
Mr. Tapper then interjected, emphasizing Mr. Romney's previous criticism of Mr. Vance, saying he “couldn't have more respect for anyone” than Mr. Vance. Mr. Romney quickly hit back, noting that he did not intend to “rehash history” before explaining why Democrats should be concerned about their own base. (Related article: 'The View' co-host wonders if President Trump is really extreme after all)
“I'm not going to rehash history. We've been working together in the Senate ever since, and that's the Republican Party,” Romney said. “Do we need to change parties? Look, the Republican Party has become the party of working-class, middle-class voters. I have to give credit to Donald Trump for taking that away from the Democrats. No. The Democrats got rid of him. All right? The US and Elizabeth Warren factions are joining in on this, defunding the police and transgender people – excuse me, biological men in women's sports. Many of the middle class people fled the Democratic Party and are now Republicans.
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“One of the challenges in my party is that our policies are not necessarily aligned with the interests of our voters. So there will have to be a change of direction in my party. Democrats,” Romney added. “I don't know how they're going to recover, and I'm not going to tell them what to do, because I start to have the ability to do that. But they're going to recover from the base. That means people in unions are leaving the Democratic Party and voting for the Republican Party. Democrats are seen not as wealthy people, but as college professors and woke scolds. It is not a characteristic.
After the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, Romney was one of seven Republicans to vote to convict Trump in his Senate impeachment trial. Mr. Romney defended his position, saying he believed trying to “rig an election to stay in power” was a “high crime and misdemeanor,” adding, “I did it. “I had no choice but to state that conclusion under oath,” he added. ”
But with Romney winning both the Electoral College and the popular vote, he is joining a growing list of Trump critics who are more willing to work with him. Shortly after President Trump's election victory, MSNBC hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski announced their first in-person visit with Trump at Mar-a-Lago in years. Despite repeatedly comparing Trump to former Nazi leader Adolf Hitler and accusing him of being a fascist dictator, organizers expressed a desire to “resume communications.”
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