Must be tough for these Republicans. EVERY truly courageous individual in modern history--Mandela, Gandhi, MLK, Edward Snowden, Daniel Ellsberg, Rosa Parks and on and on and on was a liberal. When it comes to courage, the best they can come up with is a private equity scoundrel positioning himself as the next act in the ongoing GOP farce.
19
Those seeking to canonize Mitt Romney would do well to read Matt Taibbi's lively piece in Rolling Stone:
Greed and Debt: The True Story of Mitt Romney and Bain Capital
How the GOP presidential candidate and his private equity firm staged an epic wealth grab, destroyed jobs – and stuck others with the bill.
Sorry to state the obvious, but a Republican is a Republican.
20
“ The right-wing vituperations descending on Romney, ............... are no better than the left’s cancel-culture warriors.”
The left is nothing like the white supremacist right, and you know it. The left may boycott certain people and their positions, but they are not attacking a free press and free speech, nor threatening to pass laws against their opponents. The Republican Party, on the other hand, has embraced the intolerant who would take away all of our freedom for an expedient road to power.
69
America the Beautiful, where are you?
I'm thinking of the mountains where I was born, towering over the golden plains. I'm thinking of the mighty rivers, our majestic and irreplaceable public lands.
Right after Mitt Romney's brave vote Trump opened up drilling in Bear Claw monument, Utah.
The land will be despoiled. The rivers will run with sludge.
We thought Nixon was bad. But he didn't hate our world. He signed the EPA into being.
I remember the Cuyhoga River burning. Lake Erie was dead - think of that - one of the Great Lakes was utterly, totally bereft of life.
We fought for a better world. We thought we were making progress.
My dad flew in B-24's over Europe. His XO was Jimmy Stewart. They fought the Nazis.
Think of that. Think of that.
Then think of that 1930's Bund scene in the East Room, the unhinged and unholy rant at the Prayer Breakfast; the immediate retaliation against the Vindman Brothers and Sondland for telling the truth.
Is this America? America, where truth matters, where right matters?
Is it?
My country tis of thee
Sweet land of liberty
Of thee I sing.
73
Like Jesus, Romney is being crucified for the sins of his brethren.
18
Mitt has often demonstrated moral courage. This week's demonstration reminded me of Norman Rockwell's Four Freedoms painting. Honesty regardless of what others may say:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_Freedoms#/media/File:%22Freedom_of_Speech%22_-_NARA_-_513536.jpg
2
Mitt Romney proved that members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are moral than White Evangelical Christians, who have sold their souls in support of Trump.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are the real followers of Jesus Christ.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are the real Christians.
11
Almost immediately after the vote Trump opened up drilling in Utah's national monuments. Was this timing a coincidence or a slap at Romney? https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/06/climate/trump-grand-staircase-monument.html
17
"Conservatives used to believe this, just as they used to believe that the branches of government were coequal"
When, 200 years ago.
Let me remind people...
It will not be a breaking news as we have now every day, we won't see the headlines
'Our Republic Cease to Exist" nope.
It watched a segment of Bill Maher show that I could very well relate, and then Rachel Maddow reported how every agency under this administration becomes inadvertently corrupt starting from Secret Service, who are covering up & not releasing any info to Congress, NSA, GSA, etc...none of them function independently, they all live in fear of small despicable creature in a WH and fall like a dominoes.
http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show
Here's WAPO headline...
Secret Service Fails to Notify Congress about Spending at Trump properties
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/secret-service-has-paid-rates-as-high-as-650-a-night-for-rooms-at-trumps-properties/2020/02/06/7f27a7c6-3ec5-11ea-8872-5df698785a4e_story.html
The center doesn't hold!
"They will pay the price" the little con creature said...
Let's the Great Purge begin.
Let's see anyone wants to speak up...
Barr where is my Enemies List?
I put it in your right pocket Sir.
American submission in full view.
Bravo to our Free, Independent Press and very rare sign of courage displayed by Col. Vindman, Marie Yovanovitch, and the rest of our civil servants & one republican Romney!!!
When did we become the nation of cowards???
27
"Romney is the first/only Senator to vote to convict his own party's president!" This is not all that dramatic, considering there haven't been many opportunities. It's not as though 20 or 30 presidents have been impeached. But I do appreciate Romney doing half the right thing. He should have also voted to convict Donald for obstructing congress. The rest of the Republicans are a threat to this nation. How can we get rid of them sooner than waiting for their next election?
123
If Mr. Stephens dug a little deeper into his IMDB he would have discovered that the film he references was mostly informed by its book author Edward Abbey (Anarchist, Curmudgeon, Iconoclast, Environmentalist) and screenplay author Dalton Trumbo (likely mid-century Communist and victim of the Hollywood Blacklist until SPARTACUS). ••• The themes Stephen likes here certainly don't apply to current American political elites, and it's unlikely that they ever did, writ large. Elites have too much to lose to buck the system they happen to be part of. So corruption is easily embraced and careerism at all costs facile. Romney is seemingly insulated from all that by his religion, tenure, and his personal mammon. Good that he finally redeemed himself. It is unlikely to inspire any of his spineless associates. ••• If you want another superb "brave" Kirk Douglas film, see PATHS OF GLORY (1957). More elite corruption and cruelty; this time in the French military during WW1. (S.Kubrick, director/screenplay co-author).
8
Come on Brett, the democrats are calling! Brooks is pretty much one now and Ross will be fine without you...
10
Romney has the same problem as John Huntsman. Mostly they are good men who think about the world through their education and exposure. Known many Mormon men like this. It’s a function of their missionary work. Add Jeff Flake to the list. The reality is they are moderate Democrats. They however live in the confused state of their church and keep turning to right wing nut job status for the sake of politics and then looking in the mirror and seeing a different reality. They need to just come clean and renounce their Republican Party affiliation. Go independent and do what you do best, serve.
23
"One man with courage makes a majority," was neither spoken by Andrew Jackson nor meant as a complement to him by the man who wrote a similar phrase in a critical biography in 1860:
https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2007-jan-26-oe-feller26-story.html
Coincidentally, the quote might well summarize the connection between Trump's hero Jackson and Trump. Jackson had the "courage" to manifest the White Man's Destiny in midwestern Indian Wars and the gall to ignore the Supreme Court and force Cherokee and other "civilized tribes" onto the Trial of Tears. While Trump has never manifested the courage of a combatant, he is certainly a master of orchestrating the forces of White supremacy and resurrecting the Imperial presidency.
One man can trump a majority. End this nightmare in November.
13
“Among the things now permanently lost to Republicans amid their supposed victory in the impeachment saga is the hope of having a leg to stand on when, in the fullness of time, a future Democratic president behaves toward them exactly the way Trump behaved last year.”
When, if ever, even in the great fullness of time, does Mr. Stephens believe a Democrat could actually be elected president? As we idly watch our country slip into unrestrained authoritarianism, forgive me if I put my money on precisely “never.“ And the reason the Republicans did what they did is, they know it. (See Ornstein & Mann, “It’s Even Worse Than It Looks.”) In his rarefied world, Mr. Stephens can’t imagine that progression. Dare one say Hitler? Not a comparison Mr. Stephens would make. (But Timothy Snyder at Yale does.) Maybe Mr. Stephens would want to read Jennifer Rubin at The Washington Post to see where one goes when one does imagine it.
17
Mr. Stephens writes, "Conservatives used to believe . . . that political dirty tricks should never be normalized. . . .” Hmmm.
Mr. Stephens needs to catch up on his history. Republicans have engaged in generations of dirty political tricks to gain and hold power. Their roster includes Richard Nixon and his Plumbers (Chuck Colson, Donald Segretti et al.), Lee Atwater of Willie Horton infamy, Roger Ailes who outlined his ideas for “the GOP on TV News” while working for Nixon, and Karl Rove who smeared John McCain to put W. in the White House. These are not just sharp political operators, they did that normalization that Mr. Stephens condemns.
Perhaps conservatism needs to be re-evaluated in light of the current amoral triumph of Donald Trump. Perhaps it was never a ruling philosophy as much as a sophistic effort to achieve power.
[Four Dots Blog]
35
The fifty-two Republican Senators who voted to acquit President Trump were simply following Ronald Reagan's "eleventh commandment":
Thou shalt not speak ill of any fellow Republican.
Mr. Stephens tries to hang the disgrace on President Trump. No, it's deep within the Republican party and has been for decades.
45
Mitt Romney validates my Fathers service on Pork chop Hill My service, my sisters service my brother’s service, my nephewes service. Just when you believe all is lost a Hero arise to give you hope. Thank You Mitt.
As for My Senator Rob Portman who wrote an opted piece on why he voted to acquit the President. He is, always has been and always will be a coward.
Chuck from Ohio
46
At least Mitt finally regained his self-respect (something forever lost among his boot-licking, slavish, GOP colleagues) and took a stand for our dying - if not already dead - Republic.
35
John McCain would have voted with Mitt Romney
51
Nice article
Very thoughtful
Thank you
14
PS. Suggest the TED Talk by Yuval Noah Harari,”Why Fascism is so tempting and how your data could help power it” it’s sobering.
Please be informed and aware of propaganda and misinformation!
9
To those Republicans who have a made a deal with the devil and turned a blind eye and deaf ear to the presidents actions; the devil never! gets the short end of the stick.
16
Good job, Romney!
17
Libertarian Party ticket: Romney (President) and VIndman (Vice President)?
9
Romney is a patriot and a man of integrity. Cruz, Rubio, McConnell, McCarthy, Grassley, Jordan, Gaetz, ....mere shadows of men. Small men. Small minds. Small legacy. Small.....
29
Mitt Romney did what you would expect of an American.
31
Republicans cheat to win. Nice legacy if you want it.
16
Vox clamantis in deserto.
6
What undoubtably enrages McConnell and his cowardly caucus is not the audacity of one of their own to join the other side, but the implied judgement of Romney that they are nothing but moral lepers and unprincipled losers.
26
Is this a joke?
Romney, our resident Mormon neoliberal neoconservative warmonger, does everything for political expediency. That’s it.
7
There is a man who saved civilisation from tyranny, who is remembered for never ever accepting to be cowed by a liar and a bully. His name was Winston S. Churchill.
Senator Romney's courageous and lonely vote reminded me of Churchill alone against parliament in the late 30's, and again, this time with England, alone against Hitler's Nazi Germany.
15
Dear Bret.
Thank you for doing the lonely job of marking a small light in this dark time. Romney in his political life came across as a flawed human being, as are we all. But his footnote to history in the Senate this week was an act of heroism that makes him into a ideal for our time. The French art historian Georges Didi-Huberman wrote a book titled "The Survival of the Fireflies" in 2009. The image of the "firefly" begins in Dante's Inferno where the only light visible at a certain ring in Hell is that of the fireflies. Didi-Huberman argues that we are in age when our survival depends on honouring the small lights of the firefly. Romney's lonely act of faith in the capacity of humans to look beyond power and self-interest is for me one of those small lights in the darkness of Hell.
23
Mostly good re Romney...
Now, take the next step. Apply a bit of this insight to the perpetual stream of sophistry and delusion.
2
It was a good speech, except it's reliance on oaths to god over protecting the constitution suggests all this democratic love would be rudely canceled once that same notion was used to vote down abortion rights.
2
Bravo ,Bret Stephens, Bravo, Mitt Romney! My heart swells at knowing at least one honorable Republican still stands. This is the America I love. I now know that we will survive this fiasco of a President and Senate. I feel disgust at the likes of Lamar Alexander, Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski. Disgust at how they play their hand. Wanting Americans to think they have a conscience but selling out to power and fear. We shall overcome and when we do, we will send the likes of Trump, McConnell and the Senate packing!
8
Bravery my you know what. This was narcissism at its finest. There was not any evidence of Trump committing an impeachable offense. What there was, however, was clear evidence of a partisan attempt to overthrow the results of an election, smear a sitting president on the taxpayers' dime, and for Schiff and Schumer and Pelosi to get a lot of airtime. The heroic vote would have been to slap the articles of impeachment back where they belonged. The gutter.
Mitt is flip flopper and an opportunity grabber. He's been a capitalist predator. He's a disgrace. Anytime anyone cloaks their decisions in religion you know they are fakirs.
4
Mitt Romney's courage was nothing compared to that of Col. Vindman and the other career civil servants who spoke the truth to this nasty, vindictive power. Romney is untouchable in his Senate seat. The others are all subject to the vengeful wrath of the Oaf of Office.
17
Romney is deeply religious, and in that he respected his oath and had more fear for his conscience under God. The others, all the others, had more fear of Trump. Says a lot doesn't it. They either fear Trump more than God, or they are lying when they say they have faith in God. Pitiful, self-serving people.
And now we hear some are shocked that Trump would start firing witnesses? Are they really that naive? Or, again, are they just lying to protect their own interests to the clear detriment to the country? Pitiful, self-serving people.
Not one of these people liked Trump before he won the nomination. And now they fawn all over him? Pitiful, self-serving people.
11
I sure hope my senator, Lisa Murkowski, reads this article.
19
Nah, not a hero. You can't ignore Romney's antipathy for Trump. He can make noble claims for his decision, but he really doesn't like the president on a very personal level.
Trump called Mitt a "terrible nominee" and a loser. The president flirted with appointing Romney his Secretary of State--then rejected him. Mitt has gone from his party's nominee to a freshman senator. So he poked Trump in the eye, and, like Samson, brought the building down on his own head.
2
You had the choice of either Vindman or Romney for an article about a "profile in courage" and you chose Romney? A multimillionaire with nothing to lose but friends who cower and pander to Trump? You chose Romney over Vindman?
Honestly, sometimes I wonder who's worse: you establishment Republicans or your base...
4
This was pretty palatable as far as Bret’s columns go, but I have to say he lost me when he said that Trump and others attacking Romney “are no better than the left’s cancel-culture warriors.” Bret just couldn’t resist slipping it in there, no matter how tangential and snipey it comes off.
This line is worth noting because it represents the precariousness (and arguably the hollowness) of Brett’s political philosophy/position as a Never-Trump Republican. While he can write an otherwise clear-eyed (and admittedly eloquent) reckoning about the moral bankruptcy of the GOP, he still feels compelled to validate his tight-rope balancing act by drawing false equivalencies with the Left. Of course there are problematic aspects of cancel culture, but it’s laughable to think that those drawbacks come close to those of a modern GOP that’s shamefully anti-Democratic (and that since Trump’s ascendancy has completely trashed political civility and decorum.) Not only that, but Stephens puts the rhetorical onus on comparably benign Cancel Culture by saying that Trump and his surrogates “are no better” — not the other way around.
I’m interested to see how Brett’s politics evolve as the GOP entrenches minority rule and becomes even more and more absurd and less and less tolerant of democracy (and even paying lip service to democracy) over the coming years. By that time, Brett will run out of false equivalencies and will have to reckon with his own (allegedly) rational-right position.
15
There is something in the Republican DNA that enjoys being impotent, in the name of sadism. The Senate of predominately white men and women, enjoy and relish ways to be cruel to other human beings, including their own kind. We are now citizens of hourly sadistic acts and authoritarian monsters. The corruption has been assured. Democrats are deer in headlights and red states keep turning their heads away except for Democratic Senator Doug Jones of Alabama. He stood up and will lose everything. Romney did the right thing, but will always have his job. Who is the most brave of the two? The larger issue is that this was seen as so hard. Wait until this Republican Senate has a problem they cannot control; Trump's demolishment of all three military academies, the withholding of federal dollars from all blue states, and the wholesale deportation of all black and brown people, and naturalized citizens, out of the country. It's coming soon and we can all count on Republicans doing nothing. Cruelty is the new norm and releasing military criminals who laugh and pose for pictures with starving, dead 16 year olds, in their laps, is our new American pastime.
11
Not a word here about a great American original, the author of the novel on which “Lonely Are the Brave is based, Edward Abbey. The book is “The Brave Cowboy.” Abbey wrote the classic “Desert Solitaire” and the more popular environmental activist “The Monkey Wrench Gang.”
6
Jees, could Mitt enter the presidential race?
God Bless Mitt Romney! It is far better to come to some principles later in life than never. He HAD to know his brave vote to convict would open him up to vile, repulsive abuse: Exhibit #1: SEE Trump Jr.’s putrid-obscene comment on Instagram/too obscene to repeat here. And, yes, I am fully aware of his abuse of hard-working people when he was at Bain Capital. I am not ignoring that. But on this day in the U.S. Senate, with that speech he gave in the Senate, he was truly a ‘profile in courage.’ Did you listen to that speech? NOBODY talks like that anymore in the U.S. Senate!
7
We don't really know why Mr. Romney did what he did at this time in his life and career (and our history). As a clinical therapist, I look to people's past behaviors--and patterns therein--to assess their sincerity and level of commitment (to sobriety, for example). Whether Mr. Romney will continue to honor his oaths (to G*d, his faith, the citizenry and the Constitution) remains to be seen, and only his future choices and actions will tell the tale.
3
It really shouldn’t be this big of a deal for a Republican to stand up and do the right thing, especially when they’re in the darn Senate.
9
If corporations are people, Mitt Romney is the best corporation in America.
5
Those who testified (and their relatives) are the truely brave. Losing their jobs and having reputations smeared by a vindictive tyrant. Piling on and silence when a Purple Heart recipient is attacked by so called “patriots.”
11
Frank Capra. Fred Zinnemann. Gary Cooper. Jimmy Stewart. "High Noon." "Meet John Doe." "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington."
Bret Stephens asks if the Mitt Romney who stood up to Trump in a way that will go down in history is the same Mitt Romney with an imperfect past.
Yes.
Watch the above movies, and others like them. The American hero who walks out, alone, to face the gunman, is *always* imperfect. Heck, Gary Cooper as Frank Capra's John Doe was actually a bum in on a scam.
All these heroes were bashed by their fellow citizens. They all had to be heroes alone. They all faced being mocked and smeared for their own imperfections.
And yet, to cite a female, real life heroine, they persisted.
Mr. Smith was a rube. Will Kane was afraid. John Doe was a bum with bad motivations. And they are all heroes, as we ourselves can be, and must be, if we are to "keep" our Republic.
6
I am no cowboy—the right word is buckaroo or vaquero, a northern Mexican thing the latecomers translated into cowboy—but I have known some old timers who were and many a wannabe. In 1962 a man who played his failings off as being cowboy because he can’t read the situation he is in is about as opposite all the old timers view of a good hand as can be imagined.
And the range had been fenced most everywhere when the character was still a kid.
But this is the type of fake conservative view that Bret always finds to put his no cattle big hat on. The senate fascists—sticking together like a bundle or reeds for their strongmen aren’t they?—are just another flavor of fake conservative. Romney’s real crime is that he is a Mormon surrounded by white racism evangelicals and white right wing Roman Catholics that many Mormons know from history are their mortal enemies. Mormons have a hard earned skepticism about theocracys other than those of Deseret. So Romney was primed. Lee has no excuse.
3
Thank you, Mitt.
10
I was pleasantly surprised by Senator Romney. I think history will remember this man who tried to save our Democracy. We are looking at dark skies ahead of the election. If Mr. Trump wins another term, our country will change in a way we longer will recognize. His base thinks this is great right now. I do not think they know the implications of what just happened. All of the never Trumpers need to stick together and vote for anyone else. This is how dictatorships begin. Ask people about what happened before Hitler was able to come into full power. It does not happen quickly. It takes shape slowly. Today we saw the beginning.
