On July 4, Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) warned that a political comeback by Donald Trump would make America’s “denial, deceit, and distrust” “unable to be treated.”
In an Atlantic op-ed published under the headline, “America Is in Denial,” the unsuccessful 2012 Republican presidential nominee lambasted Americans for “blithely brushing off threats that might end up being catastrophic.” Trump, in particular, would exacerbate the condition and probably make it incurable, according to Romney.
“I’ve seen time and again—in myself and in others—an overpowering desire to believe what we want to be true,” Romney continued. “A good example of denial is Donald Trump’s statement: ‘I won in a landslide.’ Perhaps this is another form of delusion that leads people to put money into slot machines: because I truly want to win, I am convinced that I will succeed.”
Despite claims that the president took part in the Biden family’s corrupt business practices at least 13 times, Romney praised President Joe Biden as “a genuinely good man.”
“President Joe Biden is a genuinely decent person, but he has yet to break through our national sickness of denial, deception, and distrust. A Donald Trump comeback would exacerbate the problem and most likely make it irreversible,” Romney added.
“I am hoping for a president who can rise above the rabble to bring us together behind the facts,” Romney said. “Several candidates with prior knowledge and brains are in the wings; we’ll keep an eye on them to see whether they also have the necessary character and aptitude needed to bring our country together as we face our shared reality.”
It’s uncertain who Romney is talking about when he says “several potential candidates with experience and brains” who may want to run in 2024. According to a Harvard CAPS-Harris poll, if Trump decides to run, he holds a 40-point advantage over Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) in a hypothetical GOP primary. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) is polling in third place, with just eight percent support.
On the Democrat side, Biden is slightly ahead of Vice President Kamala Harris, Michelle Obama, and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. Although polling has not yet shown that Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) would be a viable candidate in 2024, he may have ambitions to run.
