Thread: Romney tears into GOP for not criticizing Trump

Romney tears into GOP for not criticizing Trump

Teddy Schleifer
By Theodore Schleifer, CNN

Updated 8:03 PM ET, Sat June 11, 2016

Park City, Utah (CNN)Mitt Romney on Saturday torched Donald Trump and the Republicans who failed to stop his climb to the party's presidential nomination, saying the current fortunes of the GOP are "breaking my heart."

Romney's condemnation, made here at the Stein Eriksen Lodge before hundreds of his donors and business partners, highlighted the ill will between the last two GOP nominees for president.

The former Massachusetts governor harshly criticized Republican candidates such as Ohio Gov. John Kasich and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, as well as super PACs such as Jeb Bush's well-funded Right to Rise group, for not stopping Trump in the primary. The two candidates largely avoided attacking Trump for much of their campaigns. He made the comments before many of the individuals who had helped fund those very candidates.

"Ted Cruz was basically praising Donald Trump through the whole process until the very end," Romney told CNN's Wolf Blitzer, who was hosting the discussion. As for Kasich, "he was in well after the time there was no possible pathway to becoming the nominee."

Romney's broadsides were warmly received by many of his allies, earning a 21-second round of applause when he wondered aloud about the future of the GOP.

"I find this so troubling, and I know a lot of folks are saying, 'Mitt just get off your high horse on this and get behind the guy.' But these things are personal. I love this country. I love the founders. I love what this country is built upon and its values and seeing this is breaking my heart," Romney said. The 2012 nominee was visibly emotional and appeared to tear up when making the remarks.

Yet Romney still preached tolerance. He declined to criticize previous speakers, including House Speaker Paul Ryan and Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus, who pitched Trump to the well-heeled crowd this weekend, and said he would not try and sway the GOP elites assembled here to abandon their nominee. And he recognized as legitimate the notion that some Republicans may choose to back Trump solely to prevent Hillary Clinton from appointing Supreme Court nominees, calling it a "darn good reason."

The day before, Romney had told Blitzer in an interview that he worried about the moral fraying of society should Trump become the nominee: "I don't want to see trickle-down racism," he said.

And before the crowd here on Saturday, Romney used another former president as an example of how society is shaped by his example.

"Bill Clinton's dalliances in the White House affected the sexual inclinations and practices of a generation, and probably beyond," he said.

But Romney was also challenged by some questioners who were trying to whip up support for Trump. Romney has pledged to never support Trump, and many of his fund-raisers feel similarly.

"We've got to get behind him," one man implored the crowd. "These are the cards we've been dealt."

Romney was also pressed as to why he accepted the endorsement of Trump during his 2012 presidential run given Trump's zest for "birtherism," or the idea that President Barack Obama was not born into the United States and is thus ineligible to be president. Romney said he saw Trump's comments as "nutty" but not disqualifying.

Now, the pair are using one another as political foils, with Trump blasting his GOP predecessor. On Saturday in Tampa, Florida, he called Romney someone who "let us down" and writing on Twitter that Romney "choked like a dog."

The former Massachusetts governor brushed off the attacks.

"I have dogs. I don't know dogs choking," Romney said to laughs. "That's an insult that somehow doesn't work."
Romney did, though, express some regret over his failed 2012 campaign, saying that he, like Bush, had failed to connect his economic vision with average, middle-class voters. But for now, Romney said he was trying to remain focused on the future, though he has now ruled out serving in the next White House.

"Had there been a President Bush or a President (Marco) Rubio or a President (Scott) Walker, I might've been happy to be a part of their administration," Romney said.

http://www.cnn.com/2016/06/11/politi...-donald-trump/

Mitt Romney is such a loser. He tears into Republicans for not criticizing Trump. Hey Mitt, for your information, Republicans like Donald Trump, that's why we voted for him, that's why we support him, that's why Republican Trump Supporters are ALL IN FOR TRUMP TO WIN. We want Trump, we want his vitality, his ideas, his business skills, his heart, his mind, his policies, his commitment, his loyalty to the American People and his desire to fix our country and make it great again.

Your game is over, Mitt. When the only people interested in your crap are Democrats trying to defeat Trump, you're not only a 3 time loser, you're a sore loser, a jealous little man who has lived the special life so long that you despise the idea that a large part of that 47% you think aren't worth your time helped pick a candidate you actually envy.

No one wants you at the Convention. No one wants you in the news. No one wants you attacking our candidate of the people. No one wants your endorsement. No one wants to even have to look at you again or listen to your phony self-serving pompous back-stabbing voice.

You're taken the Romney name, which didn't have all that much going for it to begin with, and turned it to dirt.

Romney is like a jealous teenager. Won't give it up. Trump is right Romney is a looser and a poor one at that. Give it up Romney we are sick of listening to you and your BS.

Both of these guys are from the Northeast. I doubt that there would be THAT much difference in policy. Trump seems to have his finger on the pulse of globalization, and I hope he can follow through with his insight.