8
Just firing Colonel Vindman wasn't enough for Trump. He had to purge the colonel's relatives as well. It's hard to believe that we are talking about the government of the United States here.
16
Who will write the 50+ volume series "Profiles in Cowardice"?
10
This Liberal Democrat is impressed and hopeful that ONE....Republican stood up to Donald J Trump! I do agree with many Americans, who are saddened that our bar is so LOW for courage! My heart aches for our nation because we are on a very dangerous and slippery slope towards tyranny!
Thank you, Senator Mitt Romney, for your courage, integrity and faith in God and our Constitutional republic!
“We, the People are the rightful masters of both the Congress and the Constitution, not to overthrow the Constitution, but to OVERTHROW THE MEN WHO WOULD PERVERT the Constitution.” - Abraham Lincoln (excuse the shouting)
Let’s OVERTHROW ALL Republicans up for re-election on November 3rd, 2020!
10
Do you recall how prior to the November 2018 election Mitt relocated from his comfortable retired life in Massachusetts to run for the Senate seat in Utah? I always figured that was to provide some adult supervision for the Republican Party. I was then a bit disappointed that he was somewhat slow in doing that, but that's OK—he's now up to speed in a big way. But what's so sad is how he's out there all alone.
Come on, not even one of the other Republican senators could have said the heck with it, I don’t care if I lose my next election, I'm going to do something that will make my grandkids proud of me?
9
Watching Senator Collins’s facial contortions and listening to her strangulated enunciations, I thought about how much easier it is to be truthful, difficult as that may be! And more healthful for the soul, heart and body.
348
While so much attention has been focused on Romney's courageous vote, let's not forget the extremely courageous vote of Doug Jones, a Democratic Senator in a State Trump won by double digits and who is up for re-election this very year.
This is the same Doug Jones who as a prosecutor in Alabama was able to get long-delayed justice for the little girls who died in the Birmingham Church bombing in the 1960s.
Doug Jones deserves our admiration and support
Here is his speech explaining his vote
https://www.c-span.org/video/?468922-4/senator-doug-jones-impeachment-president-trump
And here is more about him
https://dougjones.com
13
Wow. Well done.
2
Love how Bret always manages to make a bad story about the right into a swipe at the left.
No, the treatment of Romney by the right is nothing like what you characterize about the left's "cancel-culture warriors", who at the very least condemn those who do wrong to others, not those who stand up for what used to be widely accepted as decency, as Romney has done.
2
I’m no special fan of Mitt Romney; I didn’t vote for him in 2012. Yet with this one vote he’s framed himself as an honest and dedicated public servant who spoke his own mind in the face of Trumpist criticism and the damnation from colleagues.
Mr. Stephens’ statement that acquittal of Mr. Trump wasn’t vindication should be the thing Democrats tell voters in this next election cycle. What Mr. Trump forgets is that the “impeachment” was real, and it called him out for particularly bad behavior. He only won because Mitch McConnell stonewalled the process by not allowing witnesses; the other part, that a super majority could never be reached is only the result of the rest of the Senate not having the integrity, common sense and decency to stand up to the Bully-in-chief.
True, for this particular office in our government perhaps a higher bar needed to be reached to secure the president’s removal from office. And while a simple majority couldn’t be reached, a sizable number of votes for removal signal to us all that the articles of impeachment had merit.
4
Have to wonder if Mr. Romney might not garner a meaningful percentage of votes in the upcoming presidential election from Republicans sick of the cowardice and constitutional perversion of their party.
2
Totally agree. I thought Romney's speech articulated what we Americans need at this point in time.
6
The following comes from a Democrat and one not so religious. After seeing the courage and conviction of Mitt Romney in his impeachment trial vote I can understand why the Mormans were able to go into the wilderness and successfully do what they did in mid-19th Century Utah. He is made of some powerful stuff. America should be proud of him and needs more like him.
6
"The country would be a better place if more people in positions of power acted.." like Mitt Romney.
Wow!
If I were Romney's campaign manager for his (unannounced but now highly probable) 2024 Presidential run--as a Democrat--I would be kicking my heels in the air. You want drama? Mitt now has drama. You want pathos, self-sacrifice? Check. You want that singular man of conscience, willing to do the right thing, no matter the cost? Mitt is (now) that man.
I think Romney wisely did the math, concluded that he was, to today's Trumpians, an also-ran at best and, at worst, toast.
We will see, in the months after the election, the emergence of a new Mitt Romney, who, unable to act against conscience, will leave the Republican Party. Whether he declares himself a Democrat, or (if that's a bridge too far even for him) an Independent, he will caucus with the Democrats (like Bernie and Angus King do now) and vie to become their nominee in 2024.
He will run on his (previously forsaken) record as the purplish Governor of Massachusetts ("The People's Republic"), as the inventor of the prototype for phased-in, practical, Universal Health Care.
Don't laugh! This could work out. Maybe after the Dems crash this election, too--which looks likely; after a year of fielding box-check candidates who engage mostly in food fights and wishful thinking, they will be in a new place. A place where a lone individual can break the cycle of Quixotic self-sabotage and get the job done.
Mitt in 2024?
1
Interesting that so many people see Romney's move as just some toss-off.
But it would have been easier to do nothing. Be a part of the herd, accept McConnell's "reasoning" as your excuse. Romney can be a flawed person in some ways and still brave. Going against Trump's machine at this point in time is brave whether you like Mitt or not.
Just witness the imperial hissy-fit Donald had- you know that hit a big nerve. But their reward? They had to listen to him at that "prayer breakfast" insult what is left of their intelligence for an hour like trapped mice.
Mitt made a better deal.
6
Becoming a "man for all seasons".
4
Romney, Warren, McConnell, Trump, Buttigieg, Graham, Klobuchar, Biden...before a time when they derived their sense of self by appealing, by any means, for support from some mass of people, always different tribes depending on circumstances and goals, they were just folks, muddling through some combination of experience, growth, luck, opportunity, neediness, and a need for validation. Just like all of us. Do you know the names of firefighters that rescued your parents or child from the flames, the physicians that repaired your broken, obese, abused and failing body without judgement or rebuke, the kids and adults that didn't bully or harass? No you don't. But you know who Limbaugh is. Yeah, this is who we are.
4
Amen. Anyone supporting the impeachment should write a note to Mitt Romney and thank him; I did.
5
That brave man was completely OK with obstruction of justice?
Trump told CNN the firings of the major impeachment witnesses was meant to send a message that siding against the President will not be tolerated.
He thinks he’s a king.
Americans fought to rid themselves of a king in the revolutionary war.
trump must be voted out. Congress won’t do it. We citizens must. The alternative would be unbearable. FIGHT! for what’s right. trump is wrong.
3
I neither praise or condemn Mitt for his stand on impeachment—he’s entitled to his opinion and bears the consequences of his decision, just like the rest of us. But that doesn’t make him right or deserving of the hero status that Democrats are so eager to give him. The case against Trump was hopelessly weak and doomed to failure. Democrats used impeachable as a means to an end and, in this case, they suffered more damage then they inflicted, and Mitt Romney is just part of that collateral damage.
4
The case was “hopelessly weak” ? The defense was allowed to argue that the testimony was hearsay but the judges refused to hear first hand testimony ? How about the trial being rigged ?
2
From the Ed abbey book "The Brave Cowboy". We need more Ed Abbeys these days and more people ought to read his work. Freedom in the United States is quickly becoming a joke, unless you're wealthy and morality fodder for reality TV. The country needs to grow a spine, not just the Republicans.
What is very baffling, at least to me, is how could democrat and republican come to such completely different conclusions on the same evidence, or lack of it? Didn't Mitt discuss his thoughts with others, and didn't they intensely discuss theirs with him? After all, isn't that what goes on in the isolated little room jurors inhabit after a trial? Conversely, it may very well be that most are so disgustingly power hungry that despite all the soaring rhetoric, they are merely jockeying for more exposure. Given Mr. Romney's history of turn arounds, I suspect this. Core values originating from faith do not gyrate.
2
Thank you NYT, for applauding Romney's Courage. This reminds me of George Wallace, who also changed (NYT: Forgiving George Wallace By John Lewis Sept. 16, 1998)
2
I respect and admire Mitt Romney for having the courage to stand up for our Constitution. I believe a moral man can be re-elected in Utah.
Florida’s US Senators are “little Marco” Rubio and Rick “Fifth Amendment” Scott. Rubio’s blinded by political ambition, and Rick Scott should be in Federal prison for Medicare Fraud.
That’s how we roll in Disney World.
4
The anthology of stories about civic courage in America is large. Celebration of these heroes does not require they become some contemporary avatar of Delacroix’ “Liberty Leading the People.” These heroes simply rank their integrity, public service, and the welfare of the nation above personal and party advantage. They always pay a very high price.
75 years ago, the House Un-American Activities Committee investigated communists in Hollywood. Contrast the ,then ,president of the Screen Actors Guild,Ronald Reagan “naming names” of those he suspected of being “fellow travelers” to the testimony of the group of screenwriters who refused to cooperate. Lives and careers were destroyed by Reagan’s testimony , and by their refusal to cooperate, the screenwriters sacrificed their careers.
Those passions are now cold. Whom do Americans judge to be the heroes of that terrible time in America? Romney’s Cri de Coeur will be honored by history because ,in a corrupted Republican Party, one Republican Senator placed his oath, duty and personal honor far above the fleeting self interest of his party. No matter one’s personal politics, that courageous act will endure long after the memories of the President and Senator McConnell turn stone cold.
1
Right now Mr. Trump is engaged in exacting revenge against those he perceives as his enemy. In his mind, that is anyone who opposes him in any way. With staff under his control, such as Lt. Col. Vindman, that will include attempts to permanently destroy his career. Trump is not only doing this out in the open, he is flaunting it. No doubt President Trump will do everything in his power to humiliate and punish Senator Romney, including inciting Trump supporters to join him in the persecution. The main purpose of this brazen public retaliation is to intimidate others who might consider bravely speaking out against him in the future. Fear and intimidation are the tools of dictators, not statesmen. The only unused threat remaining is violence.
These are the acts of a tyrant and a bully, not worthy of the leader of what is supposed to be a nation of laws, honor and justice. Having been acquitted of a crime he clearly committed, Trump now feels he can openly indulge whatever dishonorable tactics he would like to demonstrate, and no one, least of all our Congress, will stand in his way.
3
Excellent column praising a great movie and a a patriotic American. It is too easy for people to give up hope in our constitutional democracy, as the fascism that Trump and the Republicans are brandishing is the quick way to get what one wants. I just hope that Trump's collection of racists, the greedy and the xenophobes among us can be overcome by those people of principled good will. The election will be a test of that. God help us.
1
How many Republican Senators in the deepest recesses of their souls envy the moral courage of Mitt Romney?
Truth be known, my money is on several, if not all.
7
Romney voted not guilty on obstruction which is the most serious charge.
He is not hero he is a coward who knew his guilty vote would have no effect other than to inspire insipid articles in praise of him for taking no risk at all.
He still wants to be president. He is still the same man whose morality while different in how he displays it is equal to or lower than Mr Trump's morality. I happen to think that even Trump would hesitate to destroy the lives of millions of Americans so he could pocket the money that supported them and their community for no other reason that the fact that he was greedy and found out a way that he could do it while calling it something else. Think about the hundreds of thousand sof those people who became drunks and addicts after losing their livelihoods. How many dies as direct result of him what did they call it??? improving the economy.
Wrong Bret. Romney voted for impeachment primarily for hid deep animus toward Trump. No fair minded person on the Republican side thought the same. Romney has been a habitual flip flopper, failed miserably as a presidential candidate. Didn’t energize his base and important swing voters. His controversial vote is another stain on his political legacy.
2
Not a hero for me. There is something of Comey in him.
3
Trump was clearly angry about the 3 years of Witch-hunt. He partly blamed Ukraine for it. His wish to investigate Ukraines involvement and the possible connections to Biden, could have had other reasons than private gain.
For Romney to assume the worst, was very un Christian and self serving. Good excuse to get back at Trump, while sounding unselfish
3
And an addendum to your last sentence could be, "and Republicans are NOT patriots."
1
How did the Senate allow itself to get to this point?
How did the Chief Justice, representing the Judicial Branch allow a trial in which he is residing allow the foreman of the jury with a profound conflict of interest (by having his wife serve at the pleasure of the defendant).
How is it possible that the most serious trial this country can hold was nothing short of a “mob trial”.
It is all incredibly disappointing.
2
Explain to me how a wealthy 72 yr old with plenty of time left on his current term of office is "brave"? Sorry, but it's a heck of a lot easier to point out the patently obvious when you have nothing to lose by doing so.
64
@H Silk You missed the point completely. He had everything to lose. And if it were so easy to do this then more Republicans would have done so (because we do know that not EVERYONE with an R next to his/her name loves the president).
65
What Bret Stephens is missing is that Republicans long since have given up to their commitment to Democracy. The whole point of the current Republican party is to perpetuate Republican control. The only difference between the Republican party in the U.S. and the Communist Party in China is that the Communist Party in China has already cemented its complete control over China. The Republicans are still working on that.
2
"One man with courage makes a majority." Indeed. Mitt Romney's one vote to indict would have devastated Trump more than his joy from 52 votes to acquit.
2
I don' t like to see anyone who was and perhaps continues to be cruel to animals, who would put an innocent four legged creature on the top of a station wagon and drive hundreds of miles, who made a fortune at Bain Capital, private equity firm which took over failing businesses, sounded the death knell for them because in doing so Bain was able to deny pension benefits to the employees, Romney ,who asked and received from Trump a campaign contribution, then turned around and voted against him the Senate, thereby becoming a hero of the left. "A hill to die on?"Even as a metaphor it fails, since Romney never served a day in the military, and discouraged his sons from joining up. You have good journalists at the Times newspaper, but Mr. Stephens was not a particularly good choice.Should have hired writers, historians like Victor Hanson, Pat Buchanan, Cal Thomas to balance things out.
1
If Mitt Romney is the America's new brave cowboy, then we are in serious trouble. All Romney did was listen to the prosecutors put forth the evidence, and act accordingly. I view his vote as one of job responsibility more than one of courage. The lone Republican vote to remove Trump from office is more of a reflection of the lack of moral integrity on the part of the other 52 Republican Senators.
The GOP has now transitioned from an equal part of the two party system of our government, into the Trump cult party. They only do his bidding with no consideration of the consequences.
Romney is of the Mormon faith and lives in Utah. Utah was one of the few red states that did not vote overwhelmingly for Trump. The chances of him losing an election there is slim and none.
3
Beautifully said. And just a little heartbreaking.
4
All regular Times readers hope that Bret Stephens will use his power of the pen and intelligence to upset his conservative friends by supporting whoever ends up running against Trump. Not voting ( or writing in Mike Bloomberg ) is a vote for Trump.
5
Certainly, Mitt Romney stands out among the Senators of his party for his loyalty to evidence, the truth and the Constitution. What is inexplicable is how 52 other Senators could resist reason and truth in voting against removal in light of the evidence and common reasoning. One must be particularly disturbed by some of the rational used by so-called moderates to justify their betrayal of their Constitutional obligations, not to mention the total loyalty of others to the president and party rather than to their country. This has to be a very low point in the political history of the United States.
4
As Bret Stephens points out, Mitt Romney is a weathervane that turns with the current political winds. And Romney is in no danger of losing his office in Utah.
His vote to convict Trump was the right thing to do, for sure. But I wouldn't elevate his vote to the level of "courageous," even though he showed more of it than any other Republican in Congress.
3
". . . political courage makes a patriot." Saying 'no' is not so hard to do when you're a private-equity multi-millionaire. Saying 'no' is a lot harder when your name is Rosa Parks or Muhammad Ali. That said, I applaud Mitt's actions, something I didn't think I'd ever say.
6
Mr. Romney did tell the truth, but I don’t see why he is given credit for “courage.”
Voting for removal will not endanger his prospects for reelection when he next runs, and did not effect the outcome.
2
This Democrat is deeply thankful that Senator Romney did the right thing. He is to be commended without reservation for this selfless and patriotic act. I don't know of any Democrats who don't appreciate this for the courage it took. The historical importance of his vote cannot, and will not, be overstated. Thank you, Senator Romney, from the bottom of this American's heart.
And, Mr. Stephens, your phrase, "Yet the senator from Utah finally seems to have found the hill he’s willing to die on." was quite poignant. Thanks for that.
4
Now if politicians in both parties can put principle above politics, as Romney has done, our nation would be much improved. Marching lockstep behind Pelosi or McConnell has led us down the wrong path.
1
Yes, Romney's words were moving and elequent. But let me be (maybe) the only contrarian. Near 80, I've seen much in my life, and feel I have a sense of human behavior, emotions.
Yes, Romney did the right thing - at the very last moment, knowing Trump would be acquitted. As he said, he knew he'd be vilified for his actions. And here's my cynicism: he also knew he'd be safe in Utah, and could bathe in his glorious "courage."
So he does the right thing, but his motives betray his sincerity. Finally, actions are all that matter, regardless of one's feelings, so he gets credit for that. But for me, his actions came so late when he could have stood up much earlier, thereby encouraging some others to stand with him, really helping the country.
So hurl those rotten tomatoes. I'm old, I can take it.
3
The Founding Fathers pledged their lives, their fortunes AND their sacred honor to the cause of liberty and independence. We just watched the Republican Party throw away their honor to protect their fortunes. Shame on their name.
4
I just sent a letter of thanks to Senator Romney for his brave and principled vote in the Impeachment trial. Let’s hope in the long run it will be frequently compared to the sycophantic and self-serving votes of his fellow Republicans supporting the disgusting Trump. I deeply hope that many of them will not survive the coming election in Nov. when they may sorely wish they had followed Romney’s example.
I also sent thanks and a small contribution to Senators Manchin and Jones for the strength and character they exhibited in their votes of GUILTY! All three of these Patriots should hear our thanks for their brave actions!
7
Please Mr. Stephens, profile in courage, really, a patriot, really... Mr. Romney, who was simply doing his job and was well aware that his one vote would have nothing to do with anything, is hardly a hero. I would say Mr. Biden is the real hero who shows not only courage, but class. Republicans (including Mitt Romney) have shown true cowardice and are as mean and ignorant as can be and they should be called out at every turn, and yes, a thank you to Mr. Romney for doing his job -- but turning him into a hero and patriot is frankly a desperate bridge too far.
1
Voting as sheeple reminds me of an old movie, the name of which I cannot recall. There's a town meeting. The mayor asks for a vote. All but one person vote in favor. The mayor asks the lone dissenter why he opposed the measure. His answer? "Oh, I agree with it, it just don't seem democratic if everyone votes the same."
2
Political courage requires two things, both necessary: (1) following your conscience (whether it's really "right" or not in the short or long run is immaterial), and (2) recognizing full well the dire personal and political consequences of doing so.
What ever he may have done or said in the past, Romney qualifies on this one. Certainly a rarity these days.
2
For over four decades I would offer students extra credit if they wrote to a Congressman or Senator. Always the argument was why must I do the address as The Honorable when they aren't. No correct address, no extra credit.
One speech does not make Mr. Romney honorable but for a man with four more years to serve, his recent speech does separate him from the herd of less than honorable men. Mr. Romney will face derision in Utah and abuse from the president and he will a pariah in his party. It was just one speech but it was the only voice of honest conviction at last. Mr. Romney, you are honorable and you get the extra credit.
