Here comes Mitt Romney

Mindful of that, the Republican nominee for the White House in 2012 (and governor of Massachusetts, 2,367 miles to the east, from 2002 to 2006) went with an understated campaign launch on social media, instead of a staged, presidential-style campaign rally.

Romney delayed his launch after Wednesday’s school shooting in Florida, but made it official Friday morning, and was expected to follow up his tweet announcement with a set of remarks Friday night in Utah.

“The themes of his campaign are going to be completely Utah-centric — taking a Utah voice to Washington. That’s the most important thing,” said a Republican insider in the state who participated some of the roundtable discussions Romney’s team held in the run-up to the campaign. “He’s going to put the shoe leather in.”

This isn’t the first Senate campaign for Romney, 71, who earned millions during his career as a venture capitalist. He ran for Senate in Massachusetts in 1994, but lost to the late Sen. Ted Kennedy, a Democratic icon.

But this will be a unique campaign. It’s rare that a politician of Romney’s stature undertakes their first bid for Congress after coming so close to the presidency. Romney’s prickly relationship with President Trump adds to the intrigue.

Trump endorsed Romney in 2012 but trashed him as a lousy candidate after former President Barack Obama beat him. During the 2016 campaign, Romney delivered a scathing speech in which he criticized Trump as a reckless charlatan who didn’t have the temperament to be president.

The sparring has continued since Trump was inaugurated, even though he briefly considered Romney for secretary of state. For the president’s passionate supporters, Romney has become an apostate. For Republicans who dislike Trump, he has emerged as a moral leader of the opposition from within.

“Mitt is a man of character who will have the opportunity to offer principled leadership to congressional Republicans, to the broader party, and to the country,” the never-Trump group Stand Up Republic, founded by Evan McMullin and Mindy Finn, said in a statement. “He’ll be well-positioned as an alternative center of gravity in the GOP, hopefully serving as a leader and example to other congressional Republicans who are now quietly disappointed in the party’s direction.”

Being perceived as a Trump foil isn’t a problem in Utah.

The state is overwhelmingly Republican. But rank-and-file Republican voters there, most of whom are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, never acclimated to the president’s politically charged rhetoric. Trump’s support for reducing legal immigration, and his harsh tone toward illegal immigrants, also rankles many Mormons.

Still, top Utah Republicans are cautioning Romney not to get roped into running a national campaign in which everything he says, or proposes, is framed in the context of being in competition with the president. That could prove difficult given the level of national media exposure Romney’s campaign is likely to receive.

Their advice: Travel the state extensively and keep the campaign focused on Utah issues. Only criticize Trump when it’s absolutely warranted.

“Mitt’s a player,” said Sen. Orrin Hatch, the Republican whose seat Romney is running for and who personally recruited him to run for the seat he’s held since 1977.

“He’s going to realize that you can’t do a lot without the president, and he’ll criticize the president when he disagrees, like I will — although I haven’t had much to criticize,” Hatch added. “But he’ll also be a very strong backer. He knows that it’s more than just Trump — it’s the president of the United States.”

Romney isn’t expected to face much competition – in the primary or the general election.

He is a beloved figure in the state, both for the political heights he reached as a Mormon and his work back in 2002 rescuing the Salt Lake City Winter Olympic Games from ruin. Although he lived in Massachusetts for much of his life, he has long maintained a home in Utah, and isn’t viewed as a carpetbagger.

There are pockets of resistance. The far right of the Republican Party that prefers conservatives in the style of Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, aren’t necessarily going to be happy with Romney. Their suspicion could further stoked if Romney skips the Utah Republican Party nominating convention, as expected, and chooses instead to seek the nomination on the June 26 primary ballot.

But they are a minority. In an example of Romney’s political strength with Republicans in Utah, state GOP chairman Rob Anderson was forced to apologize Wednesday after he sharply criticized the Senate frontrunner in an interview with the Salt Lake Tribune.

“I think he’s keeping out candidates that I think would be a better fit for Utah because, let’s face it, Mitt Romney doesn’t live here, his kids weren’t born here, he doesn’t shop here,” Anderson said.

Hours later, he backtracked. “I regret that my comments about potential Senatorial candidate, Mitt Romney, came across as disparaging or unsupportive. That was never my intent,” he said. “I have no doubt that Mitt Romney satisfies all qualifications to run for Senate.”