It didn’t take Mitt Romney long to become the Senate’s new neo-con, establishment mouth-piece. In fact, Mittens didn’t even wait until he was sworn in before launching an attack on the president. The two-time presidential loser, former Governor of Massachusetts and now Senator from Utah penned an op-ed in which he criticized Trump’s character on New Years Day.
Romney talked about the importance of the president “shaping the character of the nation” and voiced displeasure about the shake-up of Trump’s cabinet – citing the recent departures of Mattis and Kelly. He doesn’t mention American workers, but he does mention European approval rating and does not at all seem happy with the decision to scale down in the Middle East. Then, in typical Mittens fashion, he more or less says he will support the Trump agenda.
So Jeff Flake didn’t retire, he just changed his name to Mitt Romney. Mittens intends to support the Trump agenda (thus drawing the ire of the left) while smugly telling himself that he’s the moral conscience of the GOP. It doesn’t get sadder than that really. Despised by his political opponents, despised by the Trump base (many of whom voted for him in 2012) and loved by nobody but the Republican establishment in Washington. Loyal not to his voters, but to the highest bidder.
Also, don’t forget that Mittens had more or less been living under a rock since 2012 only to emerge from the shadows when it was clear Trump would win. Remember that speech he gave when it was clear that orange man was going to seal the nomination? That felt a lot like this op-ed.
It was supposed to be a scathing review of Trump that would get mainstream Republican voters thinking, but it ended up not being talked about outside political circles. Also keep in mind that around that time, it was being floated that none other than Bill Kristol was backing a plot to somehow earn Romney the nomination. The plan was to “lock the convention” and block Trump from getting the delegates required to secure the nomination.
Basically, Romney was planning on swooping in after not running in a single primary to deny the electorate what they voted for. That’s who Mitt Romney is, and people see it.
Nobody Is Buying The Image Mittens Is Selling
Even if one doesn’t pay attention the shadiness Romney has become associated with, it’s not hard to see how fake the guy is. He’ll say whatever, whenever and has no likability. Trump’s supporters see him as a guy they could have a beer with while Romney has none of that appeal.
That doesn’t mean he won’t try though. Remember when he showed up to the Jazz-Thunder playoff game last year? Everything about that clip seemed so genuine and real. And the way the camera just so happens to find him while he’s doing his weird ass taunt? That was a total coincidence.
In reality, this is such an obvious attempt to make Mittens seem likable to us unwashed masses. It’s that “Yes, we will attend the ball basket match with the common folk, for merriment and joy!” type mentality. They think we don’t see it, but we do and that’s why Romney is a joke.
We just saw the same thing with Elizabeth Warren, everyone’s favorite (1/1024) Cherokee. After recently announcing her intention to run for president, Warren was hosting an Instagram live-stream in an effort to chat with her supporters.
Because she’s just like us, she cracks open a cold one before getting started. Then her android-like husband promptly walks in and they have a totally organic conversation. The whole thing has a real “fellow kids” vibe to it, much like the infamous: “I’m just chillin, in Cedar Rapids” from the one and only hill dog.
If there is a silver lining in the dystopian hell that our political system has become, it is that country club politicians like Warren and Romney have gone out of style. Desperate attempts to appeal to the “common people” after spending their entire lives surrounded by elites are increasingly coming off as ham-fisted and fake.
It’s not that politicians haven’t always been this way, because they have. But the advent of social media and it’s effect on political campaigns have really brought the dinosaurs to light. Elizabeth Warren is clueless in this regard to say, Ocasio-Cortez just like Mittens strikes out with the same crowd Trump thrives in.
At the very least, the era of Trump and AOC has spiced things up. Now we have candidates proposing bold ideas on both sides as opposed to the manufactured personalities we were forced to choose between pre-2012. There is going to be plenty of chaos and cringe-worthy videos from here on out, and I’m all for it.