Mitt Romney just gave away the game
Senator Mitt Romney of the state of Utah has written an op-ed for the Washington Post. In this op-ed, Romney argues earnestly against eliminating the filibuster. His reasoning is, in my opinion, somewhat murky, to say the least. And it is also dishonest. Allow me to elaborate.
Romney cites his reasoning on the fact that Donald Trump could run and win the Presidency in 2024. And in his opinion, that would mean Trump could be “entirely unrestrained.”
“Have Democrats thought through what it would mean for them for Trump to be entirely unrestrained, with the Democratic minority having no power whatsoever? If Democrats eliminate the filibuster now, they — and the country — may soon regret it very much,” Romeny explains.
Well thank you, Senator! Accept your argument has some holes in it. Let’s break it down. First off, Trump will not be the nominee in 2024, and Romney likely knows that. But this in itself is really immaterial.
I say that because it really does not matter WHO the nominee for the GOP is in 2024. If said nominee wins, Republicans will themselves eliminate the filibuster anyway. It will be one of the first things they do. For a man like Romney, who was labeled a traitor by many of his own party, I am amazed he doesn’t recognize this. Or perhaps he does, and he is being disingenuous.
Either way, I do not see his argument as being rooted in reality. The GOP may be squealing at the thought of the DEMOCRATS removing the filibuster. But this is because they have separate rules for what we can do versus what they can do in their minds.
And for most of the GOP, what they can do is: anything goes. If Romney has not learned this lesson by now, he’s hopeless. If he DOES understand this, that puts his motivation entirely into question. Either way, his argument is weak at best, delusional at worst.
