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Sen. Mitt Romney, the Utah Republican, forcefully criticized the Trump administration's response to the coronavirus during a Tuesday Senate hearing and accused a Health and Human Services official of misleading the public about the US's record with testing for the virus. Romney pointed to Adm. Brett Giroir's statement — which reflects those made by President Donald Trump — that the US has tested twice the number of people per capita than South Korea has. But the assertion that the US's testing abilities are more robust than South Korea's makes no sense, given that the Asian nation ramped up testing far...

Simple arithmetic seems to be lost on the politicians, and that error is perpetuating a needless and counterproductive policy destroying our country. Politicians like Mitt Romney don’t seem to understand that the fact that there are so many infections actually makes the fatality rate of the virus remarkably low – a fact that should guide our policies going forward. The politicians keep referring to widespread outbreaks in prisons, meatpacking plants, and other semi- or fully confined areas with predominantly young populations. Then they refer to a relatively small number of fatalities anecdotally, as if this is the bubonic plague or...

Sen. Mitt Romney has proposed raising the wages of restaurant employees and other essential workers by $12 an hour through July as a way of raising their compensation above what they could collect in unemployment benefits and other forms of relief. Under the Utah Republican’s Patriot Pay Plan, employers would eat $3 of the increase, with the rest generated from a federal tax credit. For employees earning no more than $50,000 on an annualized basis, employers would get a refundable tax credit equal to $9 an hour, up to a maximum of $1,440 a month per employee.

After weeks of negative comments on how President Trump is handling the coronavirus crisis, presumptive Democratic presidential nominee former Vice-President Joe Biden has finally said what he would have done if he had been in office when the pandemic arose. "In addition to doing everything Trump has done, only faster and harder, I would have lowered the flag to half mast in honor of all those who died," Biden boasted. "I would have banned travel from China before anyone in the US got the virus. Then I would have immediately canceled all mass gatherings at sporting events, churches, concerts, and...

Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, proposed a pay raise for essential workers on Friday who are braving the front lines of the novel coronavirus outbreak. The temporary bonus, known as "Patriot Pay," would amount to an increase of $12 per hour in May, June, and July, according to a Senate press release. One-quarter of the bonus would be paid by employers, while the remaining three-quarters would be paid out by the federal government. The measure would be funded by a refundable payroll tax credit.

Lower performing students hardest hit BOSTON – As we approach the 40th anniversary of the establishment of the United States Department of Education in May, shocking trends in student performance should lead us to reconsider the federal role in education and whether the initiative for policymaking should be returned to local schools, communities, and states. Breaking with decades of slow improvement, U.S. reading and math scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and other assessments have seen historic declines since most states implemented national Common Core English and math curriculum standards six years ago, according to a new...

Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) offered a critical assessment of the federal government’s readiness for the novel coronavirus, describing it as not a “great moment in American leadership.” Romney mostly kept his criticisms broad, avoiding attacking President Trump directly, though he took a few swipes at the president’s management style during an event with Georgetown University students via video chat on Tuesday night. The speed of our response looked slow compared to other people. That first phase will not stand out as a great moment in American leadership,” Romney said, referring to the onset of the coronavirus outbreak, adding, “We didn’t...

Mitt Romney has slammed Donald Trump's handling of the coronavirus pandemic mocking him as 'not the smartest guy in the room' and saying his initial response was not a 'great moment in American leadership'. The Republican Senator laid into the president while speaking live on the Georgetown Politics Forum Tuesday evening. As well as blasting Trump's leadership style, Romney also criticized his move to stop funding to the World Health Organization and said a more centralized approach from the federal government would have been 'more effective' in tackling the pandemic.

President Trump on Thursday hosted phone calls with dozens of bipartisan lawmakers, including every Republican senator -- except Mitt Romney. The president asked the lawmakers to serve on a panel to discuss how to move forward with reopening the economy, called the “Opening Up America Again Congressional Group.” “The president announced that he will soon provide guidance to America’s governors to determine their ability to reignite the economies in their respective states,” the White House said in a news release. “The dialogue between the president, senior administration officials and the bipartisan group of members of Congress also included a range...