3
It's admirable when someone who's spent a political life acting first in his own interest, making big claims, offers of help and promises not followed through, finally makes a heroic stand on principle, Viewed cynically, at his age, wealth and station, he didn't have much to lose. Still, I'll give him his due.
I'll save my real admiration and gratitude for those who had much to lose and didn't hesitate to stand up for the truth, now being fired, escorted out like criminals by the real criminal in power. That admiration and gratitude includes Senator Doug Jones, who has made a career out of standing up, and to my knowledge has never waffled over the choice between his career advancement and his moral stances.
8
As powerful as "Lonely Are the Brave" is, far more apt examples of political courage were seen the television series "Profiles in Courage" based on John F. Kennedy's 1956 book of the same title and featuring many well-known actors as guest stars. Only 26 episodes were made and shown during the 1964-65 television series. One, starring Walter Matthau, can be found on the free online Internet Archive, but where are the others? They can be purchased for $50-60 but they should be broadcast on television so that American citizens can be reminded of what patriotism, ethics, and integrity are all about. Please, networks, History Channel...and especially FOX...someone air this series now to teach the American people about civics and democracy before it's too late!
4
Great idea. I was a teenager when those programs were broadcast and I think they had an influence on my sense of what being courageous means.
Here in Utah the state is dropping “civics” as a required course for high school graduation. Think about that.
3
It was refreshing and oddly comforting to see Senator Romney's lone voice of honesty and truth, no matter his motivation.
I'm old enough to remember his father - another man of principle.
Wonder if he'll throw his hat in the ring for the presidency...we shall see.
4
Mitt Romney's speech clearly demonstrated his awareness of the judgment that future generations will pass upon this dark time in America. On the other hand, the majority's vote to acquit shows that Republicans do not believe in a future that can judge them. What else would you expect? They've burdened the future with crippling debt to pay for their tax cuts, condemned future generations to live in an inhospitable world with their denial of global warming, and ensured future hostilities between nations by disparaging multinational working agreements like the Iran nuclear deal. Their legacy is a majority of conservative federal court appointments and an electoral process that enshrines gerrymandering, voter suppression and a "one dollar, one vote" ideal.
8
I find it deeply ironic that the very institution that was supposed to protect our nation and our constitution from voters who put a run-amok demagogue in line for the presidency, the Electoral College, was actually the institution or instrument used to do exactly that - and I'm not laughing.
6
@Glenn Thomas
The republicans have been working on this for decades. They captured the political process under reagan. The communist style get in line or we will destroy you party practices drove out all that think for themselves leaving us with only the morally bankrupt to run for office willing to do as they are told. The republicans in Congress have been toadies for 30 years at least. Even McCain the supposed "maverick" is legendary for his falling in line when it came time to vote.
They also were working on capturing the state houses and governorship's. While seeking to appoint as many corrupt judges as they could to capture the judiciary.
1
With his vote, Mitt Romney exemplifies the practice of Stoic philosophy: do what you need to do to be right with your "personal commandments" -- the things that ground you as a person. His oath was taken to God, but it may as well have been taken to Vishnu or Allah or the stars above -- it was also taken to himself.
An inspiring act, regardless of its inability to sway the mob.
3
I hope you read your comments Bret Stephen, you too are a brave soul. Your words resonate and give hope. Thanks for your thoughtful approach to this uphill climb and to the support you lend to friends in need.
5
Senator Romney's commitment to the Constitution gives me hope. His words should be studied, not ridiculed, by the sitting president.
6
Mr. Stephens claims to have read Senator Romney's "masterly" speech denouncing the crimes of President Trump. Perhaps he should have read more closely. In Mr. Romney's speech, unlike Brett's editorial, there was no hint of "but the other side does things just as bad."
9
It’s amazing to me how low the bar is for being courageous these days. Saying out loud what everybody with a brain knows to be true should be expected. Wow look at Romney he told the truth. We are indeed in trouble.
12
Astonishing that so many senators stated that Trump's acts were wrong, but not bad enough to warrant impeachment. Thank you, Mr. Stephens, for reminding us that not all politicians in Washington are cowards, unwilling to take a public stand, even when they know it's the right thing to do. I hope voters remember who they are when election time comes around. It's not only time to dump Trump, but dump the cowards, as well.
8
"Among the things now permanently lost to Republicans... is the hope of having a leg to stand on when a future Democratic president behaves toward them exactly the way Trump behaved last year."
The republicans' chips are all in on preventing a democratic president ever again, whatever it takes. That's what they're betting on.
10
It's odd that the Democrats aren't congratulated for doing the right thing as much as Mitt Romney. They have been criticized far more. So much judgment because of their actions in this whole sordid affair, even from fellow Democrats. They should not have impeached when they knew Trump would be acquitted. They showed no loyalty to the president. It was pure partisanship, a waste of taxpayer dollars, a calculated political gamble, there was not enough evidence, they should have brought more charges, they should have forced testimony through the courts, the voters should decide the ultimate outcome, blah, blah, blah. Rather a double standard, isn't it? Mitt Romney voted to convict. Gold star for him. Everyone should have done so, no matter what party they belonged to. We are all Americans first and foremost.
8
"The strongest man in the world is he who stands most alone." - Henrik Ibsen.
Romney's soul searching and heroism deserve recognition and acknowledgement. The statement about fearing the censure of his own conscience struck me as unique for our current political state. This is in a striking contrast to his own party. One thing we now know even more, Romney honored his conscience while Trump and his GOP enablers/supporters continue to display their un-American cowardly and shameful behavior. Our democracy needs and deserves more Romneys and much less Trumps. History will remember and honor Romney's moment but only if we can keep our Republic. I see no hope other than voting blue no matter who!
10
Plot Twist: Romney runs as an independent in 2020.
5
Senate Republicans are not cowards. They have the same attitude as the various state Republicans who gerrymander people out of their equal representation under the law. They have strong authoritarian tendencies, weak interest in democracy, and will do whatever is legal - or nearly legal - to prevail. The so-called Freedom Caucus has taken over and Trump is perfect for them.
4
@Milo I guess honesty is just not Republicans' strong suit.
It bears mention that the film was based on Edward Abbey's book The Brave Cowboy'.
2
You once again paint a false equivalency. Those on the left may have had problems with Romney and his policies, but have always seen him as a decent man. Those one the right simply want to tear him apart.
8
Sad, isn't it, that Romney had to stand alone. He did it elegantly.
The tinfoil hatted Republicans proudly proclaimed their bravery by announcing Trump did wrong but then hid behind their horses by saying that it wasn't bad enough to provoke his ire. Portman even preened in these pages over his integrity. It's a shame they can't remember, or more likely choose not to, an earlier Republican with a backbone: Margaret Chase Smith who did in fact stand up to call out an ogre. It was the beginning of his end.
If 5-8 of those who thought Trump was wrong and admitted to themselves that he was very wrong in endangering the US while accepting a bribe -- election aid -- said so in unison, what was Trump to do. He can attack that many buy his weaponry is small bore against that many. I guess the R stands for Removal of spine.
5
As things stand, he might even have a shot as a third-party candidate for the Presidency.
3
An example of real courage.
When Doug Jones, Democrat, got up on Wednesday, and he explained why he would vote to convict Donald Trump and remove him from office, he did so in the knowledge that it was going to complicate a re-election campaign that already looked like a long shot.
I believe Doug Jones voted to convict Donald Trump, regardless of the obvious political peril.
13
Mitt Romney is a true hero of our country.
It took real courage to stand up to the bully who has the bully pulpit.
I am ever indebted to you, for you have given me some hope that our democracy might be saved.
2
I think Senator Romney may have had this in mind:
Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light ... Which justify the wicked for reward, and take away the righteousness of the righteous from him! (Isiah 5)
None calleth for justice, nor any pleadeth for truth: they trust in vanity, and speak lies. (Isiah 59)
I can find no better description of President Trump and his cult of corruption. This was on full display on Thursday at the national prayer breakfast.
The difference between Senator Romney and the other Republican Senators is that Mitt Romney knows that he cannot call evil good and good evil, justify the wicked for reward and take away the righteousness of the righteous (falsely accuse good people who are trying to do the right thing of being bad people with bad motives) and still be Mitt Romney.
2
In most committees, two people make a majority.
"....lost to Republicans amid their supposed victory in the impeachment saga is the hope of having a leg to stand on when, in the fullness of time, a future Democratic president behaves toward them exactly the way Trump behaved last year."
One thing is certain for me, and I'll bet a tidy sum in backing it up.... Mitch's Republican Sheep would have no trouble at all in fully reversing their recent convictions given a Democrat were in office. Their kind of loose logic has no bounds because it makes no sense. The Merrick Garland episode proved this. McConnell isn't about to change now or ever.
7
I despise Donald Trump and will always be a democrat but I have come to the realization and acceptance that a second Trump term could be very tolerable if there was an overwhelming majority in the house and senate of democrats. We are playing the wrong game. Down ballot is the only races that matter. The presidency is a distraction and just like McConnell neutered Obama we should work to do the same to republicans
House, senate and governorships are the races that matter. Say the mantra every day. We actually win better this way for more Americans.
9
Yes, with a 2/3 democratic majority in the house and senate we could pass a law to quickly build Trump’s wall at the border. However, the wall will be engraved with every failure, every lie, every despicable thing he’s ever said and done, the articles of his impeachment, huge flatscreen panels constantly displaying his blooper moments, such as toilet paper dangling from his shoe while boarding Air Force One, how he showed the world his inability to operate an umbrella while boarding Air Force One, etc. Not to mention, rest areas for people crossing the border that has a food court, beds, a clinic, and a playground for children. We could undo everything Trump has ever done, just like what he’s doing to Obama’s legacy, but we take it a step further. We deport him and his ilk to a failed state south of the border, confiscate and liquidate his assets to compensate all the people he’s swindled. Since those Republicans love statues so much, we’ll build a myriad of them to depict the our collective disgust toward Republicans and their archaic, morally and ethically corrupt values, and put them all over the red states.
1
Although there may be much truth in judging Romney as too little, too late, Mr. Stephens's commentary is noteworthy as it comes from a "conservative" according to an older, almost extinct now definition: one who believes on conserving principles of democracy and the rule of law, both of which have been shredded by the so-called "conservatives" of the Republican Senate. Lincoln would be dismayed to see his become the party of cowardice.
3
History will not be kind to the Democrats and their impeachment charade.
1
@Tod And far less kind to Trump, his enablers and his base. Good people are walking away from this administration and history will take note.
13
When did the noble Republicans Bret Stephens describes with ideals and ethics exist? I've always heard about them, but are we going back to the time of Lincoln? Reading the Federalist Papers?
I was born under President Nixon. Enough said about his ethics. Dirty trickster campaigning started with his Lee Atwater. Then Reagan, who claimed to be a compassionate conservative while waging war on the poor. Racist campaigns, manipulating evangelicals, blowing up the deficit, losing mental acuity. Then the Bushes. The father wasn't awful but got behind Reagan's cruel policies. The son blew it on 9/11, lied us into a multi-trillion dollar war, and crashed the market. When Republicans had Congress, we had the Contract with America with Newt the Brat, an impeachment over lying about sex, the Tea Party, Benghazi, and Supreme-Court stealing Mitch - the only goal was sabotaging Democrats. Now this guy. Trump's sexual habits are nastier than Bill Clinton's; he has zero mental stability, lies like a dog, and got impeached for dirty tricks campaigning, while using public tax dollars and abandoning an ally to do it.
I'm 50 now and the best Republicans I've seen in my lifetime are Gerald Ford, Barney, and Checkers. With Trump, Republicans have simply moved from hidden hate to overt nasty hate. Where were the good Republicans again?
(Mitt is an Eisenhower Republican - the closest to what Republicans like Bret still think they are. Those are now called traitors.)
9
To me, one of the most frightening things that has happened (besides the purging of Impeachment witnesses) was the shamelessness with which Trump attacked Mitt Romney and Nancy Pelosi during the prayer meeting for their strong faith, accusing them of hypocrisy. And I say this as a non-believer. How dare he. I think he is evil.
10
I applauded Romney's vote and got somewhat emotional during his powerful speech. That said, one point does not make a line. Romney has, by his own admission, voted with Trump 80% of the time.
If the senator follows up his vote and speech by opposing Trump from here on in, then I will believe that Mitt is a different breed from his disgusting & cowardly Republican peers.
Let's watch him closely.
3
Best keep the pen at the ready Bret. Senator Romney is your first Patriot you wrote about, but Colonel Vindman was fired today, and escorted out the door. And another Ambassador Sunland just got fired. We lost Ambassador Walker, and Ambassador Yovanovitch already.
There will be more Patriots lost because of this vindictive President.
So please Bret, keep that pen close at hand.
9
THIS: "Yet there is no constitutional case to leave to voters decisions that belong only to Congress — the dark road Mitch McConnell went down when he denied Judge Merrick Garland a confirmation hearing in 2016, on the theory that “the American people” should choose Justice Antonin Scalia’s replacement."
OUR constitution gives certain duties to Congress. Whoever serves in Congress at the time is responsible for them to perform their required duties. Imagine if Democrats in 1998 had said that we'd just wait for the people to elect Al Gore in 2000...
I'll say it again: republicans are making a play for one-party rule in America. They are happily pushing our system of government, with it's constitutional basis, off a ciff in favor of one man's cult promise.
4
Wow. So the only hero you saw in the Senate was Mitt?
2
I agree! All that waffling and hand-wringing. And those tears! Oh, please. And then in the end only to vote to convict on one count? For this he gets gushing praise? The real heroes are the Dems and the brave witnesses. Maybe as a Mormon Mitt doesn’t know the word “mensch”, but whatever else he was when he stood on the floor of the Senate and cried those crocodile tears, mensch as not it.
One can compare Romney to Alexander, Collins and Graham. Alexander has nothing to fear from this unhinged president. Collins always claims she will give it deep consideration and then folds. Graham keeps kissing Trump's ring. He is so afraid of the backlash in conservative South Carolina. The GOP is Trump's party with no moral principles. They just want to keep their jobs with all its perks.
5
Romney is more deserving of the Presidential Medal of Freedom today than Rush will ever be.
6
As long as you're mentioning movies, may I offer, in absolute despair, "The Invasion of the Body Snatchers" to describe the
Senate (minus one)?
1
Bret Stephens shows all the characteristics of the natural born Republican. He believes pretty stories and bright shiny myths are real and can’t learn from history. Mitt Romney made a cold, calculated decision that his vote to remove Trump, not unlike his past calculation that buying and eviscerating companies and gleefully firing their employees, would benefit him, period. Mitt’s pretty story was just an attempt to create soundbites for his next presidential run. Unable to learn from history, Bret recognizes that Mitt has flipped and flopped repeatedly yet, just as dupes like him have looked at every economic bubble and believed it was the one that would never burst, has been conned into thinking Romney has finally found a hill he is wiling to die on. As for the bright shiny myths of the Republican Party, it hasn’t ever been conservative, it has always been reactionary and self-serving, vilifying anyone standing in its way as communists, n-word lovers, traitors, or the latest epithet dreamed up by party hacks this week. Trump’s anti-democratic, anti-American, mean-spirited, petty, immature, hate-filled actions are not an anomaly in the Republican Party, they are the distillation of its essence.
5
@Renee Margolin Eloquently stated.
1
I applaud Romney's action while wishing he had voted to convict on both counts rather than just one. I wonder what he would have done if he were the senator from South Carolina rather than Utah.
3
Lonely? Every single Democrat voted with him.
Did Bret not notice?
9
Yeah, I don’t get that either. Whatever else he may be, Mitt was not alone. Nor does he deserve to be considered a hero. You can bet had he gotten a spot in Trump’s cabinet, Mitt would have been the ultimate suck up.
3
I am getting tired of this gangster, but question is will 60 million Americans agree to take him out?!
meanwhile, one of the top contenders for the Oscars is the 'Irishman' - Robert De Niro playing more or less the same role he played 50 years ago - arent people tired of the stubborn killing, extortion, thuggishness?
apparently not.
Trump is almost certainly going to get re-elected. It is apparently what a sufficiently large number of Americans want! nothing NYT readers can do about it! SAD!
1
What a sign of the times when voting for decency and the right thing becomes ‚noble‘.
But that is part of the American problem: everything is framed like in a Hollywood movie.
Fewer heroes, more common sense, please
4
Democrats show a backbone every day. 400 bills sitting on McConnells desk to guarantee lower drug bills, decent healthcare, gun legislation.
Bret Stephens - *crickets*
Romney displays conscience once.
Bret Stephens: “Give this man a Presidential Medal of Freedom”.
Too bad - Rush Limbaugh already got it this year. This is your new Republican Party. Maybe you can try voting for Sanders now.
3
As I have said before that I wrote to Sen. Romney weeks ago and told him about our differences, but the one thing that held us together was his honesty. That we need more legislators like him, whom we can disagree without fear of reprisal.
We also need more Americans of the same character. We don’t need spineless legislator and false Christians, Muslims and Jews who are all mouth and no conviction.
1
he is the ONE GUY who Trump WISHES he could fire .....
1
Mitt fell on his sword at the expense of his constituency. So he put himself ahead of the citizens he's supposed to represent? Sorry, I have neither praise nor empathy for the self-important vindictive junior senator from Utah. He's no hero by any definition. His political career is over. Perhaps he can dry his tears on his wife's $990 “Reed Audubon Silk Shirt”. He's not a man of the People.
So, it seems God wanted Trump removed. But God couldn't succeed in arranging that!?
1
In honor of Mitt Romney’s courage
“I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It's when you know you're licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what.”
- Atticus Finch
To Kill A Mockingbird
Harper Lee
3
Finally. Thanks Mitt.
I am in the “ too little too late”
category of voters.
The blowback should encourage a GOP schism. Forever!!!!!!
2
Col. Alexander Vindman is the brave.
5
Ah, Bret, Mittens traded his vote with Susan Collins. Somebody had to look like an adult. Mittens was the Republican's safe choice.
1
A week and a political universe in two Names:
Mitt Romney and Rush Limbaugh. Who gets vilified, who gets a now soiled “ Medal “ ?
Truly Sad.
2
53 senators, 1 spine.
The representatives from Utah sound as vile and vicious as Trump towards Romney. The GOP oath is clearly not about the US Constitution. A follow up article about that would be informative.
4
Anyone remember George Romney? Mitt is his son. Look him up. Gov. Of Michigan,president of American Motors. He competed for the Republican presidential nomination. He went to Nam for orientation re the war. He came back and said that the generals tried to brainwash him. After that the Republicans wanted nothing to do with him. Figures. Nixon’s mother was aQuaker. The murdering of innocents wasn’t on unabated. All that is necessary for evil to thrive is the failure of men to act. There is no Republican Party only a cabal of grifters.
1
Mitch McConnell may go down in history as the man who saved liberty to enslave in the US.
Comparing Mitt Romney to a character in an Edward Abbey novel? He’s rolling over under a cactus in the desert somewhere.
2
@Kerry Edwards
I'd prefer that Mitt pattern himself after George Hayduke, Abbey's best character in his best book, The Monkey Wrench Gang."
The story isn’t yet over and isn’t yet written.
1
Thank you Senator Romney.
"But even Romney’s bitterest critics, left and right, ought to give him this: He voted without regard for personal advantage..."