Romney's day in the sun has passed. Time for him to ride quietly into the sunset never to be heard from again. Of course I say that with the full disclosure that I supported him against Obama and I'd do it again.

Originally Posted by MW

Romney's day in the sun has passed. Time for him to ride quietly into the sunset never to be heard from again. Of course I say that with the full disclosure that I supported him against Obama and I'd do it again.

Lately he has been acting like a spoiled child that didn't get his way. I agree about supporting him against Obama MW.

Jun 12 2016, 2:02 am ET
Mitt Romney Reflects on How Donald Trump's Comments Are 'Breaking My Heart'

by Leigh Ann Caldwell

PARK CITY, Utah — Mitt Romney once again espoused harsh words for Republican presumptive nominee Donald Trump, associating him with racism, misogyny, xenophobia and violence.

At his annual Experts and Enthusiasts, or E2 Summit, on Saturday, Romney spared no insult at Trump, who he said he cannot support because of the "example" he sends, adding that Trump's antics are breaking his heart.

"These things are personal," an emotional Romney said to sustained applause during a session where he was interviewed by CNN's Wolf Blitzer.

"I love this country. I love the founders. I love what this country is built upon and it's values, and seeing this is breaking my heart," said the former Massachusetts governor and GOP presidential nominee in 2012.

Romney was speaking in friendly territory to about 250 of his friends and supporters in Park City, Utah, many of whom donated large amounts of money to his presidential efforts against Barack Obama.

Some of the attendees at the three-day retreat at the five-star Stein Erickson Lodge have decided to get behind Trump.

Jerry Moyes, a "truck driver" and "friend of Mitt's," stood during the Q&A session to urge the attendees to get behind the presumptive Republican nominee.

"I think this group, the most important thing for the Republican Party is the Supreme Court. That's one, two and three. And we've won on that. He's put out a list that everyone can agree with," Moyes said.

Romney said he "respects" Republicans who back Trump because the Supreme Court is the most important issue. But, he added, "I stand by what I said about Trump."

Trump appeals "to racism, xenophobia, misogyny, violence. I just can't do that," Romney said, calling it "trickle down racism."

The real estate mogul renewed his attacks against Romney during a campaign rally Saturday in Tampa, Florida.

"I watched this poor sad Mitt Romney this morning. He suffers from misogynist. I don't think he knows what misogynist is," Trump told the crowd.

Trump added: "But then when I heard he was gonna run again and I was thinking about running, I let him know. I said the guys a stone cold loser, he choked and when you're a choker, you can never give a choker a second change. It's too important. A choker is a choker."

A reflective Romney pointed out the mistakes that other Republicans in this year's presidential race, including Jeb Bush and senators Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, made during the primary contest.

"I think it was an extraordinarily large mistake on their part not to go after the front-runner from the very beginning and go after him hard," Romney said. "You don't box down ... you punch up, and whoever knocks out the front-runner becomes the front-runner."

He also said he told Ohio Gov. John Kasich that he should have thought about exiting the race sooner than he did: "It was a divided not-Trump vote until the very end."

So could Romney have done better this year?

"I would have been just another establishment person," he said, before adding that he would have been "more aggressive and more assertive."

Romney looked back at his own shortcomings from his 2012 presidential race, and referred to an exit poll question that year where only 18 percent of respondents said they thought he cared about people like them.

People responded that "'I don't think he's fighting for me. I don't think he understands my problem,'" Romney said.

"That's the whole reason I was running," he added. "I wasn't running because of rich people. I was running to help the average American. We as Republicans fail to communicate their message that affects them."

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016...ey-warren.html

Mitt, if you loved this country, you would be one of Donald Trump's biggest supporters instead of one of our party's biggest most shameless liars.

Donald Trump is not a racist, and you know that, yet you lie on television and at "gatherings" trying to portray him falsely as a racist. When was the last time or the first time for that matter that you had black Americans sleep in your house and carry them fresh towels and drinks to ensure they were comfortable and having a great time? Donald Trump has done that since forever. When was the last time you refused to join a fancy club right across the street from your home because they refused to admit Jews and Blacks? How many black and Jews did you have at your little "gathering" in Park City?

Donald Trump is not a misogynist, and you know that, yet you lie on television and at "gatherings" trying to portray him falsely as one. He's not a xenophobe either.

What you are is a False Prophet Globalist, hiding behind the skirts and suffering of minorities and women trying to advance your globalist policies to defeat a candidate that you know has an excellent chance of becoming President and who will secure our borders, deport illegal aliens, enforce US immigration law and fix our bad trade deals.

You know he'll build the wall, you know he'll end free trade treason, you know he'll put Americans back to work at the good jobs he'll create as well as the ones he'll bring back home. You know he'll cut the hell out of this outrageous no bid contract spending. You know he'll save Social Security, take care of the Vets and rebuild our military. You know he'll fix NATO, in fact his statements have already started that process, and you know he'll make peace in the world and improve our relations with important countries like Russia, China, Japan, Korea and Europe. You know he'll develop a plan to knock out ISIS without committing US troops to a ground war.