Sen. Mitt Romney is among a bipartisan group of lawmakers demanding that President Donald Trump explain why he fired the intelligence community inspector general. The eight senators, led by Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, say the explanation Trump gave for removing Michael Atkinson was insufficient and does not comply with the law. The president cited a lack of confidence in the intelligence community’s top watchdog. “Congressional intent is clear that an expression of lost confidence, without further explanation, is not sufficient to fulfill the requirements of the statute,” the senators wrote in a letter Thursday. “This is in large part because...

WASHINGTON - In his daily briefings on the coronavirus, President Donald Trump has brandished all the familiar tools in his rhetorical arsenal: belittling Democratic governors, demonizing the media, trading in innuendo and bulldozing over the guidance of experts. It’s the kind of performance the president relishes but one that has his advisers and Republican allies worried. As unemployment soars and the death toll skyrockets, and new polls show support for the president’s handling of the crisis sagging, White House allies and Republican lawmakers increasingly believe the briefings are hurting the president more than helping him. Many view the sessions as...

President Trump taunted Mitt Romney on Wednesday after the Utah senator tested negative for coronavirus, ostensibly cheering the news before going on to slam his record as a presidential candidate and member of Congress. “This is really great news! I am so happy I can barely speak. He may have been a terrible presidential candidate and an even worse U.S. Senator, but he is a RINO, and I like him a lot!” Trump tweeted early Wednesday. A “RINO,” as Trump called Romney, stands for “Republican In Name Only.”

President Donald Trump reacted to the news on Sunday that Sen. Mitt Romney was currently isolated after spending time with Sen. Rand Paul who tested positive for the virus. “Romney’s in isolation?” Trump asked. “Gee, that’s too bad.”When the reporter asked if the president was using a sarcastic tone, the president replied, “None whatsoever.”Romney’s office said Sunday the senator would self-quarantine after learning that Sen. Rand Paul had tested positive for the virus, noting that he had spent time with Paul and that the attending physician ordered him not to vote on the Senate floor.

Republican Sens. Mitt Romney and Mike Lee on Sunday said they were going into self-quarantine after being exposed to Sen. Rand Paul, who tested positive for the coronavirus. Both Utah lawmakers said they had been advised by doctors to isolate because of the amount of time they spent in proximity to Paul, of Kentucky, who announced his diagnosis on Sunday. Romney’s office added that the senator “has no symptoms but will be tested.”

CNBC apparently had no problem treating Sen. Mitt Romney’s (R-UT) coronavirus plan to give “every” American $1,000 as a rational idea. CNBC came right off the bat to make the senator look like some sort of philanthropist: “GOP Sen. Mitt Romney proposed on Monday sending every American adult $1,000 to ease the financial pain of the coronavirus pandemic that has tanked global markets and threatened to grind U.S. economic activity to a halt.” Did the outlet consider the irony that such a policy could require massive spending and tax increases that would further “grind U.S. economic activity to a halt”?

Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) is calling for the federal government to issue a $1,000 check “to each American” to help offset the cost of dealing with the coronavirus. In a statement issued Monday, outlined his coronavirus proposals and called for the thousand-dollar checks to be issued “immediately”:

Mitt Romney called on the federal government to send every adult $1,000 immediately to help cope financially with the economic damage caused by the spread of the coronavirus. “Every American adult should immediately receive $1,000 to help ensure families and workers can meet their short-term obligations and increase spending in the economy,” Romney, a Utah Republican senator and 2012 presidential nominee, said in a statement.

The bad news: His favorable rating among Republicans today is a point lower than it was among Democrats on the eve of the 2012 election. Think of that. Righties are entirely correct when they point how fickle the left has been in its esteem for Romney but even the left never disliked him as much as his own party currently does because of his impeachment vote. And the overall shift in opinion of him among Republicans since 2012 is about twice as large as it is among Democrats. The good news: If he can’t get reelected in Utah, he could...

U.S. Senator Mitt Romney will vote to allow a subpoena in a Senate Republican investigation of Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden's businessman son, Hunter Biden, his office said on Friday.

WASHINGTON — Subpoenas into Hunter Biden’s work in Ukraine appear imminent after Sen. Mitt Romney’s office on Friday said he would vote in favor of the probe next week, according to a report. The Homeland Security Committee is gearing up for an investigation into the Bidens which could throw a roadblock in front of former veep Joe Biden’s presidential bid just as it gathers momentum. After criticizing the panel for what he called a politically motivated investigation, Romney will now vote in favor of the subpoena when the committee votes on it next Wednesday, Politico reported on Friday.