Times sure have changed, haven't they?
Now the former Massachusetts governor and presidential contender looks like a guy who disagrees with Democrats on most things, but is sorta-kinda reasonable on some stuff. He also doesn't insult women and minorities on social media.
So it's not surprising that Romney, an on-and-off critic of one Donald J. Trump, would launch his bid for Utah's open U.S. Senate seat with an assertion of Republican values according to him, complete with ever-so-polite digs at tax reform that drives up the deficit and draconian immigration policies.
"Utah has a lot to teach the politicians in Washington," Romney said in the video. “Utah has balanced its budgets. Washington is buried in debt… Utah welcomes legal immigrants from around the world. Washington sends immigrants a message of exclusion. And on Utah's Capitol Hill, people treat each other with respect."
As is the case with quite a few members of Congress, Republican Senator Orrin Hatch is leaving his seat after his current term. He's in his eighties, but probably the bigger factor here is that he has aligned himself with Trump and thus isn't polling too well. After all, if the Democrats could flip a Senate seat in Alabama, they can probably flip one anywhere.
Romney has been one of Trump's fiercest Republican critics.
In March of 2016, he called the then-candidate a "phony" and a "fraud."
"This is the very brand of anger that has led other nations into the abyss,” Romney said then. "Here's what I know: Donald Trump is a phony, a fraud. His promises are as worthless as a degree from Trump University."
Last November, Romney was among quite a few Republicans who called on Roy Moore, a Trump proxy, to drop out of the Alabama U.S. Senate race after allegations of past sexual misconduct with teenage girls spewed forth.
But the two have also feigned an alliance in the past.
In February of 2012, Trump endorsed Romney via a flashy Las Vegas press conference. (Side note: the endorsement seemed so irrelevant at that time that quite a few political observers begrudgingly covered it, including CL.)
Then, after Trump was elected president, there was that painfully awkward photo op of the two having dinner. Romney was said to be on the list of potential nominees for secretary of state, and we all know how that ended.
It's tough to say how easy of a time Romney will have getting elected statewide in Utah. Again, it's a pretty Republican state, and Republicans are known — these days more than ever — for eschewing moderate candidates in primaries for batshit ones.
Plus there's the whole blue wave thing, which may or may not be a thing in Utah. If the Democrats nominate a formidable candidate, the race would be super-interesting to watch (and not unlike the St. Petersburg mayor's race, both candidates will basically be running against Trump).
All that said, Romney has access to jaw-dropping amounts of money, both his own and that of allied PACs, and has about as much name recognition a candidate can have without being president — or an eccentric-heir-turned-reality-show-star.
This article appears in Feb 15-22, 2018.