This is why you hate Donald Trump. You hate him because you know he's the better man, the superior candidate, and that he'll fix this disaster and clean-up this mess in ways that you didn't even know needed attention. He's out-thought you, Mitt, and it's killing you. My advice before you become a total blubbering crying idiot just confirming that you didn't have the heart, soul, ideas or temperament to be President of the United States is sit down and shut up, then call a shrink for some help.

See what you have over-looked because you actually aren't very bright at the end of the day is Americans, yes, we the people, have already been accused of racism and bigotry and xenophobia and worse because we want to secure the borders, stop illegal immigration and stop this free trade treason. We've already been through exactly what you're trying to put Trump through, using a Phony Race Card to try to defeat his policies by attacking his character.

Well, let me tell you, Mitt. That failed Democrat Strategy didn't work with the American People, because THAT DOG WONT HUNT, so it sure as hell isn't going to work with our chosen Republican candidate for President of the United States who supports our views on immigration and trade and won more votes in a Republican Primary than any candidate in US history.

Oh and tell Meg, she needs a do-over. She's looking absolutely awful lately and with all that money she's got she really ought to be looking better.

Trump's no-apologies campaign tour hits hard on Romney, Warren
Published June 12, 2016 FoxNews.com

Donald Trump on Saturday kicked his unapologetic presidential campaign into high gear -- saying he won’t apologize for his personal attacks on Sen. Elizabeth Warren and extending his feud with GOP establishment leader Mitt Romney.

“The guy’s a stone cold loser, a choker,” Trump, the presumptive GOP presidential nominee, said about Romney at a rally in Tampa, Fla.

Also on Saturday, Romney, who this weekend is holding an ideas summit in Utah, suggested that Trump’s misogynistic and racially insensitive remarks have opened the door for generations of Americans to engage in similar behavior.

Trump told the crowd of about 5,000 in Tampa that Romney, the GOP presidential nominee who lost to President Obama in 2012, “doesn’t even know what a misogynist is.”

Trump and Warren, a leading progressive voice in the Democratic Party, have attacked each other increasingly in recent weeks, with the exchanges appearing to intensify now that Clinton has become the party’s presumptive presidential nominee.

On Thursday, Warren endorsed Clinton and accused Trump of “race baiting” and using “racism” toward the federal judge of Mexican heritage who is presiding over a civil fraud suit against the Trump University real estate school.

Trump has suggested the American-born judge won’t give him a fair trial, considering Trump’s disparaging comments about Mexican immigrants.

Trump has not apologized to the judge, despite widespread calls for him to do so.

On Saturday, Trump sarcastically suggested he’ll apologize for referring to Warren as “Pocahontas,” in response to Warren apparently attempting to use Native American heritage to further her academic and political career.

Trump said he’d apologize because his name calling “is an insult to Pocahontas, not Warren.”

Romney, at his summit Saturday in Park City, likened the impact of Trump's words to former President Bill Clinton’s sexual “dalliances in White House,” which he said have “impacted generations.”

“Now we have kids in elementary schools joking about the size of their hands,” Romney said about one Trump comment, in a question-and-answer session with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer.

Romney, nevertheless, credited Bill Clinton with correctly articulating that a candidate’s views on jobs and the economy largely decide elections when Clinton said: “People vote with their pocketbooks.”

He appeared to give a mixed message about how he’ll deal with Trump through November, saying he’s not going to spend the next six months arguing his point of view.

“I’m not going to be an attack dog,” said Romney, who then made clear that he’ll call out Trump for comments with which he does not agree.

Trump, who also held a rally Saturday in Moon Township, Pa., told supporters that former GOP House Speaker Rep. Newt Gingrich, Alabama GOP Sen. Jeff Sessions and former Secretary of State Condleezza Rice appear popular choices to be his running mate.

He dismissed Clinton’s recent line of attack that he lacks the temperament to be president and said, “She’s got the bad temperament.”

Trump said the recent tell-all book by a former Secret Service agent referred to the former first lady as a “total mess.”

“We need strong temperament,” Trump said. “I have a strong temperament.”


http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016...ey-warren.html

“Now we have kids in elementary schools joking about the size of their hands,” Romney said about one Trump comment, in a question-and-answer session with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer.

That's because of the media and Marco Rubio, not Trump. Trump never brought up the size of anything, the media made fun of Trump's hands, even though a WaPo reporter took the time to conduct a measurement study, (yes, Philip Bump, actually did this) and confirmed that there was nothing wrong with the size of Trump's hands or fingers, they measured proportional for a man of his height. Marco Rubio when he decided to go after Trump took issue with Trump's hands in a national debate and late at a rally took issue with his private parts relating to the size of his hands.

Trump didn't start any of this, Mitt. The more you say the more stupid you are. Just sit down and shut up. You're not a Republican, you're not even acting like an American, you're acting like some weirdo globalist with psych issues.