Mitt Romney is a Mormon senator - in Utah. How is that not "a personal advantage?"
Thank you Senator Romney.
"Freedom's just another word for nothin' left to lose" - seems appropriate for times. Thank you Mr. Romney, the US Senate does not deserve good people like you.
Courage? Really? A very wealthy old white man with five years left in his senate term voted to convict the president on only one of two counts. I am underwhelmed.
2
Well said. Thank you.
So I have a hypothetical for you Bret. Ready?
Let’s say someone broke into your home and stole your precious belongings and he is arrested. Stay with me.
Now let’s say the case goes to court but the evidence is ruled “inadmissible” on no legal or rational bases.
Stay with me.
Now let’s say the defendant is then set free but the judge then turns to you and says; “Bret? If it’s any consolation, I believe the defendant is 100% guilty and should be in jail.”
Would that statement make you say the judge is your hero and should be complemented?
In life, talk is cheap. Senator Romney’s speech moved many. Maybe it’s because they like speeches.
But with all due respect Bret, the talk was after the verdict by a senator who has always sided with the president.
Follow the evidence Bret not the speech.
This is why Republicans continue to fool you guys every single day.
Follow the evidence Bret. Ease on listening to moving speeches that really are excuses for falling short.
It’s what I call; “The dog ate my homework.”
1
I am interested that Mr. Stephens picked up on the theme of Romney's address as one of obligation. Many years ago I read a passage in one of Bernard Cornwell's "Saxon Stories/The Last Kingdom" series books in which the hero, Uhtred, contemplates his situation. Destined by the Fates to a future he has no control over, and beset by the chaotic vagaries cast upon him by the gods, Uhtred surmises that the only thing he owns, the only thing over which he has control is to whom he gives his oath. And so it is now.
We are not randomly bound to obligations. We bind ourselves with our oaths. Sometimes we say our oaths in public, as in a wedding, sometimes we whisper them silently to our hearts. Oaths are not simply something we do, but as Uhtred so wisely knew, they are the one thing that defines us over which we have control, to make or to break. In the end they define us.
Mitt Romney radiates honor. He made his oath to an idea, unlike in days past when oaths were only made to people of power, and he upheld that oath. He has every right to hold his head high. I am so disheartened no one else in his party had his courage and sense of honor.
1
You go, Bret! Romney’s vote was the right thing to do. The fact that today it required bravery is as much a condemnation of Trump as any words of Mitt. When simple right and clear patriotism are seen as brave, you can see how far we have fallen from the American ideal.
1
"The right-wing vituperations descending on Romney, directed by the president and amplified through his media minions, are no better than the left’s cancel-culture warriors"
This is the standard false equivalence jabbing at the left/liberal/radical/actually whatever Democrats. The Trump Party [ex-GOP] is no better is so correct. But what is so very, very wrong is that the Party is utterly worse because they are the government. In control of Justice, Immigration, IRS, and you name it and most assuredly using them for their vile purposes be they covert of overt. The Trump Party can not hurt but a few, they can destroy us all if so choosing. But worst of all they are the culture warriors on the hunt for democracy's throat.
PS Lets cut the weasel words as in the "right-wing." It is the Trump Party in universum.
5
“one man with courage makes a majority.”
It may not make a majority but that one vote, to me, seems worth a dozen votes.
1
What does it say about conservatism that Romney is such an exception? The "conservative movement" in America which created and continues to enable this president causes me to fear for the future of our country to a degree I never thought possible when I was younger.
Apparently anything is OK in exchange for tax cuts, a judiciary packed with Federalist Society judges and cutting of those regulations that shift some cost to the wealthy and powerful. What happened to democracy, the rule of law and civility?
5
Mr. Stephens, I think I can help with your allusion in the last paragraph. In his famous "On the Duty of Civil Disobedience," in which he recalls his night in jail for refusing to pay his poll tax in protest of slavery and the Mexican war, Thoreau wrote:
"Moreover, any man more right than his neighbors constitutes a majority of one already."
2
Was Romney's vote a Profile in Courage? I'm not sure. I would say he was the lone Republican actually DOING HIS JOB. I fear, however, that this one voice is not the herald of a new era of Conservative (or Republican) bravery. Rather, it is a farewell.
485
Who knows ? Mitt might have opened up the minds of many decent Americans who happened to be Republicans !
33
@Sam S one vote does not a hero make. he votes with trump 80%of the time!
5
@Desert Rat It has to start somewhere. McCarthyism persisted for years after Margaret Chase Smith's Declaration of Conscience.
22
Missing John McCain. Not only would he have voted to convict, he had the power of personality to convince other Republicans to do the same.
792
@JimBob I don't know if you are right about McCain being able to convince other Republicans to do the same but at least when he was alive he kept Lindsay Graham from being the total embarrassment that he has become.
117
@JimBob Excellent point, JimBob.
10
@JimBob Maybe. But Sen. McCain, despite his physical courage when he was young, put the world at risk of having Sarah Palin's finger on the nuclear button when he was wealthy and powerful, but wanted a few more electoral votes. Like many others who showed great courage in battle but lacked a different type of courage later.
25
I did not vote for Mr. Romney, but I applaud his faithfulness to his oath to the constitution, the soundness of his reasoning, and the eloquence of his words in the impeachment proceeding. Thank you Senator Romney for the courage of your vote.
968
Thanks. I felt the same way.
It is so rare to see someone act out of principle, take an enormous risk... and, sadly, just say out loud what is obvious and true, when all of your colleagues are cowardly and corrupted.
40
I was so moved and inspired by Mitt Romney's speech. He is a hero for voting this way as are the Democratic Senators in states won by Trump. I didn't vote for Mitt Romney in 2012 and I remember thinking how horrible it would be if he were to become President. Though I disagree with him on policies, I was very wrong and overly partisan. That's a lesson I am taking away from the Trump era--to not make the other side the enemy. Thank you, Senator Romney for your courage.
10
@Maria As is sometimes the case with good, decent people: Romney is good in his heart but wrong in his thinking.
1
Isn’t it sad that doing the right thing has become an act of courage.
Dark days indeed.
1151
Reminded of Ibsen play “An Enemy of the People” famous line “ when a man stands for truth he stands alone.” Thank you for your courage Mitt.
37
Sadly so, I agree, when all the rest of the Elected Republicans are totally corrupt, Mitt Romney stands out ! All Americans salute to Romney ! He has come out of this impeachment as the man of courage, man of principles and a man of conviction !
33
@Bronx Jon,
Doing the right thing is as frequently as not an act of courage. That's not sad; it is affirming.
14
This is wild rhetoric. Absolutely nothing is at stake here for Romney or the country.
Other than denying Trump 100% partisan support, what has been achieved?
Are we supposed to forget that Romney has been voting 100% on Trump's unqualified right wing judges, or that we heard hardly a peep from Romney as Trump behaved like a 5 year towards anyone who disagrees?
How is Romney that different from Susan Collins, the ultimate toady?
Watching Romney's agonizing speech about why he voted against Trump was surreal. Why the pearl clutching? Why must "God" be invoked to justify?
Sorry, but this empty gesture is dust in the wind for the Ukrainian soldiers used as pawns for Trump's political games.
Now is not the time to dumb down the definition of "courage."
181
@David Henry
I cannot agree--and I voted against Romney in 2012, so I am not a partisan Republican.
He did vote for the judges that McConnell has been funneling through the Senate. He is very different from Susan Collins, who will forever be a joke line now. He had grit when all was on the line, and it was.
It was his religious conviction that held Romney's feet to the ethical fire of the trial oath; that is not a small thing, at least for Romney. If religion and oaths have only transactional significance, then what Romney did will make no sense.
Romney knew his lone vote would not change the outcome and will not save Ukraine from Russian incursions. However, it did do something significant--which is why Trump is so enraged at him. Trump had expected to peel off one of the Democrats, like Doug Jones (another courageous vote), so he could claim a bi-partisan vindication. He didn't get that; what Romney gave Trump was an unexpected bi-partisan guilty vote. So Romney's vote delivered a harsher vote outcome than the WH had imagined--Trump can't trumpet total exoneration, which he had been planning to deliver.
What seems to you like pearl clutching actually will carry weight in the historical evaluation of this impeachment.
58
@David Henry Yes, he could have spoken earlier and more often. However, when the stakes were highest, including the penalty for dissent, he took the courageous path. Give him that.
49
@David Henry
Thanks for expressing a point of view in opposition to the simplistic one of this "Lonely Are the Brave' opinion piece. I personally believe that Mitt Romney is on the verge of cognizing something that has long been driving his political behaviour. What that something is might be termed, as Bret Stephens simplistically does, 'self-respect'. But it might also be realization that his Bain behaviour was often inhuman; or it might be any number of REsolutions to the values he imbibed from more powerful figures much earlier in his life.
When will we all realize:
- that every one of us is suffering from what might be called 'incompletely healed distress';
- that distress is qualitatively different from stress in that it seeds in us long-standing biases (of reaction to a trauma);
- that healing from the distress of a trauma involves radical changes in the presumption we felt driven to draw when we absolutely had to escape from its thrall;
- and that healing from distress is not merely the consumption of psychiatric drugs and the rejoining of the tribal cabal -- perhaps a religion, perhaps a political identity, perhaps a mode of (Trump-like?) behavior -- into which the distress pitched us unconsciously?
2
Romney did a courageous thing. No doubt and his speech was very moving.
However, in all this attention to Senator Romney, we forget that Doug Jones also did a very brave thing and his speech was a joy to listen to. Please give him some attention and some credit.
13
i probably don't agree with Romney most of the time. It doesn't matter. He isn't my senator. However, what he did took great courage and I admire him for it. I only wish other Republican senators, who probably agreed with him, had had as much courage.
4
The Democrats are focused on beating Trump. Instead, they should be focusing on gaining the support of a large majority of Americans. The rest will fix itself.
3
His was the best speech I've heard in decades. It was about real things and, he was genuine. That combination is rare indeed in public life.
7
Probably the first column of Brett’s I’ve read where he dispenses with the obligatory ‘extremists on both sides...’ rhetoric. Huh.
Romney, Vindman, Sondland deserve a medal of Freedom and Courage, but in present reality the stable genious gives it to Limbaugh for his vile ravings on anybody that disagrees with him.
9
Amen Brett
3
all it takes for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing. Trump is truly evil and Mitt is a good man. Thank you
10
Romney's was the most courageous political act I can remember in decades. He could have kept his head down and made up some garbage excuse like Susan Collins and Lamar Alexander did. That would have been so easy.
Instead. he exposed himself to nonstop personal and political abuse, and God knows what else. In this day and age -- and recalling Cesar Sayoc's bombs awhile back -- he may even have placed himself at physical risk. He most assuredly ended his aspirations for any other office.
Romney did what we always hope our politicians will do, and he did it when it was the hardest and mattered most. It's worth seriously reflecting on why he did it.
https://fatherandsonconverse.wordpress.com/2020/02/05/mitt-romney-jeff-van-drew-john-andre-god-you-and-me/
2
Thanks Bret,
It may be lonely now but ironically, on the last day, hora mortis, in the words of the Catholics, he will be the only one without regret. That is winning. Well done Mitt. Romney '24.
6
Ed Abbey would have been proud of Romney.
1
In the 1960 movie "Twelve Angry Men", Henry Fonda starts out as the lone dissenting juror in a case of a young Hispanic man charged with killing his father. Gradually, after many heated arguments, the tide shifts in his favor as the other jurors cast aside their prejudices and examine the testimony, submitting to reason and their sworn oath to uphold justice. That was then.
I don't know who will be more uncomfortable in the GOP chambers now, Romney, seated amongst a bunch of cowards or a bunch of cowards forced by his presence to constantly look in the mirror.
3
Trump's supporters, whether pusillanimous GOP politicians or the frenzied crowds at his rallies egged on by their leader's despicable rhetoric, have all made a Faustian bargain for sticking with the demonstrably morally corrupt occupant of the White House. He will eventually and inevitably turn on them. Trump's only principle is self-interest and when he finds anyone or any group no longer useful, he will discard them like trash. Then, Mephistopheles will be waiting to escort them to the nether regions, if they aren't already there.
2
Do not feel lonely Mitt Romney; you are like Abe Lincoln in
this regard; You have set the forward pace for more of those
who will vote to save America's soul as well as your own soul.
In God We Trust; E Pluribus Unum....and we will follow the
brave because we too have no other or better choice.
Thank you Mitt Romney; and may the good wind be always at
your back...God Bless you; and one and all as well.
6
Romney is the last of the Republican senators. All the rest are Trumpians.
4
Obama voted against the Iraq war when other democrats did. Romney's vote is bigger! Way to man up Mitt!
1
I am not a religious person, and certainly, believe that the Mormon religion is a mystical belief system, that let us say, is on a par with scientology--Now having said that, there is something going on in that faith system, that somehow has left the Evangelical faith system---In that Senate Chamber, only one faith system lived out its values and beliefs--that would be the Mormons.
1
As pleased as I am to see that ONE republican has a tiny shred of conscience, let's not go overboard on the "courage" thing. I mean, we're talking about a triple-digit millionaire in his 70s who's risking his $174,000/yr job---4 years from now---and some nasty comments from media he doesn't read. Who in the world is in a safer place to speak his mind and thumb his nose at the Trump-chanting yahoos of the country? Maybe your retired uncle who isn't on social media, but otherwise, nobody. Let's see a republican senator up for reelection this year willing to stand up for truth, justice and the American way. Fetch my binoculars and a pack of hunting dogs, cuz they're might hard to find
What a joke making Rommney the hero. In actuality he is the coward and incorrect in his belief that this will somehow provide more than a passing affection by the left. Trump has done more for African Americans, markets, employment than any president in recent memory. Get used to another 4 more years. Look at the First Step Act for example.
2
@DJ
Trump did nothing for African Americans, employment and very little for markets. Trump got very good economy from Obama and borrowed 400 billions a yer to pay for tax cuts, which did very little to economy. Otherwise he made more chaos than good.
GDP grew faster, job creation was better in last 3 years of Obama than under Trump so far.
But God bless Mitt!
Showing the hand wringers that hand-wringing is, most of all, a balm, for the handwringers (Collins, Alexander, Murkowski et al), showing the toadies what dignity looks like, and, most importantly, validating the stark, open-and-shut facts underlying the impeachment.
We have all been through this “Republican bulwark” baloney time and time again (“contract with America,” “silent majority” etc etc)...the underlying ugliness will lose out.
2
And he proved, when the chips were down, that he is his father's son. George would be proud.
2
If voting out of line with your party is an act of courage, then there are no courageous Democrats.
3
Only the ones who are vindicated for being on the correct side of the conversation.
Lonely are the brave. You've got that right. Truer words have never been spoken. However it's true in a way that would make me pretty lonely if I spelled it out on a site like the NYT.
1
Thank you for this article.
signed: a desperate American citizen
The Massachusetts Republican - a model for the nation.
1
Senator Romney, your father no doubt is looking down on you and, if he could, I have no doubt, he'd look you deep in the eyes and tell you how proud he is of you. And he wouldn't be alone.
2
Oh for God's sake, Bret, cut it out.
Mitt did his job. He did what he is supposed to do.
Enough basking, enough stunned admiration, enough forgetting that everybody else in that perverse chorus chose to throw the nation under the bus and then savage those who would not go along.
I get it. Its been years now since there was anything resembling honor or commitment among conservatives. Nothing at all to hang your hat on.
I imagine "If you Democrats don't nominate a Republican I'm gonna have to vote for Trump again and its all your fault" is wearing kind of thin.
Take off your little red glasses. Look around. Breathe what little Trump has left you of the free air. You'll see plenty of honorable, patriotic men and women struggling to right the ship. They're Democrats, Bret, and they can use your help.
If you have any interest in the future of your country, that is.
3
"Lonely Are The Brave" was the movie adaptation of the great Edward Abbey's second novel, "The Brave Cowboy". If you liked the movie, the book will amaze you. (No one will ever compare Romney with Abbey.}
1
Okay, Stephens, you're a Republican and a conservative one at that.
Now call for Trump supporters to abandon him no matter what--a good economy, another dead Arab militant, another quarantined El Salvadoran family put into a "comfortable" cage.
Do it! This is a watershed moment for the United States. My family has been here for over 300 years. Yours, likely not. But that shouldn't keep us from wanting the same result.
2
I am not a religious person but it is apparent to me that the basis of his vote relied on his oath to God, mentioning it three times ...apparently he is a man of true faith...the others are mere pretenders...if at all
2
Mitt Romney has always had his finger in the wind, pro-choice and gung-ho for Romneycare when he wanted political power in liberal Massachusetts, then dismissive of the 47% of Americans who are moochers when he was sucking up to rich donors.
But suddenly he has become a man with a spine of steel, of pure integrity. Because he hails from the only bright red state that actually finds Trump personally (if not politically) repellent?
Let’s just say this this. There is no possibility on God’s green earth that Romney would ever be the 67th vote to convict.
Ever.
And let us agree from now on that there is literally zero evidence whatsoever that Romney has ever departed from putting his finger in the wind to determine right from wrong.
1
The Biblical story about saving a wicked city if ten righteous could be found applies here: One righteous Republican has been found. Not nearly enough.
Senator Romney was courageous enough to do what all his Democratic colleagues did—the right thing. So your focus should be on the Republican senators who did the wrong thing and know it. That’s the real story, Brett. But you know that, don’t you?
4
"....all for the sake of his own self-respect"
At the end of the day that is what you are left with as a human being, a friend, an employee, an elected official.
Bravo, Mitt Romney, for showing the rest of the Republican senators how to carry yourself with self-respect. You did that and you achieved a big thing. You don't have to cover your vanity mirror with a towel every morning. You can look yourself in the eyes and say that you stood up for something. And the rest of the Republican senators, they got pushed around and squished by that man.I guess they deserve it, as they are no good for anything else.
You are not one of them and I am happy for you.
1
GOP character-test results:
A Man for All Seasons—1
The Godfather—52
1
Wow, fifty bonus points for “obloquy.”
You got me.
Mitt Romney sticks his finger in the air and goes which way the wind blows. He has and has never had a core. The liberals now love him and why? He went against the president. The same liberals that harangued and trashed him throughout his run for the presidency. Now all the left wing pundits on TV praise him. The exact same pundits that called him a vulture capitalist, cruel, a job killer, an animal abuser, and a tax cheat and worse like causing cancer For the liberals, We love anyone that it’s the president.
1
Romney has shown that some, at this time sadly, only one, Republicans have a semblance of robust if any spine. I applaud him, his principles, and his courage in taking on this renegade impeached pretend president.
Mitt’s stand will stand him the test of time and history, while the collection of detritus that is called trump will be an asterisked footnote in history. A footnote that will state that he was obviously guilty as charged, but let off by a bunch of partisan Republican thugs led by their immoral and unethical leader McConnell.
Let history be the only judge! It’s verdict will be fair, honest, apolitical and nonpartisan! The despicable orange one will be consigned to “the basket of the ignominiously forgotten by history”!
You don't have to go very far back into history to see the same act that we just witnessed. The McCarthy hearings had much the same weaselly behavior from the Republicans; the same intransigent intolerance of non-comformity (their destroying of Tydings); the same hunger for headlines no matter the cost. Only when Eisenhower finally took charge, because McCarthy, with the help of Roy Cohn, was going after his beloved Army, did things start to unravel for McCarthy. Ike was not spotless in the matter, either; he went after homosexuals in the State Department and other government entities, believing they could be easily blackmailed. We seem to march ahead after these disasters, then plunge backward into darkness. It will be interesting to see how we come out of this one.
