Free Republic

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, a heavy favorite in the race to replace retiring Utah Republican Sen. Orrin Hatch, ducked questions about his previous attacks on President Trump during a debate on Tuesday night. Romney called Trump a "phony, a fraud" during the 2016 presidential campaign, and said he was playing the American people for "suckers." He also said that candidate Trump's "promises are as worthless as a degree from Trump University" -- prompting Trump to hit back and call Romney, who lost his bid to challenge President Barack Obama in 2012, a disloyal "choke artist." But on Tuesday, when...

Mitt Romney signaled that he is moving toward a run for a US Senate seat from Utah, tweeting Thursday that he will make a formal announcement about his plans on February 15. "Looking forward to making an announcement on February 15th about the Utah Senate race," he tweeted.

As Mitt Romney considers whether to run for an open US Senate seat in Utah, the person who can most influence him is encouraging him to get into the race: his wife, Ann. Ann Romney — a confidante for nearly all of Romney’s adult life and frequent catalyst for his political ambitions — is fully supporting a campaign for Senate, another strong indicator he will run, according to four people close to the Romneys. Her own battle with multiple sclerosis is not a major factor, with all signs indicating that her health remains strong, the people said.

A fun leftover from this Friday profile of Romney’s sureshot Senate campaign in Utah. News broke this afternoon that he was treated successfully for prostate cancer this past year, a personal detail that doubtless would have remained private unless he was about to reenter public life and wanted any information that might give voters pause disclosed early, before his next campaign begins in earnest. He’s getting in. And he’s going full anti-Trump.

There is growing talk on the right of replacing Donald Trump, the Republican Party’s presumptive nominee for president, and even chatter about a possible alternative. As Trump has floundered over the past week after questioning a federal judge’s impartiality because of his Mexican ancestry, Trump’s critics within the GOP have stepped up their efforts to thwart him. Some anti-Trump conservatives, who have tried for months to recruit an independent candidate, have begun looking more closely at attempting to persuade delegates at next month’s GOP convention to nominate someone other than Trump. “There is a rapidly moving train toward the convention...

On Friday, failed 2012 GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney said it wasn't healthy that Congress has not passed amnesty legislation that the Congressional Budget Office determined would lower the wages of American workers. "I do believe it's important for us, before the presidential contest in 2016, to finally have immigration reform in place," Romney said, according to The Des Moines Register's Jennifer Jacobs. "I just don't think it's healthy for the country to continue to have this issue open and unresolved, particularly with so many families that are waiting for the answers." Romney said he was not for a "special"...

Mitt Romney will address the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO) today, and will no doubt continue his evasions regarding the president’s unconstitutional DREAM decree, which grants amnesty to perhaps 1.4 million illegal immigrants without permission from Congress.One thing that Romney, and the GOP more generally, should consider is what’s next. If the president gets away with this usurpation of legislative authority, what other immigration measures might we expect? After all, Friday’s amnesty decree didn’t happen in a vacuum — it was the result of the administration’s getting away with a whole series of earlier, less...

On Monday, Rep. Allen West (R-FL) said that he was “dejected” after Mitt Romney’s avoided taking a strong stand on President Barack Obama’s directive enacting portions of the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act. “It goes back to what my mother taught me, ‘a man must stand for something, or else he’ll fall for anything,’” said West. Romney appeared on CBS’ Face the Nation on Sunday where he was asked repeatedly if he would repeal President Obama’s directive. Romney avoided taking a firm position on the matter during the interview, but indicated that he supports the underlying...

In a revolt against Romney, at least 40 more national convention delegates asked to join 123 previous plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the Republican National Committee, and their attorney said hundreds more may soon follow suit. The first 123 delegates, all from the 9th Circuit, sued the RNC, its Chairman Rince Priebus, and every state party chairman in the 9th Circuit in Federal Court on Monday, demanding the right to vote for the candidate of their choice on every ballot at the Republican National Convention, including the first. The delegates claim the party violated federal law by forcing them to...

Romney "agrees" with Rubio. Wants "long term" solution. Full statement in Comments.

The claim is consistently being made that the first print of Romney's book stated something to the effect of the mandate being good for the entire country and then the 2nd print had it removed. Does anyone have excerpts, page numbers, etc. so we can throw it in Romney's face? This seems like a no-brainer and the one candidate consistently making the claim (Perry) isn't going out of his way to prove it.

OKLAHOMA CITY – So, how excited were the good, conservative folks at the Jim Thorpe Sports Hall of Fame Museum when Republican Mitt Romney arrived there Friday morning for a fundraising event? They weren't really. There was polite applause and a "Wow, it's the GOP presidential frontrunner - in the buckle of the Red State Bible Belt! Gee whiz!" reaction. Yeah, there was some "enthusiasm, but it was more subdued than you would have guessed.This reporter came in expecting throngs. Perhaps a lot of them were "busy" or didn't have the spare $20.12 for a ticket. Regardless, Mitt Romney was...

Funny 17 second humor bit on the back and forth between Romney and Perry. :)

WASHINGTON - Among the Republicans angling to move into 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. a year from January, Mitt Romney is the closest to achieving his goal. The former Massachusetts governor has reached the decisive phase in his presidential campaign: attempting to consolidate his support and cinch the nomination. (snip) Romney’s most ardent conservative critics have been left to rally around Herman Cain, simultaneously engaged in a book tour and presidential campaign, in a last-ditch effort to prevent his nomination. (snip) ...the Romney staff is focused on what it sees as an inevitable clash with Obama and the Democrats. But with the...

Rick Perry can't get out of his own way. During the presidential debates, he has reviled three immigration issues that Republicans hold dear: passing mandatory E-Verify legislation, rejecting federal and state versions of the DREAM Act, and building a border fence. About E-Verify, Perry foolishly claims that it would not make "a hill of beans" worth of difference. Regarding the DREAM Act, Perry said that those who disagree with his decision to enact it in 2001 "don't have a heart." As for the border fence, Perry insists that it is "idiocy" to build it. The debates represented Perry's chance to...

WASHINGTON (CNN) – Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney has planned a flurry of appearances in the Washington area this weekend, an indicator of the kind of hectic schedule he's been keeping as he looks ahead to a possible presidential bid in 2012. His D.C. itinerary will be dominated by fundraisers, but Romney has planned a pair of high-profile speeches to conservative groups that are sure to draw attention: On Saturday he is slated to address the Values Voters Summit, and on Monday he'll deliver remarks to a luncheon at the Foreign Policy Initiative, a neoconservative think tank founded by William...