Mitt Romney warned Thursday that picking Donald Trump as the Republican nominee for the presidency would doom Republicans and greatly reduce the chances of American prosperity in the future.
“Let me put in very plainly,” he said in a much-touted and stinging public speech at the University of Utah. “If we Republicans choose Donald Trump as our nominee, the prospects for a safe and prosperous future are greatly diminished.”
“There is plenty of evidence that Mr. Trump is a con man, a fake,” he said. “Mr. Trump has changed his positions not just over the years, but over the course of the campaign.”
Romney, speaking for the GOP establishment, tore apart Trump’s character, and said voters should watch to see how Trump reacts to his speech as proof.
“Will he talk about our policy differences, or will he attack me with every imaginable low-road insult?” Romney asked as the audience laughed. “This may tell you what you need to know about his temperament, his stability, and his suitability to be president.”
Romney also warned that Trump’s refusal to immediately tell ABC’s Jake Tapper that he disavows David Duke’s endorsement is a key problem that will crush him in the general election.
“A Trump nomination enables her victory, and the audio and video of the infamous Tapper/Trump exchange on the Ku Klux Klan will play 100,000 times on cable, and who knows how many millions of times on social media,” he said.
Romney has refused to back Trump even though Trump backed Romney just four years ago. While some are hoping that Romney himself might step up and run again, Romney dismissed that idea immediately in Utah.
“I’m not here to announce my candidacy for office, and I’m not going to endorse a candidate today,” he said.
Romney’s remarks could end up splitting the party further. Trump himself pointed out over Twitter and on morning TV that Romney failed to win the White House, implying that Romney has no standing to speak for Republicans in 2016.
The choice of Romney to make the remarks was greeted with skepticism by pundits, who noted that he represents many of the qualities against which the GOP grassroots is rebelling. Still, Romney said it makes no sense to give the party over to the reality TV star and political novice.
Failed candidate Mitt Romney,who ran one of the worst races in presidential history,is working with the establishment to bury a big “R” win!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 3, 2016
On policy, Romney said Trump isn’t “serious,” and that the only logical options are Sen. Ted Cruz, Sen. Marco Rubio, or Gov. John Kasich. He contrasted those remaining candidates by saying Trump is all about himself, and that Trump would lose to Clinton.
“Trump relishes any poll that reflects what he thinks of himself,” he said in his prepared remarks. “But polls are also saying that he will lose to Hillary Clinton.”
And as widely reported, Romney withdrew from the man he once said “understands how the economy works,” and said Trump is a fraud.
“Here’s what I know: Donald Trump is a phony, a fraud,” Romney said. “His promises are as worthless as a degree from Trump University. He’s playing the American public for suckers: He gets a free ride to the White House and all we get is a lousy hat,” he said, taking a shot at Trump’s trademark truck driver-style baseball hats.
Romney’s speech comes as the four final white men vying for the Republican nod prepare to debate Thursday night in Detroit and as grassroots conservatives from across the nation gather just outside of Washington, D.C. for the annual Conservative Political Action Committee convention.