2
I have never been much of a fan of Mitt Romney. However, the courage he has show in the face of the most consequential Jury Nullification in History something one should respect.
Agree with him or not, he is an American Patriot.
Yes, political courage makes a patriot. But patriotism is not a value shared by our president. He values subservience.
2
Speaking truth to power is deeply embedded in human culture. It goes back to Job and Antigone, Jesus and St. Augustine, Martin Luther and Galileo, and more recently, Gandhi and Nelson Mandela. Mitt Romney's path to his moment of truth may have been long and uncertain. But he got there and with uncommon eloquence.
4
Some comments chosen as NYT Picks are troubling for the emphasis on Romney’s vote as too little, too late. Any thing good starts somewhere and often in ways that are not immediately consequential. Recovery from this dark era must be built on every act of courage.
373
@lee113 Totally agree.
Mitt Romney deserves the kudos of every true American, not just for his vote alone but for his courage and honesty.
This "dark era" will only end if more citizens realize what is at stake and have the courage to fight against it.
28
@lee113: Riomney punted on what mattered most: continued Congressional access to investigate the Executive. He needed to vote for both articles. I have no respect for the man.
2
@Steve Bolger,
You are wrong on that. Congress was obliged to go to the third branch and seek an injunction. They could not claim that would take them too long then pass that burden to the Senate. The executive is not obliged to comply with a demand from the legislative, or vice versa.
3
Mr. Stephens' maddening need to assert that 'both sides do it' at least 4 or 5 times per article, detracts from some very good writing, like this one.
4
Mitt Romney with all his faults proved to be the only Republican senator to have a conscience and the courage to stand up to a tyrant. The Lindsey Grahams, Mitch McConnells, etal and the House Republican mob that defended the indefensible actions of this tyrant will live and die with this evil, wicked infamy.
1
Within a month or two, Romney will shed his sheepskin and transform into his true form, a Democrat or if he is timid, a Independent.
The truly lonely are those who choose not to find a love of humanity.
1
Ezekiel 25:17. I know that Bible passage can and has a subjective undertone ( I’m taking to you Sam Jackson), but Bret Stephens makes that age old point: it feels a very lonely road to walk when the “tyranny of evil men” is all around. I never would have figured Mitt to be the righteous man, flip-flopper that he is. But I guess he finally got it: being a patriot isn’t about praising other Americans no matter what, it’s about taking a stand to preserve those ideals that prevent tyranny, even if yours is the only dissenting voice to be heard.
1
Mitt Romney made the righteous decision when he looked into the abyss of evil and stood his ground.
1
The truest, and most damning, sentences in this piece refer to the time a Democrat demagogue rises. It will happen, all the more likely given Trump. And when it does, the Republican cries of scandal and treason will seem funny. But there's one major difference. The military and security services, when they're insulted and demeaned by a Democrat like Trump, will find it harder to restrain themselves.
I didn't vote for Mitt but if the election was today I might.
Thank you Mitt.
You turned your back on the healthcare bill (Romneycare) that has helped so many in Mass, and that became the the template for the ACA.
You disparaged the poor, the disabled, and the needy as lazy and only wanting hand-outs in that covert audio-tape of your plutocrat fundraising dinner.
You flipped on choice (after using it as a platform pillar in both your succcessful Mass bids)
But nobody is beyond redemption.
And you are redeemed.
For now.
3
The American ideal indeed. A mega million dollar book contract despite having been a losing presidential candidate, a lackluster Solon and just another mediocrity who got a leg up thanks to his daddy.
Yes. He is our Jedi warrior.
His Republican colleagues? They're Trump's faceless drones.
1
No Bret, the left doesn't engage in voter suppression, which is one reason, among many, Trump will be re-elected. The fascism he has displayed with the support of Barr and McConnell leads me to believe he will pull a Putin and try to get around the two-term limit. I would be shocked if the GOP didn't try to help him.
3
Too little and far too late.
Well thought out by Brett. Certainly his defense of his vote in the impeachment trial was courageous in these highly partisan times. However, his Senate seat is quite safe I suspect - as a well known Mormon in the Mormon state of Utah. So he was not taking much of a risk with this vote. Other than some anticipated sniping from the President, he will rest easy as the snarling democrat party hails him as a hero!
Romney acted as a Senator should, as the founding fathers would expect. At the national level, there isn't a Republican party anymore, just Trumpites.
2
"The whole concept of small-r republicanism rests on the idea that self-government works only when public opinion is filtered through multiple institutions and wiser heads, not merely flushed through Congress like sewage in a drain."
"Your representative owes you, not his industry only, but his judgment; and he betrays instead of serving you if he sacrifices it to your opinion." - Edmund Burke
And betrays the country...
Romney, unlike most of the other full-time sycophants surrounding Dictator Don, has a family legacy he knew would be tarnished. In fact, without his daddy we wouldn’t even know his name.
1
I once heard Romney say, “Everything I have even done as an adult has had one purpose; to make Anne(his wife) proud of me”. I’m sure Anne is very proud today.
Brett: I'm surprised you didn't see the Republican party devolving into what it now is. Particularly after Roger Ailes made Fox News its propaganda arm.
Mitch McConnell knew it would be fine as long as they all hung together. However, with one courageous word, “Guilty,” Mitt Romney exposed to all the other Republican sycophantic senators that the emperor has no clothes.
1
Now is the time for a bumper sticker that sticks it to the bully-in-chief: "I'm with Mitt!" The Democrats should mass produce it.
2
Mr Stephens, what you didn’t comment on is the dearth of moral courage at large in Republican Party as a whole, now.
Gone are those men of this same party who stood up to people like Nixon and were the moral face of conservatives then!
People like Mr Romney— who finally realized that courage just this once—when he has not much to loose.
What you also didn’t comment on— and is a glaring omission by someone as observant as yourself— republicans may have sown the seeds of their own demise by what they have allowed McConnell to do, and for Trump to get away with.
Republican party sold its soul— I found it had any to begin with—the day they nominated someone as morally lacking, misogynistic and racist as Trump.
Or perhaps, as hardcore Left Liberals believe, Trump simply uncovered the real face of conservatism in US.
1
Mitt Romney is the only Republican senator who values morality. This does not speak well for America’s place in the world.
2
On the contrary, Mitt Romney remains loyal to a narrow minded Bush vision of America.
Maintain the Bush's iron fisted grip on Power. Never allow America to move out of its present state of affairs. the Bush-DNC bipartisan lock on Power must be maintained forever. Keep the Fear of Russia REAL... remind Americans through a daily dose of FEAR of Terrorists. Forever War. Big Brother is Watching.
Trump threatens all this....he is a threat to the Giant Bureaucracy.
Anyone paying even half attention to the politics of the day can see this. "Obiously' ....what Adam Schiff intoned about every five words that came out of his mouth.
Mitt Romney voted against the President using twisted Bushian Logic....thinking somehow he can challenge Donald Trump at the GOP Convention and win.
This means Mitt Romney, just like every other WashDC inside is using the Government for personal gain............
Gotcha.
What about Doug Jones, junior Senator from Alabama? He risked far more than Senator Romney. This vote may have cost him reelection and the Democrats a precious Senate seat.
2
Mr. Romney has earned my deepest respect, along with other conservatives such as David French.
"What does it profit a man to gain the world, and lose his soul?-- Mark 8:36
Mitt votes with Trump well over 90% of the time.....Let's not push for sainthood quite yet. ...and remember - even a broken clock is right 2 times a day.
I had a car breakdown in rural Utah. While I waited for the AAA to arrive, passers-by would pull over and ask if I needed help. It got to the point I had to wave them on. Say what you like about the Mormons, they practice what they preach.
I'm proud of my former Governor and the way he made the case for his vote. Over the course of arguments in the senate, I kept thinking about the rationale of 'One nation under god', especially on those senators in evangelical states. It's egregious that 20 senators could not, in the name of the oath they took to uphold, cross the aisle to do the principled duty. I'm not religious at all, but I've been amazed how often in this dark period, I've found myself saying: God help us and more so, about that prisoner in WW 2. When they came, no one spoke up.. and in the end, there was no one to speak up. Gov. Romney spoke up, a lonely voice in the wilderness of the withering American democracy and rule of law principles; as we await Stalinist-type putsch and assault on all our institutions. An EO on architectural design... Give me a break!!!
Come on, Bret, you must know in your bones that Republicans will re-discover their moral rectitude if any future Democratic president tries anything even 25% as dodgy as Trump engages in on a daily basis before he even attaches his long red tie on.
1
Rick Wilson, Republican stalwart, political consultant and author of the book "Everything Trump Touches Dies", stated the worst reaction he would get from a Democrat that disagreed with him was "a nasty voicemail", but since he has become a vocal critic of Trump and the Republican Party he has received several death threats - with one person going so far as to actively surveille his house while he was away and his family members were home. To protect himself and his loved ones, he has a conceal and carry permit which allows him to carry a concealed handgun wherever he goes. To compare the left's cancel culture to Trumps brown shirts is an egregious example of the bothsidesism that currently blinds columnists like Bret Stephens and David Brooks.
2
“One and God make a majority.” - Frederick Douglass
So much for any freedom of speech with Trump in charge.
I'm calling it first: Bloomberg - Romney 2020
1
Fabulous commentary.
One small point. Did Sen. Romney flip-flop in auditioning for a cabinet position after calling the president a con man?
Not at all.
That audition was in fact an earlier instance of the patriotism for which this op-ed rightfully commends Sen. Romney. He accepted the obvious significant risks of (a) humiliation exploitable by a vile president who unsurprisingly later would gloat about the audition and (b) allegations that he flip-flopped, exactly as this op-ed states.
Why did Sen. Romney accept those risks?
Because if your country asks for your service and in good faith and selflessness you believe (a) you have something to contribute and (b) that through your service you also can reduce some of the president’s vileness and dysfunction, then even if the call to consider service to your country comes directly from that same vile president ... you answer the call.
Oh, sure, there are nits to pick with regard to Mr. Stephens’ homage to the senator from Utah. However, I am willing to concede that, in this case, Mitt did the right thing and for the right reasons. More puzzling was the author’s speculation as to the conundrum Republicans will face in the future when the tables are turned with a “bad actor” Democrat President. That’s laughable. A political party as bereft of morality, ethics, and intellectual substance as the current Republican Party will have absolutely no difficulty in squaring that circle. In fact, a Republican senator, Joni Ernst, as already called for impeachment proceedings against the next Democrat President. She just needs to fill in a name and a reason on the paperwork. At least Rep. Liz Cheney has a name, as she calls for Nancy Pelosi to be removed from office for ripping a piece of paper. Let the Biden(s)/Deep State/Whistleblower/FBI/ Sanders/Schiff/Clinton/Vindeman/Romney/Pelosi investigation(s) begin!
Voting for impeachment costs Romney nothing politically.
It does put him in the position to be the principled man on the white horse to lead the Republican Party after Trump leaves office in 2020 or 2024.
Brilliant politics for which he is too be commended.
This is illustrated by all the liberal NYT readers who are praising him but 2 weeks ago would have nothing to do with his conservative opinions.
1
Thank you. Though on verge of extinction, there is even hope for the fire fly. If only political etiquette can be saved from the cage fighters. Marquess of Queensberrry please step forward.
Bravo Bret.
Thank God for Mitt Romney and the very few like him.
“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” Edmond Burke
Mitt Romney has done something, it now falls to us to do something or accept the unacceptable.
1
Would Romney have voted this way if he was the fourth vote?
The word principle has been redefined in the era of Trump and his minions Kellyanne Conway, Sarah Sanders and Mick Mulvaney. There are new norms now. Truth is what Trump says it is. End of story. Bret's constant crying about the good old days is tiresome. Is there a Trump reprogramming camp Bret can attend?
"The whole concept of small-r republicanism rests on the idea that self-government works only when public opinion is filtered through multiple institutions and wiser heads, not merely flushed through Congress like sewage in a drain." Probably the most profound thing you have ever said.
1
I am certainly no Repub (horreurs!) but I will be glad to give $ when Mitt runs for reeleçtion. His act of courage demonstrates he puts country and constitution above politics.
1
If you want to see the brave, look across the aisle at Nancy Pelosi, who has gotten grief from all angles about impeachment and who knew it was DOA in the Senate, and at Adam Schiff, who has had Trump threaten him that he should yet ‘pay a price.’
I'm sure Mitt can rest easy at night, at least THIS time... unlike the rest of the Republican toadies, who did everything they could to turn the process into a fake trial in support of their fake President. If Trump was so innocent, then why not allow witnesses and documents to be entered into evidence? Just another Republican cover-up -- Nixon II.
I once asked my father what courage was. My father had fought in world war 2 and received all kinds of medals so I figured if anybody knew what courage was it would be him. “ I never thought I was particularly courageous,” he said, “ I was drafted and went , but most people did it like that, in battle I never volunteered for anything , I never led the way or charged a German pill box, but I never ran from battle. I fought when I had to, and was as brave as the guys next to me no more no less, your trained to follow orders in the army and after a A while you just become like a robot a machine, you don’t even think about it all after a while, but I guess I did see bravery, individual bravery. I mean, I don’t know how to describe bravery but you know it when you see it. You just know when you are around somebody who is truly brave and being around them kind of rubs off on you, and you revere those guys, they stand out and when things get real bad, those are the guys you look to , those are the guys who hold things together in the critical moments....and a lot of times they have to stand alone , those are the truly brave the ones who stand alone...everybody is brave when they have the numbers on their side , there is a bravery in a crowd, safety in numbers, it’s the ones who stand alone and take individual initiative those are the ones with the real guts”
Good job Mitt.
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Oh, yes, really brave and patriotic--to cast a vote that makes not a whit of difference to anything or anyone. No, what was brave and patriotic were the (very few) votes cast against the first Iraq war (remember Barbara Lee?) and the votes cast agains the second, criminal Iraq war.
While proud of Romney, partisanship went both ways, almost completely. So he was like the ONLY one who went his own way. And as a reminder, one of McConnell’s formative experiences was the liberal lynching of the Bork Supreme Court nomination. And so it goes...
1
Diogenes shined his lantern in the GOP Senate, and found only one honest man. Well-done, Senator Romney. Stay strong in the coming storm.
1
Here’s Thoreau’s variation on a theme. In this case, he’s talking about the complicity—and moral turpitude—of northern states allowing slavery to exist in the Republic: “ . . . any man more right than his neighbors constitutes a majority of one . . .” He amplifies this later in his essay “Resistance to Civil Government.” (And those are his ALL CAPS, not mine!): “I know this well, that if one thousand, if one hundred, if ten men whom I could name, —if ten honest men only,— ay, if one HONEST man, in this State of Massachusetts, ceasing to hold slaves, were actually to withdraw from this copartnership, and be locked up in the county jail therefor, it would be the abolition of slavery in America. For it matters not how small the beginning may seem to be: what is once well done is done forever.” Well, we got at least one HONEST man in Mitt this time out among Trump’s Senators. Though unlikely a start.
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Mitt Romney proves correct this quote by John Kenneth Galbraith: "... it is far, far safer to be wrong with the majority than to be right alone."
1
I liked this column with one little correction.. "the exact opposite of our politicians today" should read "the exact opposite of our Republican politicians today". There, I fixed it for you.
Because, let's face it, *all* the Democrats voted the same way as Romney. Where are your accolades for them?
Fitting that the move quoted — Lonely Are the Brave — was written by Dalton Tumbo, a man who knew a thing or two about taking an unpopular stand. Hat tip, Sen Romney
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The Kirk Douglas film that comes to mind for me is Paths of Glory. The Donald today shot three soldiers for “insufficient loyalty”. Romney played the role of Colonel Dix.
We should focus on the words of light we have heard in these times of darkness: Elijah Cummings, exhorting us to be “better than this;” Lt Col Vindman, explaining that it would be OK to testify, because “This is America;” the brilliant summation by Adam Schiff and we can add Mitt Romney’s explanation of why he voted to convict.
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This is bravery? You set the bar far too low. Anyone with any decency would have been raising the alarm about Trump from day 1.
If this were an article about LtC. Vindman I'd be much more supportive. Romney will be just fine.
Since the rise of Trump and his boastful demeanor at his hate-filled rallies, he has managed to con many people into believing he is the savior of our country.
He, Trump, is saving the country from “liberalism”, socialism, socialistic ideas and should anyone dare not take up his “ideals” and champion those ideas and ideals is a traitor, has committed treason.
Trump is a successful revival tent charlatan who will promise everlasting salvation if one puts their principles in the basket.
And many have and woe be unto the person who fails to help fill the basket.
Mitt has flip-flopped over the years possibly as a convenience to be elected to office whether it be governor, president or senator. The worst kind of politician is one who can’t keep their principles.
However, Mitt possibly vindicated himself with his daring vote against Trump. Possibly.
And now he will have his head, just as Schiff warned others, on a pike for keeping with his oath, his principles and working for the country, not a despotic con artist.
Perhaps others should look at the courage Mitt exhibited in that vote, and Mitt should further keep to his principles rather than “going with the flow”.
Mitt finally lived up to his father.
Yes, Mitt probably feels quite lonely right now even as he basks in the admiration of most Americans who despise and detest Trump. But he's not nearly as lonely as his Republican colleagues will be once their cult leader is gone. Their red MAGA hats will be replaced by yellow ones branded "Coward" forever more.
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My two senators are spineless, gutless cowards glued to the Con Man. I called Senator Romney's office to express my thanks to him for his vote although I also expressed dismay that he didn't support the second article of impeachment. He's the only decent human in the Republican party. I see no others.
1
One has to admire animals on the way to slaughter that break free and run for their lives. They demonstrate a will to believe in a life beyond the herd.Some are captured and returned to the processing plant, but others, admired for their spunk and courage are offered a life to be free. Running with the herd seems to be the thing to do. But, we cannot but hail those who believing in the truth of themselves, and break free. They remind us of the limitations of group think.
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Nancy Pelosi knew proceeding with impeachment would be a losing battle. It was not for election votes, as it would and did turn off many voters and stoke Trump’s base; it would embolden the would-be autocrat Trump; proof of the case would not be a riveting TV event: and that case was preordained to lose. She knew many voters would conclude the whole thing was a waste of time and Trump wouid return to bring Trump.
But failing to act would dispute if not destroy the balance of power established by the Constitution. Mitt Romney stood up for the Constitution, the rule of law and simple right from wrong.
Despite the loss in the Senate, the fealty of the Party of Trump to their monarch
and the vitriol he will unleash, Romney and Pelosi preserved the Constitution and hopefully our democracy.
Both understood that our Democracy was bigger than the moment and its preservation was achieved in invoking its provisions, not burying them in the dustbin of history.
Romney and Pelosi will be recognized in history as saviors of our Democracy in a time of grave threat
And Romney get extra credit for succinctly summing up,Trump’s impeachable acts, and his personal commitment to the truth as a religious dictate.
2
I worked for George Romney at HUD and had the opportunity to see him as a man and a leader. He was the finest and most inspiring person I ever met at the high ranks of government.
I had the honor of meeting Secretary Romney's wife, Lenore, I won't say I knew her, but she came across as very bright and as noble as her spouse.
