Is Mitt Romney's 2018 Senate run inevitable?
Former Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney seems very serious about running for Senate in 2018, so long as Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) retires, Politico reported Friday. Rumors of Hatch's retirement began swirling earlier this year when the 83-year-old said in an interview with National Journal that he would be willing to step down "if I could get a really outstanding person" to replace him. "Mitt Romney would be perfect," Hatch said.
Still, Hatch has not yet made a public decision about his future, and a person close to the senator told Politico that Hatch and Romney have not spoken in months.
That doesn't seem to be stopping Romney, who has reportedly talked to Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) about a hypothetical campaign, and told prominent Republican donor Frank VanderSloot that he was seriously thinking about running. John Miller, the national campaign finance chairman for Romney's 2012 presidential bid, told Politico, "I think he's giving it some serious consideration."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
And what would candidate Romney be like?
People close to Romney envision him running as a senior statesman-like figure — one who won't reflexively oppose the administration but is willing to air his differences with Trump. [Politico]
Romney's desire to get back into national politics shouldn't be all that surprising, considering that he thought about running for president again in 2016. Politico reports that Romney has been raising money for congressional Republicans, and endorsing and campaigning for several candidates at both the local and state level in Utah. Mitt 2018, here we come ...
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Kelly O'Meara Morales is a staff writer at The Week. He graduated from Sarah Lawrence College and studied Middle Eastern history and nonfiction writing amongst other esoteric subjects. When not compulsively checking Twitter, he writes and records music, subsists on tacos, and watches basketball.
-
NY attorney general asks public for ICE raid footageSpeed Read Rep. Dan Goldman claims ICE wrongly detained four US citizens in the Canal Street raid and held them for a whole day without charges
-
Trump’s huge ballroom to replace razed East WingSpeed Read The White House’s east wing is being torn down amid ballroom construction
-
Trump expands boat strikes to Pacific, killing 5 moreSpeed Read The US military destroyed two more alleged drug smuggling boats in international waters
-
Trump demands millions from his administrationSpeed Read The president has requested $230 million in compensation from the Justice Department for previous federal investigations
-
Trump nominee in limbo after racist texts leakSpeed Read Paul Ingrassia lost Republican support following the exposure of past racist text messages
-
Trump begins East Wing demolition for ballroomspeed read The president’s new construction will cost $250 million
-
Appeals court clears Trump’s Portland troop deploymentSpeed Read A divided federal appeals court ruled that President Trump can send the National Guard to Portland
-
Millions turn out for anti-Trump ‘No Kings’ ralliesSpeed Read An estimated 7 million people participated, 2 million more than at the first ‘No Kings’ protest in June



