February 7, 2020 By politicalwoman
Mitt Throws a Fitt
Was it jealousy, bitterness or as he said, "conscience" when Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT), declared his vote for impeachment on the charge of abuse of power against President Donald Trump.
Calling Trump's actions "an appalling abuse of public trust," Senator Romney picks up where he left off, when in 2016 at a speech given at Hinckley Institute, he referred to Donald Trump as a "con man" and that was the mild part.
Romney speaking at Hinckley Institute (NPR)
Yet, after Trump won the election, Romney sat down with Trump, including a one-on-one dinner, to discuss the potential of becoming Secretary of State. But not before consulting with other prior Secretaries of State, including Hillary Clinton, for whom he had so much invective earlier " when she was guiding it [State]… America's interests were diminished at every corner of the world. She compromised our national secrets. She dissembled to the families of the slain. And she jettisoned her most profound beliefs to gain presidential power." You see where this is going — man of principle, Mitt ain't. Man of political expediency — Mitt is.
One of the problems with Mitt through the years is his constant affliction of flip-flopping on the issues, be it abortion, taxes, gun control, etc. In fact, there probably hasn't been an issue where Mitt hasn't taken both sides at some point, depending upon which way the political winds were blowing.
As for Romney's latest vote on impeachment, he knew his vote and stance would cause a political storm, but the underlying cause is why he was the sole Republican to cast a guilty vote for "abuse of power." Was it due to as Romney claims, his "conscience?" A venture capitalist, private equity executive, does not necessarily have a conscience, especially when it comes to buying businesses and then breaking them up to sell at a profit, as in the parts are worth more than the whole, while throwing thousands of people out of work. This was a key reason why millions of voters couldn't warm up to him in his failed 2012 campaign.
Was his vote due to bitterness? After his 2012 election loss, the one that coulda, shoulda, woulda been one, that would make Mitt the Hillary Clinton of the Republican Party. Then we have the perceived groveling before the "con man", for the Cabinet post, who made sure Romney got his own brand of payback.
Or, was his vote in long-term preparation for one last run in 2024, i.e., trying to position himself early on with the moderates in both parties. If yes, then Romney's delusional. In 2024, he'll be 76 years old (Vice President Joe Biden is 77, and looks every bit of it), and people's memories will be jogged via campaign ads, to the unfortunate moment when Romney through away the shot he had to unseat Obama. Gawd, that debate was a cringe-worthy hour plus.
So, we've doubled-back to sanctimonious Mitt-ens, who gave us the infamous "47 percent" comment that haunted his 2012 campaign. Yet in all of Mitt's reasoning for his vote for impeachment and abuse of power, he conveniently forgets to weigh this abuse, against those of the former administration who used the FBI to spy on Trump's campaign, not to mention the use of the IRS to intimidate conservatives who supported the Trump candidacy.
Senator Mitt Romney, who spoke on the reason for this vote,
I will only be one name among many, no more, no less. To future generations who look at the record of this trial they will note merrily that I was among the senators who determined that what the president did was wrong — grievously wrong.
We can only conclude that Mitt, once again, is on the wrong side of the coin. This impeachment shambles was a fully partisan undertaking by one party, which sought to overturn a duly, constitutionally-elected President. And once again, Mitt is on the wrong side of history, like the wrong side of the glass, looking in. He'll be forever asking himself what might have been, but unable to admit, he had only himself to blame.
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