This power couple were different from others of their rank in their obvious honesty and willingness to see even bureaucrats like me as human beings.
I never met Mitt, but I see from afar a man made in the image of his parents. His grandchildren will be able to sing his praises, honestly. That's more than the fellow members of his caucus can expect from their children's children.
That he will be reviled by those not brave enough to stand with him is to be expected from jackals. He should pay no attention to their cowardly behavior.
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Let's thank Senator Romney as well as the honorable people who testified in the House impeachment hearings, all those who voted to impeach and convict Trump, and especially the House management team. They all stood strong against a corrupt and vindictive President to protect the true American ideals of liberty and justice.
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@Tiny Tim: The door is slammed on any repeat of this now, unless of course it is Democratic president.
I ask Americans of all faiths and political parties to compare two speeches from last week. Donald Trump's deplorable ranting at the Prayer Breakfast and Mitt Romney's Senate Floor Speech which is the focus of this editorial. Whether you agree with the premise of either speech it's impossible NOT to observe that one speech is the volatile ramblings and temper tantrum of a petulant spoiled brat and the other the words of a human being searching for vision, clarity and moral sanctity. To observe all those Republican Senators mindlessly and destructively applaud Mr. Trump's disgusting words was devastating. Although my political viewpoints do not always align with Mr. Romney's perspective, I admire him for his moral strength and character. I pray that more Republican Senators and Congressional Leaders come to their senses and recognize that Trump has no interest in serving this country. He serves himself, his bank accounts and his insatiable ego.
4
It is a disgrace that in America today one needs courage to speak the truth and to vote by conscience. A very sad state of affairs. But because that is the state of affairs, I very much applaud Mr. Romney's stand and find some optimism from that. I am also thrilled that all audience members at the New Hampshire debate last night stood up and applauded another profile in courage, Lt. Cl. Vindman. May they both prosper and continue to speak truth to power. And may GOP find something very deep inside themselves to be ashamed, very ashamed. I am particularly speaking to you, Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski and Lamar Alexander. Shame on you, shame. I hope you all carry that soul stain the rest of your lives.
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I'll give Mitt Romney a lot of credit for his decision and his admirable speech.
My initial reaction was that Senator Romney was a profile in courage. However, what was more remarkable: Senator Romney's decision or the cowardice and unpatriotic actions of the other 52 Republican senators?
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@Brian: They all voted to deprive Congress of power to investigate anything the Executive does.
Perfect headline. I've always liked Mitt even though people who know a lot more about politics than I do always call him wishy washy, protean.
But his decision to hold Trump accountable only serves to show the depth of the wrong committed by this foolish president.
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I love this column, and I've come to know and respect Mr. Stephens as per his work during the Trump administration, pointing out, especially to other Republicans, the grievous mistake conservatives have made via their support of the President. However, he got one thing wrong here. If and when a Democrat occupies the White House again, behavior that Mr. Trump has engaged in and will continue to engage in will suddenly not be kosher. And in this imagined future, Right-leaning politicians, affects flat, will calmly stand in front of the cameras and explain away the hypocrisy and the irony.
2
I dislike Trump and think he is unqualified to be President. However, he was constitutionally elected, and his boneheaded attempts to get Ukraine to investigate the Bidens don't exceed the very high bar required to remove a president from office.
The Democrats haven't covered themselves with glory on this either. They have talked of impeachment since the day Trump was inaugurated and Ukraine was just the latest attempt to find some justification to remove Trump - after the Russia collusion narrative, Mueller report and claims of obstruction of justice all failed. It's hard to see this as anything but partisan politics.
Isn't it ironic that after all the long years of watching Republicans wave their flags and brandish their pocket Constitutions we learn that they are in fact traitors to both the nation and its constitution.
What really surprised me was that there was even one lonely voice of conscience among them, when I didn't expect even a single honorable vote.
Bravo to Mr. Romney for being a lonely voice of honor among a pack of spineless cowards, who are covered in shame and dishonor. The best days for the US are clearly behind it and Trump's election defines the deflection point leading to its downfall.
3
Romney's speech would have been more of an effective civic lesson for other Republican senators and for the country, especially for Trump's supporters had he omitted God as his guidance and faith but instead cited the democratic values, the founding principles of the nation, the rules of laws in addition to the Constitution. Still Romney's speech was a stark indictment of the here and now mentality of the Republican members of Congress, of their cowardice and lack of morality.
2
Senator Romney will stand as a silent rebuke to the craven cowards and political toadys that people today's Republican Party.
As in the movies of old, to keep up the theme Mr. Stephens starts with, there was always a bad guy, or a weak person, who in the end does the right thing. He then gets shot and dies a hero.
Let us hope for a better end for Senator Romney.
1
If Mr. Romney really had a spine, he would have voted to acquit on both counts because there was no legitimate case to be made against Mr. Trump.
This repugnant charade was a failed coup d’etat, not an “impeachment” in the sense that the founding fathers intended. At the outset, it was obvious that this was a political attack done for purely partisan reasons, that it would NEVER succeed in the Senate, and that its sole purpose was to harass, hinder and humiliate Mr. Trump.This was puerile pettiness in the extreme that makes Mr. Trump look magnanimous by comparison.
Mr. Romney’s motive was personal vengeance, not principle. He is not a hero.
I admire Romney for his integrity and his courage. And, now it's our turn. We need to circle the wagons - our support - around him and the others who came forward. We need to make small the bullies that follow the master bully of Trump and stop laughing, accepting, and hoping they'll change. The Democrats standing now cannot beat Trump. It will take someone who will go crazier to his crazy to take him down.
1
It was a great speech and it took boldness to take the stand he did....however....think about the insults he hurled at Trump in his 2016 speech; think about the invite he received to be Secretary of State and how he was dissed (and punished for the speech) by not getting the job; think about the insultingly different levels of religiosity between the two men (Romney genuine, Trump phony); think about the fact that Romney is safe in his seat until after Trump leaves: there was no love lost between Trump and Romney, and Trump had this one coming.
Still, it did take courage to take on his rabid party, to deliver a powerful and poignant speech, and to stand up to this king-wannabe.
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Mitt Romney is a Hero, no doubt about it! What a magnificent display of courage and what an astonishing display of cowardice by the rest of the Republicans. I am a life-long Democrat and I never thought I could feel such adoration for Mitt Romney, but I do, in Spades! You will go down in history, Senator Romney, don't you doubt it, as a courageous Hero who only wanted to save our democracy from a corrupt and cruel Bully. Thank you, Sir. May you be blessed by your courage.
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We have commented frequently that it is a shame that the two best Republicans in our lifetime (Romney and McCain) had the misfortune of running against the best Democrat in our lifetime (Obama).
The revolting thing is that the Republican senators, except Romney, were motivated solely by selfishness, and not even for money since by and large they are well off; simply for ego.
The astonishing thing about his vote to convict? It was the ONLY one from the Republican Party. This former registered Republican has a hard time wrapping her head around that. The GOP is unrecognizable and irredeemable.
Sorry, but while I appreciate how difficult it must have been for Romney to cast that vote, every Republican in the Senate has a long, long way to go before I begin believing there is an iota of courage and honor among any of them.
Did he vote for witnesses and additional documentation? He did not. Did he vote to convict on the obstruction of Congress charge? He did not. Is his voting record in the Senate strictly party line, in support of everything Trump? It is.
Thanks, Mitt, for your display of political courage. Now go back to work and help us defeat the destructive, racist, misogynist, homophobic, xenophobic, universally untruthful policies of this miscreant president.
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@myself... completely wrong about his vote on witnesses. I retract that.
I get it now. The thing with the left is they know with certainty they are right. If they don’t see it our way they must be racist. Anti-immigrant. Anti poor. Wealthy. Greedy. Religious. Gun clingers. Etc. You see it in the media. Marginalization of crime perpetrated by illegal immigrants. Lack of empathy to the others. Dismissal of the conservative sensibility yielding to an unapologetic desire for power. The unrelenting coup attempt on Trump. He’ll do it again! Do what? Only Romney showed courage!
Whereas senator Romney did what was right the remaining 52 Republicans have chosen a pact with the devil. This decision will follow them long after the short term political benefit of bowing down to a corrupt president. When the Republican party decided to sleep with trump they soiled their party and message for a decade.
Republicans know they can only win in a rigged system, to use a favorite Trump Trope. In a free democratic system without propaganda, dirty tricks and voter suppression their program of low taxes on the rich, no government intervention in healthcare, education, infrastructure, or creating opportunities so people can get a leg up is a loser.
In order to maintain power, they need to fool enough people enough of the time, something made easy for them by a feckless opposition. They should be easy to beat, even within the rigged system they have created, but Liberals don’t have a coherent program that people can get behind, just a bunch of pie in the sky ideas and angry grievances by people who have been told they are victims.
If the Democratic Party nominates someone like Burning Sanders, they will be repeating the mistakes of the past, the Left’s propensity for overestimating their support and their stubborn refusal to see reality (or change) is really what keeps the Right in power.
If Romney had won in 2012, we would still have a good president. I preferred Obama but would have followed Romney up the hill as a competent, respectful man. The vagaries of historical events has left us with a proto-dictator in a minority government, dealing dirt on private and honorable "little guys" as payback with no remorse for being and continuing to be "Corrupt". We have probably lost our soul as a nation and probably our minds as well. Whoa is Us.
Romney did what the senators are supposed to do he put country before self.
Romney is the antonym of Trump who always puts self before country.
Whatever does "the left’s cancel-culture warriors, seeking to wreck the lives of anyone who falls short of expectations or doesn’t toe the ideological line." mean?
A wacky phrase like this one is a cheap nod to some false-equivalency. Stephens' column makes fine sense otherwise.
This week, for the first time ever, I admired Mitt Romney.
What Senator Romney did was courageous. His speech was succinct and beautiful.
And while I hate to ruin the moment, it was not that courageous. Unlike most every other Republican Senator, Romney is from a state that is either lukewarm to or even disgusted with Trump.
If there is anything that prevails over politics, it’s religion. And the Mormons in Utah have his back.
I deeply admire Romney for what he did. It’s tough to be the outsider standing up against something so wrong. Try being anyone today denouncing Trump or a corporation or anyone in power that can make your life miserable or ruin your career. It takes guts. The kind we rarely see anymore in a society full of sheeple. Today Mitt is my hero!
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Kudos to Mitt - but he knew what he got himself into. Still - chapeau.
The same for Sonderland, Vindemann, etc.
The replacement of Vindemann doesn't bother me too much. Trump's initial instincts are not to go to war (yes, I know the Iran thing, but who could have known that they would retaliate ------ and then down the wrong plane). The only reason Trump would invade any country is if it would help his re-election. So, being a bully, he would choose something small, something with little consequence. Like the Falklands - ok, they are already taken. But what about Luxemburg, or Andorra. I am sure Trump could send the Seals Team 6 over there and then claim he stopped corruption. Before the EU would get all the resolutions together to respond, the US election would have already happened, and Trump could call his team back. Mitch would be needed to rubberstamp, but look at Mitch's forehead: the ink from the last rubberstamp is still not dry, so he could use it again.
I didn't know it wasn't a crime.
A lot of the members of congress and their families get rich from trading on inside information and influence. On Wall Street, the practice is a crime - just ask Martha Stewart.
Mr. Romney declared on the floor of the Senate that the Bidens committed no crime and therefore Mr. Trump was wrong, very, very, impeachable wrong, to want Ukraine to investigate.
Of course, there was not a shred of evidence about Mr. Trump's knowledge of the criminal law. Trump is not an attorney and we don't know what his personal and public attorneys might have said on the subject of potential Biden crimes (or even crimes under Ukraine law if not U.S. law).
In hindsight, we know it is dangerous to examine the business dealings of the adult children and family members of people named Biden, Pelosi, Kerry, or even Romney (check out the Ukraine gas connections if you dare).
In New York, The former Republican leader, Dean Skelos is in jail for helping his son get a job. Come to think of it, Skelos, Stewart, Wall Street, Trump: perhaps nepotism is only a thought crime if you are from New York. Others see nepotism as pro family - which, of course, it is.
Gov. Cuomo II got his job as head of HUD through family connections and learned how to eliminate segregation in housing - just joking. If racism is judged by bad policies, Cuomo is worse than Trump. Favoring a minority is just as bad as harming a minority. Favoring family - well that's different.
1
Comparing a gritty, grizzled man of the outdoors taking a horse up a mountain in search of freedom to a man who has been seen ironing his shirt while wearing it, who thinks the size of the trees in Michigan is "just right", and who claims that corporations are people is beyond the pale.
Dark days indeed when Mitt and Bolton are heroes for finally sort of doing the right thing.
Yes, it is better to die on one's feet, than live on one's knees. But Mitt can do one more service for his country:
Declare himself an independent candidate for President of the US. Walk the walk.
Don't forget Doug Jones and Joe Manchin, Democrats from very Red States who voted for removal. They made difficult decisions as well if one was to only think of self interest.
Enough already with any “dark road” taken in the Merrick Garland affair. What the Republicans did was just mimic what the Democrats...Biden, Schumer, Obama et al...had earlier done: argue that important federal nominations should not be considered in the run up to a Presidential election. Surely Stephens know this.
Senator Romney showed us that even a Republican can do the right thing.
a Man For All Seasons moment
So why is the Senate so filled with little people ?
What have we become ?
1
Well, for once, Bret Stephens, I agree with every word you have written.
Whether we supported him for President or not, Mitt Romney has shown all Americans what integrity is all about. A profile in courage. Now let's move on to Bret.
Until Bret puts his marker down, stops dancing around, commits to endorsing in advance whichever Democratic nominee will be entering the arena, he is just another Susan Collins who's phoning it in.
Yeah, but no.
If you’re going to talk about brave individuals, don’t leave out people like Lt. Colonel Vindman (and his brother, who did not testify) and the others yet to feel Trump’s petty, childish wrath.
Not ALL for his own self-respect, but to spare his descendants the shame and mortification his colleagues have now visited upon theirs.
My post to my Senator's facebook page, pertinent because it references profiles in courage:
"Today, I watched a shameful act. I watched Lt. Col. Vindman escorted by the police out of the White House as if he were a criminal. A patriot veteran who put his life in harms way for his adoptive country and who received the Purple Heart and Combat Infantryman Badge. The man who was instructed to report his concerns, by his superior, to the NSC attorney and who was subpoenaed to appear as a witness. He had told the White House that he was leaving at the end of the month but Trump wanted his exit to be a symbol. And his twin brother was fired as well though he was not a witness. I suppose he was a symbol that revenge can extend to families as well. As a Vietnam veteran I am appalled at this treatment of patriots. Tell me, Senator. Whom would you rather have speaking about profiles in courage to your Sunday School class of young people, Lt. Col. Vindman or President Trump? Your President whom you have enabled is a tyrant and he will get worse between now and November. Like Peter you have a couple more opportunities to confirm or deny your faith. Or are you going to try to keep silent until the curtain is down, doing yourself and us no favors?"
In the Confucian way that life works itself out, Mitt Romney is more presidential today than when he ran for president.
2
Respect for Romney!
Although: You don’t need god to know Trump should be ousted. He used religion as a shield.
Susan Collins, Lamar Alexander, Lisa Murkowski, and the rest of the wretched Republicans in the Senate have all gone crooked because they, like rivers, chose the path of least resistance.
1
Excellent comments today. But I can't be the first person to remind about Kirk Douglas's role as aide de camp to Burt Lancaster in "Seven Days in May"; a movie more relevant in this age than when it was made. Romney showed the same kind of courage that "Jiggs" did. Gail Collins can stop talking about the Romney family dog now.
1
I take this to mean that NO republicans, NONE are lonely.
Just greedy and fear based.
1
Mitt Romney has shown us with his vote for impeachment that he's the only Republican Senator with a conscience. And listening to other Republican Senators trying to defend themselves for voting no is just pathetic. They sound a lot like babbling monkeys.
1
Mr Romney should challenge trump from the center for the Republican ticket.
What garbage.
As per his former staffer: Mitt voted to impeach because he’s petty, jealous and envious of Trump. Trump became president, and Mitt did not. It’s that simple.
1
Michael Brendan Dougherty has written this in National Review: "Romney talked about his duty as a senator-juror as he unfurled his surprise vote to convict and impeach. He and his office timed three exclusive media pieces in The Atlantic, the New York Times, and Fox News, in which he talked about his decision and his place in history. But wouldn’t a serious senator-juror from a one-party safe state talk, argue, and remonstrate with the other jurors? Shouldn’t the most politically vulnerable members of his caucus and the ones most likely to change their assessment — Susan Collins and Cory Gardner — hear about his reasoning and decision before he tells the producers of Chris Wallace’s television show? Apparently not."
Please give credit to the origin of the movie, Lonely Are the Brave. It was based on the novel, The Brave Cowboy by Edward Abbey. Abbey was a resident of Utah, as is Romney. He wrote several other books about standing up to corrupt powers, including The Monkey Wrench Gang and Desert Solitaire.
Bret, everything you say about Romney and the virtue of being courageous and ideal is true. However, i cannot help but recall that the same man along with Paul Ryan continually castigated Barack Obama and went out of his way to exhibit a contempt for the man. Even Romney family joined in the African American bashing.
1
Romney you alone did the right thing amongst your republican colleagues who did not. History will find you alone I am sure as the brave one. But what kind of bravery is it to stand up to a bully when you know what is right? It should be easy. So what if he calls you names, those names sully him. Calling the democrats evil only makes him the fool. Now he has fired both Vinman and Sondland. Again the bully trying to be vindictive to no avail. It looks preposterous to be so mean. He is incapable of rising above the fray, being a leader, and being brave.
1
Senator Romney should throw his hat in the ring, seeking the presidential nomination of the Republican party in 2020.
In terms of character, governmental experience, intelligence, honesty, manners and sanity, Romney puts Trump to shame. There MUST be Republicans out there who realize just how destructive, dangerous and demented Trump is.
Donald Trump is a sociopath wh knows no shame, but many of his supporters do. They a silently sick of his arrogant idiocy.
Four more years of Trump will either mark the end of American democracy, or, the suicidal conclusion of the Republican party as we knew it.
Trump is toxic.
Run, Mitt, run!
2
I wrote this to Senator Romney this afternoon.
Dear Senator Romney
That was a magnificent speech. I have watched it about 5 or 6 times in the last two days. I would always play the part where you paused for 12 seconds. Perhaps the most poignant political moment in this new year, until now and I was deeply touched.
Trump's impeachment will not be a footnote and when history is written about Trump, his impeachment hopefully would be mentioned in the first paragraph along with the name of a Senator who acted on the dictates of his conscience. You did right.
As Colbert mentioned in his monologue, your vote was like finding "water in a desert" or as Michael Gerson wrote in the opinion section of the Washington Post " In politics, one is an infinitely higher number than zero. Zero is unbroken, disorienting darkness. It is the hiss of the last dead ember. It is the final breath that leaves a body. It is the day with no tomorrows. But one, at least, is something. It is the possibility of integrity and courage. It is a spark in the darkness that draws your eye and allows you to set your direction."
When I think about you Senator, I will think about those 12 seconds, when you quivered and so did most ( I can't say everyone given the political climate) and so will everyone who will watch this speech in the coming years.
If William Safire was alive and was looking to add speeches to his book "Lend me your ears", your speech will undoubtedly be added.
Thanks
vatsan
3
Finally one thing Brett and I agree on.
