Sen. Mitt Romney became the first GOP senator to march with Black Lives Matter protesters on Sunday.
Romney joined a protest in Washington, D.C., posting pictures of his walk on Twitter with the caption “Black Lives Matter.” The Utah senator told The Washington Post that he was searching for “a way to end violence and brutality, and to make sure that people understand that black lives matter.”
Black Lives Matter. pic.twitter.com/JpXUFlxH2J
— Mitt Romney (@MittRomney) June 7, 2020
President Trump attacked Romney on Monday morning, retweeting a video of Romney marching in Washington and suggesting that it was a political stunt.
“Tremendous sincerity, what a guy. Hard to believe, with this kind of political talent, his numbers would ‘tank’ so badly in Utah!” Trump said.
Tremendous sincerity, what a guy. Hard to believe, with this kind of political talent, his numbers would “tank” so badly in Utah! https://t.co/KqHsHmSRKo
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 8, 2020
Prior to his Sunday march, Romney tweeted out a photo of his father, George Romney, marching with Civil Rights protesters in Detroit in the 1960s. George Romney served as Michigan’s governor from 1963 to 1968 when he lost a bid to be president of the U.S.
“This is my father, George Romney, participating in a Civil Rights march in the Detroit suburbs during the late 1960s — ‘Force alone will not eliminate riots,’ he said. ‘We must eliminate the problems from which they stem,’” Sen. Romney tweeted.
This is my father, George Romney, participating in a Civil Rights march in the Detroit suburbs during the late 1960s—“Force alone will not eliminate riots,” he said. “We must eliminate the problems from which they stem.” pic.twitter.com/SzrcAyfPD8
— Mitt Romney (@MittRomney) June 6, 2020
Democrats lauded Romney for marching with the protesters. Sen. Kamala Harris of California tweeted out a video of Romney marching with the caption “We need more of this.” Rep. Eric Swalwell of California said of Romney that “We haven’t seen a lot of GOP courage in 2020, but you have consistently shown it.
We need more of this.pic.twitter.com/gWMvXiLPmn
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) June 7, 2020
Thank you, Senator. We haven’t seen a lot of GOP courage in 2020, but you have consistently shown it — from voting to remove @realDonaldTrump to being an ally of #BlackLivesMattters. Your leadership makes a difference. https://t.co/avkFsUa7K2
— Rep. Eric Swalwell (@RepSwalwell) June 7, 2020
Former Obama adviser Valerie Jarrett praised Romney in a tweet saying, “Welcome to the right side of history, [Sen. Romney]. I hope your leadership inspires your Republican colleagues to do the same.”
Welcome to the right side of history, @SenatorRomney. I hope your leadership inspires your Republican colleagues to do the same. https://t.co/TCPjzZtODt
— Valerie Jarrett (@ValerieJarrett) June 7, 2020
Democrats praise of Romney for his march and other stances he has taken against Trump and the administration ring hollow for many critics that point out Democrats routinely labeled Romney a pet-abuser and federal criminal during his 2012 run against former President Barack Obama.
Then-Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid accused Romney of not paying taxes for a decade. Years later, Reid admitted he had lied about Romney but defended the lie as “one of the best things I’ve ever done.”
“Did I want to do that? No. I had the information, I tried to get somebody else to do it. I tried to get somebody in the Obama ‘reelect,’ I tried to get one of the senators, I tried to get one of the outside groups, but nobody would do it. So I did it,” Reid said. “And with that, like everything, I think in life, here’s something I learned from my father, if you’re going to do something, don’t do it half-assed, don’t play around. With the Mitt Romney stuff, I didn’t play around.”
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