Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Peculiar People

Home
Latter-day Saint
America Needs Mitt Romney

America Needs Mitt Romney

Last updated on: May 26, 2017 at 6:51 pm by Gary A.

America Needs Mitt Romney 2017-05-26T18:51:39+00:00 Gary A.

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney. Obtained through Creative Commons.

A Senator Romney could stand up to Donald Trump without losing his seat.

America needs Mitt Romney.

I never thought I would find myself typing those words. In 2012, when Romney ran for the presidency, I unabashedly voted for Obama instead. Romney’s bellicose rhetoric towards Iran bothered me, as did his borderline racist comments about Palestinians. In contrast, Obama impressed me with his cautious, cerebral approach to decision making and his compassionate position on immigration. In the end, though Romney and I shared the same faith (Mormonism), I felt that Obama more accurately reflected the values that I hold dear.

But 2017 isn’t 2012. Now, America isn’t ruled by the erudite Obama, but by the ever-errant Trump. Since his inauguration, Trump has waged a full-fledged assault on core tenets of American democracy. He has assailed the sacred institution of the free press, calling the media the “enemy of the people” and hinting that he would like to see libel laws loosened. He has also thumbed his nose at the Constitution, violating its Emoluments Clause since Day 1. And let’s not forget his politicization of law enforcement by firing FBI Director James Comey in an attempt to stop his investigation into ties between Russia and the Trump campaign.

The Trump presidency has been an unmitigated disaster, and I only fear it is going to get worse. The Donald’s unprecedented rape of the Republic has largely been ignored by GOP lawmakers. Indeed, they have acted like the crowd in “The Emperor’s New Clothes,” turning a blind eye to Trump’s outrages to avoid the disfavor of his far-right base. Their indifference as Trump pillages the halls of government gives Trump the impression that he can get away with even more bad behavior.

So what does this have to do with Mitt Romney? Well, Utah Senator Orrin Hatch, who is now 83, has tossed around the idea of retiring from politics at the end of his current term. This has been accompanied by speculation that Romney will seek his seat. And though Hatch has insisted that Romney has no plans to succeed him, if the former Massachusetts governor were to do so, he would be uniquely positioned to lead a Republican campaign to hold Trump accountable, if not remove him from office.

During the 2016 campaign, Romney was a fierce critic of Trump. At a speech at the University of Utah, he denounced him as a “fraud” and “phony” whose “promises are as worthless as a degree from Trump University.” Although he later seemed to walk back such criticism while vying for the post of Secretary of State in Trump’s Cabinet, many suspected that this move was motivated more by a desire to protect the nation’s foreign policy than a newfound friendship with the Manhattan mogul.

Okay – Romney is no friend of Trump. But tons of other Republican politicos hate Trump, and none of them are leading an insurgency against his White House. What makes Romney different?

Three words: Utah loves Romney.

Romney’s status as the first Mormon candidate for president from a major party, his business acumen, and his past service in the Church’s hierarchy have earned him a special place in the hearts of Beehive State residents. During his 2012 run, he carried Utah by a margin unseen in the state’s history, and he remains immensely popular among Utahans of all political stripes. If he were to run for Hatch’s seat, it would be his for the taking. And Utah’s robust support for him means that he would be unlikely to face a serious primary challenge in the foreseeable future.

Romney’s near-immunity to primary challenge would free him from the worries that have bedeviled other Republican politicians. Since the election, Republican legislators and their staffers have told me and others that I know, behind closed doors, that they think Trump is unfit for the presidency. But they have been scared to make such comments publicly out of fear of Trump’s far-right base, a base that could oust them in future GOP primaries. Romney, however, need not fear such an intra-party uprising – he could equate Trump with Osama Bin Laden still retain the support of the vast majority of Utah Republicans.

A primary-resistant Senator Romney could stand up to Trump and get away with it. And, given his past comments, he would probably be more than happy to denounce Trump for his actions. With his national stature, Romney may even be capable of leading a bipartisan effort to remove our incompetent “Cheeto-in-Chief” from office.

So, despite my past opposition, I am again left typing words that I never thought I would:

“Run, Romney, Run!”

Donald Trump

Mormonism

Mormonism, politics, Romney

Previous Post

April 21, 2017

First-Order Myopia: What Donald Trump Can Learn from Joseph Smith

Next Post

May 31, 2017 Trump and NATO: Lessons from Ancient Greece

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category American society Art baptism Blogging Book of Mormon Book review Brigham Young Brigham Young University Bundy Catholicism Christianity Communalism Community of Christ conferences conversion correlation Culture denominations Digital History Discipline Councils diversity Doctrine Donald Trump education Emma Smith ethics family feminism fiction Film review food French Polynesia Fundamentalism Gay rights Gender global Gun politics Halloween health History Honor Code hymns Joseph Smith Kirtland Temple law of consecration massacre site military Ministering missionary moderate Mormon feminism Modern Mormonism Mormon origins Mormon War Mormonism Mormonism, politics, Romney Obama Peace politics Polygamy Pope Francis Poverty Prayer Priesthood Protestantism Race Religious freedom Revelation Reviews sacred sites Scientology Scripture Secularization See Stones sexual assault Star Wars television temples Tithing Utah violence war women's ordination

Select a Month October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 October 2017 September 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 November 2016 October 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

How long was the wedding celebrations length in Biblical times?

Select your answer to see how you score.

10 days 5 days 7 days 3 days