1
Come on, Bret. "... short on talk, but strong in character. In other words, the exact opposite of our politicians today." Those are REPUBLICANS. Especially Susan Collins. Admit it.
1
I don't have the exact quote. Thoreau said in Civil Disobedience something like: A man who is right constitutes a majority of one. I doubt he got it from Jackson.
I don't understand Mr.Stephens' compulsion for false equivalence. Why compare Republicans' attack of their leader of seven years ago with the "left's cancel-culture warriors?"
I am not an apologist for cancel culture warriors. Don't know who they are or what the term means. But the spectacle of Republicans cheering as a President maligns their colleague and friend and then ridicules the prayers- the prayers- of a woman, a leader of the House, all while in in the White House, a temple of American democracy. THis is is repugnant. They should have walked out.
It is the most repulsive cowardice to not stand up for a friend who has acted honorably and instead pile on with the lying bully and his mob.
I am glad I am not sophisticated enough torecognize the merits of their actions. Leaders? What I recognize are scoundrels bereft of honor who would never be welcome in my home.
1
Notwithstanding his notable act of courage in standing up for the Constitution, I don’t suppose Mitt is expecting to receive a Medal of Freedom anytime soon, even though Rush Limbaugh has already got one.
To get one of those Medals today, it helps to be a con-artist media clown skilled in deluding angry and desperate Americans into believing that down is up and up is down.
Sean Hannity will be getting his Medal soon.
All Mitt can look forward to is a future of looking around to see who is walking behind him.
2
Good column. You finally come close to blaming the entire Republican party for this mess, and not just Trump. And you give Mitt Romney his due.
But how brave are you, Bret Stephens? Are you brave enough to do the only thing that will get rid of Trump - vote for whoever the Democrat is? Vote third-party or fail to vote,and you're just as complicit as the rest of the Senate.
I remember when his dad was running to become president and his dad caught all kind of grief because he stated the generals in charge of briefings on Vietnam had tried to brainwash him and others. His dad said the true thing and took grief. His dad was right and if only people would have listened to him lives could have saved. Same is true with his son.
1
Mitt Romney, in stark contrast to his lemming peers, stood up for the Constitution. I am very puzzled however, why he did not vote guilty on both articles. The administration very clearly obstructed Congress from doing its duty to the country. In any case, I suspect he has increased security for him and his family. It is very tough to stand up to the mob.
1
“Among the things now permanently lost to Republicans amid their supposed victory in the impeachment saga is the hope of having a leg to stand on when, in the fullness of time, a future Democratic president behaves toward them exactly the way Trump behaved last year.”
If only this were true. It’s clear that the ‘up is down’ conservative media will have no problem doing a 180 degree pivot whenever it’s convenient to bash a liberal opponent, and their cult followers will buy it. For example, when is the last time you hear Sean Hannity or our latest Medal of Freedom winner demonize Republicans for the explosion in the deficit, or call out Mr. Trump for his profligate rounds of golf or travel spending? It has not and will not ever happen.
4
There are moments in life when a man meets his time. Events create crystal clarity through a synthesis of soul and circumstance, and the man rises to the occasion.
So it was with Mitt Romney when he voted to convict the president. He knew that it would result in consequences to himself. He shrugged those off, prepared to accept them no matter how injurious to self.
In Romney's case, his vote was a courageous act that defied his long-held reputation as a waffling opportunist who could and did shape-shift to suit his own political needs at any given moment by shrinking to meet them.
That Romney stood out so clearly for being the only selfless one among many selfish ones unmoved by conscience while being cowed by fear, makes his vote all the more notable.
Perhaps Mitt realized that the ultimate judgment that matters is not that of faux-God-fearing Republicans or even the voters, but of a higher authority to which his party and president only offer hollow and cynical lip service. They talk the talk, but they most certainly do not walk it.
Romney has not always been perfect, but with this one act, he has established himself as far closer to perfect than the far-from-perfect phone call that the Donald Trump falsely claims to have held with Ukraine's president.
History may yet judge Romney kindly after all, but it is the judgment of a higher authority that appears to matter most to him. One wonders whether Trump supporters will feel the hellish burn, if not the Bern.
2
Romney did well, but he could have done much more, much sooner. In the end, it was too little and too late. Its intent was to preserve his own self respect and respect for his name.
1
While I thought there was a tad too much religious referencing in Romney's speech, it was otherwise brilliant, heroic and sure to immortalize him. I hope his niece realizes this.
2
I find it very curious to read that Mitch McConnell's decision to ignore the nomination of Merrick Garland is cited as some sort of principle that we must let the voters decide. We're less than a week away from the fourth anniversary of Scalia's death. How much do you care to wager, Mr. Stephens, that if another vacancy appears on the Supreme Court prior to the election that Senator McConnell cites no such principle and instead pushes Trump's nominee through the Senate quickly?
4
Could Mitt Romney be on the verge of cognizing something that has long been AUTOMATICALLY driving his political behaviour? If so, would that something be ACCURATELY 'self-respect'? It might well be belated recognition that his Bain behaviour was often inhuman; or it might be any number of REsolutions to the values he imbibed from more powerful figures much earlier in his life.
When will we all realize:
- that every one of us is suffering from what might be called 'incompletely healed distress';
- that distress is qualitatively different from stress in that it seeds in us long-standing biases (of reaction to a trauma);
- that healing from the distress of a trauma involves radical changes in the presumption we felt driven to draw when we absolutely had to escape from its thrall;
- and that healing from distress is not merely the consumption of psychiatric drugs and the rejoining of the tribal cabal -- perhaps a religion, perhaps a political identity, perhaps a mode of (Trump-like?) behavior -- into which the distress pitched us unconsciously?
The only thing Mr. Romney did the other day by his to vote for the removal of the indicted Trump from office was to bear faithful witness to the truth ... at least as he understood it. Insofar as that is what each of us in America ought do all the time should not be seen as extraordinary. And yet it is! What does that say about us? In the curious rallying call to “make America great again,” how does living “the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth” figure in? And when “economy” is mentioned, what does truth have to do with it?
6
I'm not ready to sanctify Mitt Romney yet.
There are too many reasons why he might have voted that way, and some not as heroic as one might like to think.
And payback is one of them, lest we forget how Donald Trump once dangled a job possibility before Romney only to snatch it away very publicly in the end.
Remember.
Vengeance is the main tool in Trump's repertoire, just look at what he's done to Gordon Sondland and Lt. Col. Vindman who testified against him -- and now, New York.
Mitt Romney might have upset the apple cart by not voting with the Republicans, but he didn't turn it over.
And no doubt we haven't heard the last of it.
Because Trump never forgets.
2
Being the lone Republican (from a conservative stronghold, no less) and voting one’s conscience isn’t payback. It’s self immolation.
And that, in this case, is a courageous act. Credit where credit is due. Unlike every other Republican in Congress, he put the nation he swore an oath to above his political party. Another chapter in ‘Profiles in Courage.’
And it’s a shame it has come to that.
1
@N. Smith: And now Trump sits in a judicially impregnable citadel.
@Kit
Sorry. It would only be "courage" if Romney voted in favor of both articles of impeachment brought against this president.
The only shame is that he was the only Republican in Congress to take a stand.
Mitt Romney actually showed his ambivalence and cowardice about exercising political power. Remember Romney's passivity toward Candy Crowley during his presidential debate with Obama. He should have confronted Crowley on her inappropriate defending of Obama and proceeded to confront Obama further on the lies and bad decisions at Benghazi. We Americans have many values and ideals and don't have to follow Romney, Obama, Trump or any other politicians' espoused values and ideals.
2
@Peter
Didn't Candy Crowley merely utter the truth? I suppose that in your book that places her in the same category as Lieutenant Colonel Vindman. If that's ambivalence and cowardice, we need lots more of it.
1
It was a mighty fine speech and should be praised, but I'm wondering why he voted nay to obstruction of Congress, an act of Trumpian sabotage that couldn't be clearer.
10
@MJ2G: Because Romney is all-in with theocracy in the US.
Stephens writes "[a]mong the things now permanently lost to Republicans ... is the hope of having a leg to stand on when ... a future Democratic president behaves toward them exactly the way Trump behaved last year." Not so. Republicans frequently make conflicting claims according to political expediency and get away with it. See, e.g., deficit hawkery.
9
"Lonely are the Brave" is a Hollywood fantasy that never happened, amd never would. America is a steam roller that drives over the past and pretends there's one smoothe line into the future called, by some, "Now". Dragging in a recently deceased sometime "actor" fails to make the point, and, is in remarkably bad taste. Mitt Romney spoke from himself and it's Stephens' lack of insight that says it's an act of courage. Romney was speaking from his belief and oath of Office. That's the Right Thing to do, Stephens; it's not a "Brave Thing to Do."
5
Romney could have been and should have been president at some point. He was first in the country to devise a healthcare plan with precursor shades of the eventual Affordable Care Act, and I wished he had crowed about that a little. It was fairly riddled with issues, as new programs often are, but I thought it should have been a stronger part of his resume. He's a good man (this comment from a Democrat. He's not perfect but not one candidate who has ever run for office has risen to that standard.
3
I like Romney and think he’s make a fine president. But, there were 3 issues that led to Trump’s acquittal:
1. 49% approval ratings, the highest in his presidency. Senators aren’t going to vote against the wishes of their constituents.
2. The politicization of this process. House Democrats chose to rush an impeachment vote rather than going to the judicial branch to get a ruling on witnesses. Zero Republican votes, the opposite of bipartisan. Should have been censure, which would have gotten bipartisan support.
3. Trump’s effectiveness: record stock market, 50-year low unemployment, 75% reduction of illegal crossings on the southern border, China trade deal after decades of other president’s unsuccessful efforts, NATO paying its share of defense, changing attitudes at the UN, isolating Iran’s rogue regime, introducing an Israel-Palestine peace plan, passing a better N. American trade deal, etc.
4
@Pragmatist in CT the only problem is trump behaves as though he is the president of only republicans. He doesn’t consider democrats part of his constituency. How can a president be only half a president ignoring half the country?
8
@Petey Tonei. A great number of Trump's accomplishments benefit ALL Americans. Low unemployment, reduction in illegal border crossings (wage increases for entry level jobs), NATO countries paying more for their own defense, better trade with China, energy independence, etc. In this areas, he is delivering for all Americans. But yes, he put the progressive agenda on hold. Appointment of conservative judges is a big one, stopping the march towards universal healthcare another one, reducing climate change regulations. We can debate whether the progressive agenda benefits ALL Americans or just some specific groups. But I can see that Trump's personality being a major issue for some people.
@Pragmatist in CT; Respectfully, I think you should explore your number three a little more in depth. It might be more a number two.
We are living in a time where simple honesty is an act of courage. This is true for the right, but also, sadly, for the radical left.
5
The US is incapable of recognizing all its own dishonesty deeply steeped in religion.
Worth noting is that, if the GOP wants to run an honest and principled candidate in 2024, they now have one - and only one. I wonder if they'll think about that, before drumming him out of the party for his singular refusal to kiss Trump's posterior.
5
There is no need for a long rhetoric here. Simply put: Mitt Romney's courage, integrity and morality HONOR the USA, here and abroad. He is my hero.
16
Last week, Mitt Romney clearly was a "profile in courage". He deserves all of our respect for that.
18
Thank you for using both "brave" and "courageous." Those two words' definition has become synonymous. Senator Romney revealed he is courageous, more than brave, if we allow those two words to regain their past differences. "Brave" was once defined as going into danger unknowingly, while "Courageous" was going in despite knowing. Senator Romney knows what he did, yet did so willingly.
4
Such glaring hypocrisy by the NYT. You guys hated Romney when he ran for president. Make up your mind.
4
@John Jabo Why is it not possible to respect or even admire one decision even if you do not approve of a candidate's overall record? Would you not want your opponents to recognize when Trump was right about something if they thought so?
Why does everything have to be so simple? If you have an opinion in 2012, you're not allowed to modify it in light of anything that happens afterwards?
16
@Bill Camarda
Puleeeeeeeeaaaze. If Romney ran for president tomorrow the NYT would again begin trashing him.
Well said. "In the fullness of time" honor and truth will prevail. Not everyone wants to live in Trump's world
11
Once something goes to court in the US, it can take decades to decide.
3
And it’s a crapshoot regarding the quality and ideology of any given judge or judges.
Romney's not lonely: 47 others stood up for what is right in that august body alone, plus somewhere between 54-60% of the whole country.
The Republic party is just a corrupt and corrupting minority who are routinely handed the mega-phone.
What we need are democratic reforms, not exhortations to Mitch McConnell to find some values his party doesn't have.
15
Thank you Mitchell McConnell, and those Congressmen with that sheep mentality which bind you all together. I hope Mitch doesn’t run you off the cliff. Maybe it’s too late. Your names won't be remembered, but those names of McConnell, who lead you darkly, and Romney, who thought for himself will be.
The chosen one, impeached, does not care. The very stable genius works for himself, only.
Divisiveness is his ploy. He'll be remembered, as other destroyers of governments are.
12
I've never been a fan of Mitt Romney (although his mandate on healthcare in Mass benefited the state in ways his fellow Republicans refuse to acknowledge) but I have a new respect and admiration for him since his guilty vote in the Senate. He is a man with morals and certainly one committed to his country. His guilty vote was also a blow to Mitch McConnell's shadow presidency. Let's not forget that Trump was acquitted not because he's innocent but because of the strong arm tactics of Mitch McConnell. I'm glad Mitt Romney stood up to him!! Republicans should follow his example.
18
We all should follow his example.
2
Brett, we know you're a corporatist, anti-populist, Never-Trump kind of Republican, but this is too much.
"But even Romney’s bitterest critics, left and right, ought to give him this: He voted without regard for personal advantage, without fear of partisan obloquy, and without an eye on the easy way out — all for the sake of his own self-respect."
Well, not really. Romney's vote is at least equally likely to be based on something Brett and Mitt share: a visceral hatred for the blathering, buffoonish Trump. All that religious stuff is nice, but have you ever noticed how often the God-mandated acts of overly-religious people coincidentally happen to match their personal hatreds and prejudices?
6
Now is not the time to dwell on the fine act of Romney. It's not a heroic act, just an act that had to be 'blamed' on faith. Romney,
if he were a real hero should have showed this much earlier in his life, as the beginning of the article touches on. He was and is part of the illness in the US that is sinking the nation. If not immediately in economic sense, for sure in moral and political ones.
What Stephens ought to concentrate on is personal soul searching and the same for the nation. To any centrists it is very difficult to understand that anyone can today, in the US, subscribe to conservative values. There is no place where these can safely be negotiated today. What was conservative is now rabidly so, and the movement is overseen by a tyrant and people like Mitch McConnell, Bill Barr and many others of the same ilk.
There is no room for anyone who is lightly different in this new
GOP. As late as at the Breakfast meeting Trump set to criticize (in a subversive fashion) one of his most staunch supporters, Jim Jordan. Bringing up his wrestling career and his not wearing a jacket was a hint to all to go google him and find that Mr. Jordan is tainted. His days are counted, such damaged goods does not do well in Trump's camp. I find Jordan odious and will not miss him, but Trump became his most scary self picking out this REP to exposure. This behaviour has been seen in fascist states before. Now we see it in the US.
2
Mitt Romney did the decent thing by acting with the integrity that his job demands. The fact that that makes him a hero says a lot about the times we live in.
18
The republican mantra about self reliance, self governance and holding to ones own opinion despite the will of the crowd are now exposed as all nonsense. The persistent condemnation of Mr. Romney proves this Republican Party has lost all sense of decency and will further undermine anyone’s belief that having those own opinion or voting their conscience can make a difference good job GOP in further undermining our democracy. These are the people who accused Democrats of trying to stage a coup. The GOP, by their actions, are really the ones slowly staging a coup right under our noses.
7
This political theatre that was so mind numbing. Romney's attempt at high mindedness was notable. Many GOP Senators held their noses and acquitted Trump. Their point being that the impeachment scheme of the Democrats and their news media allies could not be allowed to remove Trump from office. The Democrats' story was flimsy and had such bon mots, the US had to supply an ethnic war in Ukraine to keep from fighting the Russians here. Schiff's nasty hysterical anti-Russian Orwellian dissertation was particularly noteworthy. The hour of hate had arrived. The US should put away all the voting machines and prepare for the Russians to march down main street if Trump wins in 2020. Or the Russians were going to be given Alaska because Trump was unable to resist Putin. Romney's speech had the virtue of being based in reality.
There is no greater contrast in this situation than Mitt Romney and Lamar Alexander. One who voted his conscience and met the obligation of his oath to the Constitution. One who could not be bothered to care about Constitution or conscience.
7
It is a sad world when an obvious vote to convict by a privileged man who has nothing at stake is celebrated as "heroism."
It's better than the rest of the Republicans, I suppose, but hardly an act of breathtaking courage.
And, while I have the comment box, please reconsider the majesty of Mitt's being motivated by his "oath to God." That is an extraordinarily dangerous motivation to celebrate. We are a secular nation. The "religious right," an oxymoron of note, is using their "oath to God" to dismantle constitutional rights and relegate gender relations to the 17th century.
6
The author is correct that the country would be a lot better off if more people in authority acted on their (or some) values when it mattered.
This extends, however, to many people who do not have all that much authority. A few thousand legislators, judges, agency leaders and CEOs cannot create a just society on their own.
Many people have power far beyond their nominal job descriptions and no reasonable excuse for passing the buck. Use this power and the world will change.
3
Courage would be an appropriate description if Romney’s vote was the 51st and deciding vote to convict. This wasn’t courage - it was grandstanding for some political gain we may not yet know the motive for (ie a presidential run in 2024).
4
@Jason I think it may have been *even more* courageous for him to stand up for what was right when it would have been so easy to do otherwise, knowing it wouldn't matter to the outcome.
Collins took the easy way out. So did Alexander. So did Murkowski. None of them wanted to be the one to stand up and take the vicious attacks sure to come their way if they stepped out of line. None of them chose their oaths over personal self-interest.
Romney did so and deserves great credit for it. If his vote to convict *had* been the 67th, Trump would have been removed from the levers of power that he will now use to damage Romney. But Romney doesn't have that protection now. If this wasn't political courage, I don't know what is.
1
I did not know anyone but myself had "Lonely Are the Brave" as a favorite movie. As I remember it helping illegal immigrants was the 'crime' one of the characters was charged with.
The movie was ahead of its time and appealed to my anarchy streak.
Stephens might have also mentioned Kirk Douglas in "Paths of Glory" which showed the horrors of war fall mostly on the soldiers in the trenches who pay for the mistakes of the generals. But that might have reminded him of our failed war in Iraq that he was/is so in favor of.
2
Uggh! Having to defend Bret Stephens is always an uphill climb. That said, the critics here have got it all wrong. Stephens isn't criticizing Romney's conservatism, because he himself is a conservative. How is that a legitimate criticism? We all knew the fix was in from the start and yes, Romney, as both a church and state elder, could afford to stand alone. But, by standing alone among his Republican colleagues, and saying what he said, Romney bore witness to history about what Trump and his mob of sycophantic legislators did. Pelosi was right. Impeachment is a stain that can't be removed. What Romney said on the floor of the Senate insures that the stain can't be hidden either.
13
Although I have rarely agreed with him, I wrote to Senator Romney thanking him for his courageous and proper vote. His vote was courageous not because it was the right thing to do, but because he stood up to his party to cast it. He is, evidently, the last Republican with this kind of courage.
