Many of Mitt Romney’s fellow senators assume his willingness to break from his party — and Donald Trump — means he's planning for only one term. They may be surprised.
over whether Romney should run again — yet a Romney reelection is important to McConnell to demonstrate the party’s appeal goes beyond Trump, even as the former president’s critics vanish from the congressional GOP.McConnell already demonstrated he’s willing to defend an anti-Trump Republican against an intraparty challenge, spending millions of dollars this year through his aligned super PAC to reelect Sen. Lisa Murkowski .
Incoming National Republican Senatorial Committee Chair Steve Daines also backed another Romney run and is planning to meet with him soon to discuss his plans. Still, should he run, Romney can’t expect unified backing from the Senate Republican conference. Since his election in 2018, Romney’s put an indelible stamp on the Senate. He voted to convict Trump in both impeachment trials, becoming the only Senate Republican to support abuse of power charges against Trump in the former president’s first trial over Ukraine aid. He’s worked with Democrats frequently, yet just as easily takes a hard conservative line on issues like the debt ceiling. And Romney’s self-deprecating sense of humor stands out in the stuffy chamber.
Yet Murkowski points Romney down the path to running and winning as an anti-Trump Republican, for reasons beyond her backing from McConnell. Trump supported Murkowski’s conservative challenger Kelly Tshibaka, but the incumbent stuck to the center amid her state’s new ranked-choice voting system and won by 7 points.
Beyond the electoral math, there’s another factor for Romney to consider: Just what can the Senate do during the next two years of divided government? He’s a key player in the Senate’s centrist negotiating groups that have helped craft new laws on infrastructure, gun safety and marriage equality — and he wants to continue that style of work as long as he’s a senator.
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