14
I was hoping that this impeachment would also get some other Republicans to vote on impeachment, I have a deep sense that many Republicans abhor Mr. Trump and what he stands for.
I have read some comments that its only 1 vote. I am going to guess that when the history books are written about Mr. Trump and his impeachment, Mitt Romney's name will be right next to him as the man who defied his party and the terrible man they enable.
This was a chance for the Republican party to unshackle themselves from Mr. Trump. They didn't. A strong Conservative party based on fiscal responsibility and personal freedoms is what this country needs at the moment to bring balance to our politics. It didn't happen.
13
I am 72 years old and cannot recall a time when Republicans believed "that political dirty tricks should never be normalized." They have been the accepted practice since at least 1968.
16
Agree with everything in here. I’d spent some time around then-Gov. Romney of MA. If THAT Mitt Romney had run in 2012, I’d have had a hard choice to make between him and President Obama. He tacked so far right as to be unrecognizable, so my choice was much easier.
You mention that the Rs will face the music when, in the fullness of time, a Democrat is elected President. They’ll also face it when, perhaps this cycle, the Senate flips D. If it winds up that a strong national ticket picks off moderate Rs who voted “not guilty” and also elects a D President (like Bloomberg), well, look out. That will be the draining of the swamp.
6
Romney's speech at Hinckley Institute in 2016 shocked people because it showed how much this man could hate: an hour of vindictive ad hominum vitriol attacking Trump's morals, personality, history, choices, wives, breathing styles, fathering, business dealings, school work, appearance, politics, religion, with a lot of hyperbole. I wonder if any other speech in history has been so hate-based. The issue: Romney swore before God and the Senate to be impartial. How could he manage to be impartial and thereby keep his avowed hate for the President out of the "guilty" verdict?
@greg starr People can read the transcript of that speech and decide for themselves whether a single word he said about Trump was false. If anyone deserves to have a gripe with that speech, it's Hillary Clinton.
https://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/04/us/politics/mitt-romney-speech.html
When they listen or read the transcript, they can also see for themselves whether Romney criticized Trump's wives, or his fathering, or his religion.
Romney's speach was absolutely correct in pointing out the evils of Trump -- it was not "ad hominem" because Trump is not a legitimate hominem (human being) but a perversion of a man embodying almost every sin to which humans liable. Defending him is to embrace the same evils. Someday you will know that.
History will look back on Romney as the hero he was in this event. That’s his legacy and it also positions him for a run in 2024
1
I did not vote for Mr. Romney but like may who are Republican whom I have met since then, I know he is an honorable, dignified individual with real backbone and a lot in common with me, your basic Volvo-driving, latte-drinking, sushi-eating, New-York-Times-reading liberal. To paraphrase the late Senator John McCain, he's a good man, a family man with whom I happen to have a few fundamental differences with regarding policy.
While I am certain that many of the Republicans who voted to acquit actually feel as Senator Romney does but chose protecting their own skin over all other considerations, the entire world now knows they are people without a shred of neither honor nor dignity who have no business occupying the halls of Congress.
They couldn't be more disloyal if they were paid Russian operatives...which, in effect, they have become.
5
I fear this will end badly. Not only did Trump go after Romney for voting his conscience, but ALL the other Republicans did as well. How many of them had to sit on their hands to keep from looking like they supported Romney? We will never know. And all the Trump voter base were yelling and swearing at Romney on the screen as well. Making Romney the 'enemy' of millions and millions of people. Remember back when anti abortion people had a few fringe folks who felt killing abortion providers and bombing clinics was 'God's will'? That kind of thing made lots of anti-abortion people cringe a bit. Do you think there aren't more than a few folks out there who will think they are being called to 'defend' Trump? When that happens, Trump's response won't be "Hey this has gotten out of hand". His response will be "I never told anyone to do that, but there are fine people out there that let their emotions get the best of them. If Romney had never done what he did, this never would have happened". The question will be does that make the cringing go away? Because I see nothing that tells me this is headed anywhere but to a bad place.
3
We all owe Mitt Romney a debt of gratitude for his courage.
We owe Mr. Romney that debt of gratitude -- whether we are Democrats or Republicans.
As a Democrat, I often disagree with Mr. Romney's politics.
As a veteran, I share his disgust with Donald Trump who publicly called upon Putin to intervene in the 2016 election and then tried to extort Ukrainian interference in the 2020 election. Trump should have been removed from office long ago. If we cannot have fair elections free from foreign influence, we cannot call the United States a democracy.
11
Mitt Romney should run for President as an Independent in an effort to split the Republican vote and block Trump's re-election. Many republicans might vote for him in protest of Trump. This could divert enough votes especially in the swing states required to win.
"Never Trump" a position long held by Romney could literally save our democracy from the threat of fascism .
3
While I’m vey appreciative of Senator Romney’s “courage” (albeit it didn’t impact on the outcome) I am sick & tired of the use of religion as the raison d’etre for his vote or behavior.
Religion and all the false idols all these “religious” politicians follow is what has gotten us into this mess, and I see no way out.
Trump is guilty, plain and simple, and a true justice system, and a government run with true checks & balances on his 24/7 crime spree would have dealt with it.
Religion had no place in his speech, nor in any decision.
“Religion” has gotten us into this mess.
Have no doubt that Romney will choose his religion over justice, legal precedent or even a woman’s right to choose what to do with her body when Roe v Wade is skewered in this year’s Supreme Court session further decimating this country.
Separation of church & state - any doubt where he stands on that?
1
I do not share most of Romney's policy positions, but I think he is one of the last true American republicans left. It is sad that out country has gotten to this point. Blame goes to Trump, but most goes to McConnell for ALLOWING him to get away with it. The Senate used to have responsible partisan people who would argue policy positions, now all we have is a bunch of Trumpanains that are more interested in power than the constitution. I spent years of my life in the military, depending the Constitution and the 'American way of life. Did I waste years of my life?
5
I agree completely. It makes me melancholy for the past when I realize how unique political courage and principle feels these days. It’s like you don’t notice how rare it’s become until you see it happen and the contrast reminds you of the absence. Thanks Mitt.
4
Well written column with some excellent reminders. But Romney? When Mr. never-violate-my-conscience ran for President, he asked Trump to endorse him. Trump did. So, I would say that Mr. Romney’s conscience is memorably flexible.
Sen Romney's courage and integrity stands in stark contrast to the lack of each exhibited by other "thoughtful" Republicans including Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski, Lamar Alexander, Rob Portman, Corey Gardner. Let us also not forget the courage exhibited by those Dem Senators in precarious seats such as Joe Manchin and Doug Jones, their courage should also not be underestimated. We need more people in Congress who not only have the courage of their convictions, but also the integrity and will to exercise their courage. We have too many in this gov't who exhibit neither courage nor integrity choosing to exorcise both at the alter of Trump. Americans or all stripes must exercise their right to vote and relieve these timid cowards from their burden of service.
3
As a child raised by a mostly Republican father and a solidly Democratic mother, I grew up in a Catholic, Midwestern, & middle class family that engaged in frequent and spirited discussions about politics and current events. We were raised to be knowledgeable and caring American citizens. Senator Mitt Romney's courageous and moral act vividly reminded me of what I had learned and absorbed growing up. Despite their political differences, both of my parents abhorred the dangerous demagogue Joseph McCarthy and praised the bravery of his detractors whom they saw as saviors of our democracy. Also, they admired Michigan George Romney, father of Mitt, as a man of moral character and strength who defied his party as an early and strong supporter of Civil Rights. His son truly exemplified both his honorable father and the better angels of the Republican Party with a vote that recognized the facts of Trump's unconstitutional actions and adhered to his sacred oath as a United States Senator. Senator Romney may not have changed the impeachment verdict, but he has contributed to saving our nation's integrity in these dark and dangerous times.
14
Perhaps all the Senators should have been forced to watch Twelve Angry Men before voting. A great example of seeing one man standing on principal against the tide and ultimately influencing a change in course.
3
Starts to restore my faith that our elected representatives will do what is in our country's best interest rather than their own. I hope that Senator Romney will only be the first of the brave and will not be lonely for long.
4
As Bret Stephens recognizes, the past weaknesses or waffling by an elected public figure, do not detract from today’s political courage of that man or woman. That past actually enhances the nobility of today’s decision to do the right thing for the good of the country. We should salute Senator Mitt Romney for doing what candidate Mitt Romney was unable to do.
In standing up to the corruption and cynical self-dealing of Donald Trump in abandoning Ukraine, an ally facing a life-and-death struggle against an aggressive Russia, Mitt Romney showed courage. In acting as the only Republican among Trump’s compliant enablers in the Senate, Romney knew that he would be punished.
Romney’s lonely stand should inspire all of us.
9
If only this Mitt Romney would have shown up when he ran for President. Mr. Stephens makes the point that america never knew who Romney was. He ran away from his moderate bonafides and from the fact he was the father of .the Affordable Care Act. He had a very able running mate in Paul Ryan who was silenced because many of his common sense views did not jibe with the right base of the GOP. Put Mitts name into the polling mix today and I bet he would do just fine. Yes, Bret makes an elegant point, but for Romney, his courage came too late and I don’t know which Kirk Douglas role that matches.
5
Mitt Romney's vote and speech will be historic.
Future generations will remember that one individual would not cower in fear at a time when most others in his party lost their nerve.
6
I agree that Mitt Romney’s decision to vote for the conviction and removal from office of Donald Trump was the noble and right one. His words were eloquent and a testament to moral courage and the principles that every statesman should strive for in being true to his conscience and oaths of office.
In the past Mitt Romney has compromised with his beliefs in running for President in order to win the Republican nomination and ran against his own health care plan and his considerable moderately progressive achievements as Massachusetts Governor. I felt at that time he seemed like a political partisan without conviction and principles, a man pandering to the views of the Republican base. I lost a great deal of respect for him at that time. I do not see why Mitt should remain in a Republican Party that supports and advocates for the policies and condones the behavior of Donald Trump. If he wants to show that his principles mean something more politically significant, he should resign from the lost Republican Party and become an independent and caucus with the Democrats. He would be welcomed there even with his conservatism and would send a message that good people cannot remain aligned with today’s Republican Party without harming our democracy, our Constitution, and true conservative
principles. I hope he and all decent Republicans consider resigning from this lost and authoritarian party because of their love of country, decency, and the rule of law.
4
Good article. And while it's about Romney and the Republican party, I was also deeply moved by the noble stand and speech of Democratic Senator Dough Jones from Alabama. In spite of the risk of losing in Nov., he stood up for the Constitution on the basic principle that right is right and wrong is wrong.
26
Why does Romnet deserve so much more praise than Pelosi, Schiff, Nadler, Schumer, and every single Democrat who voted for impeachment?
Most of them have been speaking out against Trump and Trumpism for months/years. Many of them come from swing districts, and have more at risk than Romney.
Sorry, but Romney isn't a "hero." What he did didn't take any "courage." He merely told the truth and then voted with his conscience. (That's a lot more than we can say for Collins, who usually talks a good game but then equivocates when it comes time to vote.)
Isn't that what Congresspeople and Senators are supposed to do?
Isn't that what we citizens should expect from our elected officials?
I'll call Romney a hero if he speaks out against McConnell obstructing the hundreds of bills that he's holding up. I'll call Romney a hero if he speaks out against the lies and hatred spewed by the Rightwing Media Cabal. I'll call Romney a hero if he calls out his Republican colleagues for propagating those lies and that hatred. I'll call Romney a hero if he switches parties in order to break the grip of the immoral Republican hegemony in the Senate.
But his merely doing what a Senator is supposed to do is no reason to call him a hero.
9
For one man with courage to have made a majority in this case, Romney would have had to bring this all up in conference with Republicans prior to the vote and worked to get others to vote as he did.
2
The film Lonely are the Brave has many similarities with our current situation. The screenplay itself was penned by Dalton Trumbo, the screenwriter who showed his own courage in defiance of the 1950's blacklist, broken by Kirk Douglas by insisting on Trumbo to write Spartacus' screenplay.
Jack Burns, Douglas' cowboy character, was assisted by his equine partner, Whisky, in an Oscar-worthy display of courage (if we had animal Oscars) just as the testimony of Dr. Hill, Ambs. Taylor, Yovanovich and Sondland and LTC Vindman among others added to our search for truth in the impeachment hearings.
The resolution of the film and the impeachment trial also parallel each other. Burns' undoing is at the hands of Carroll O'Connor as a semi driver carrying toilets; the impeachment undoing is under the wheels of the juggernaut driven by Mitch McConnell carrying loads of craven filth from the halls of the Republican-controlled Senate.
The outcome for Burns and for impeachment were well telegraphed in advance but the losses for both were no less dramatic for the foretelling. The film has justly been seen as a classic and will be long remembered. I am hopeful the 52 senators voting to acquit will be remembered in November and beyond as well.
9
@Doug McNeill
Brilliant analysis, Mr. McNeill! This deserves to be an NYT pick!
But perhaps I'm of this opinion because I've actually seen the movie (which I will find time to watch again in the near future).
What’s most sad to me is that we are all praising someone for being honest. Call me crazy but Isn’t that what we’re supposed to do? I’ve learned a lot through this process, and none of it good. My trust for my fellow humans, especially those with something to lose, is at about zero now. “Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” - Lord Acton
16
As a estranged life-long Republican, I feel such a debt of gratitude to Senator Romney for voting his conscience. Like those impeachment witnesses who were fired yesterday by a vindictive President, Romney will pay a price. But in Romney we have the one Republican leader embodying principles upon which the R party can be rebuilt at some future point when Trump Fever has finally been contained. Hopefully both Senator Romney and I will be around to see that day.
10
"Any man more right than his neighbors constitutes a majority of one," Henry David Thoreau, Civil Disobedience. Sometimes, it's better to Google than to guess.
9
@Susanekg
And it actually sounds like something that Thoreau would say.
We also have to look to our souls. Trump currently enjoys a 49 percent approval rating. How can the American people, who should have been schooled in the Constitution, ever rate Trump this highly? They might like some of his policies, but all things equal, they have no concept of democratic government that they should have learned in school and they are placing themselves and their country in mortal peril. Why?
27
@Denis Yes. It's been said that Trump is the symptom of a disease in the American body politic.
@Denis
Why is Trump at 49%?
Because his opponents are dramatically worse.
@Denis Republicans have been working hard at the dumbing down of Americans for years. Their efforts are paying off now just as they plannned. Without an educated population, anything is possible.
Well written but did omit Senator Romney's reference to his Father who fought for desegragation in public housing and was vilified by the Church and fellow Republicans. He lost his position in the Nixon Cabinet by doing so.
Senator Romney understood this historic vote would define his legacy not only as Senator representing his constituents but to all American citizens and as a Patriarch of a large family knowing the values he possesses are practiced despite the hardships he knew they would endure. He gave me the gift of hope that was short lived since Trump announced the following day his Vendetta list. After reading Lt. Col. Vindeman and his brother were escorted out of the White House I hope their military careers are intact.
16
Thank you senator Romney, for reminding me of a time seemingly long since past when Character, not vain celebrity, was the ideal social value!!!
May our social values reflect character, integrity, honor, duty, generosity!
14
Senator Romney,
I hope you are reading these comments this morning and are getting a sense of all the people - left right and center - who believe you were brave and sincere in your impeachment vote. You knew there would be fallout, but did the right thing. You will survive the attacks - many of your fellow Senators clearly feared losing their jobs.
Please continue to speak out - bring some of your fearful colleagues along. Put a check on this craziness.
22
@Hans : you and Brett make it sound like Trump can FIRE Romney for his "bravery".
In fact, Romney is now a sitting US Senator (from Utah) and he can't be fired or censored in any way by Trump.
Short memories, folks? Romney ran for POTUS and lost and he tried for the nomination in 2016 and was trounced by Trump. He's mad over THAT -- not corruption! we all know he tried to get a job in the Trump Administration and was totally humiliated too!
This is petty revenge against Trump, and it is quite transparent.
Bret
While I disagree with you often here we are aligned. Mitt Romney has not been perfect throughout his political career. We are all flawed. In this day and age even the most flawed of us has the capacity to do what is right and should receive credit when he or she does. That is the benefit of perspective.
How are we to succeed as a nation when humility, decency, truth, courage and perspective are in such short supply?
12
What Romney did was noble, yes, but not far above the character baseline we should expect of every senator. It's a good that he stood up to Trump, of course, but I find it sad America's going gaga over him. He should not be the exception.
11
According to Mr. Staples, "Conservatives used to believe ... that political dirty tricks should never be normalized."
I'm not sure how far in the past conservatives used to believe this, but President Reagan's Secretary of Interior, James Watt, enjoyed saying "I never use the words Democrats and Republicans. It's liberals and Americans." (New York Times, 10 October 1983.)
I consider Watt's statement to be a political dirty trick. Perhaps Mr. Staples sees no problem in it.
3
I'd be more impressed with Stephens' eloquence if he'd applied similar reasoning to that "Anyone But Trump? Not So Fast" column he wrote about not being able to vote for Bernie Sanders against Trump.
3
The part of the speech that caught me off guard was Mitt Romney's explanation about John Bolton.
"I sought to hear testimony from John Bolton, not only because I believed he could add context to the charges, but also because I hoped that what he might say could raise reasonable doubt and thus remove from me the awful obligation to vote for impeachment."
In other words, Romney was looking for an out and McConnell wouldn't give him one. He was therefore compelled to convict. I have to believe McConnell was aware of Romney's position when he coerced Lisa Murkowski to do a mental backflip voting against witnesses.
McConnell judged Romney's defection was less damaging than Bolton's testimony. A point which vindicates Romney and condemns the rest of the Republican Senate. Trump's innocence or guilt should not be left to voters. However, the fate of the Republican majority certainly is.
The first step is firing Mitch McConnell. If you haven't already, you should make a donation to the leading contenders. Amy McGrath is currently the party favorite. Charles Booker represents Kentucky's more progressive side. Take your pick. There's about a dozen candidates to choose from.
You can also donate to the "Fire Mitch Save America" Super PAC if that's more your thing. They currently back McGrath. However, you can guess they'll pivot if she fails to secure the nomination.
6
@ Andy-Salt Lake City.
I do not support Mitt’s policies and am unlikely to ever vote for him:
Mitt wasn’t looking for a save, a way out from McConnell, he was seeking evidence from Bolton’s participation and direct “in the room” knowledge of the phone call to Zelensky and any possible cover up of the non classified actual phone call (not a brief summation transcript) locked up in the highly classified locked server and the supposed “drug deal”, as quoted by John Bolton. As the administration unlawfully stonewalled the rights of congressional oversight to obtain subpoena testimony and documentation, Mitt could only make his vote “guilty“ in Article 1 Abuse of Power. Though Article 2 was the obstruction of evidence charge against DT”, how Mitt could offer a non guilty on Article 2, if that obstructed evidence could have allowed Mitt perhaps to render a non guilty verdict based on non obstructed evidence as outlined in Article 1 charge is the most baffling reasoning by Mitt’s “non-guilty” of Article 2. But Mitt’s got nothing to lose by his vote except from the twitter drones and the likes from DT jr and Kimmie and Hannity. Utahonian’s will support their guy because they and Mitt are better practicing Christians’ than that phony Christian DT and his phony Christian minions, like Graham (both Graham’s) and Falwell jr. and that phony in the “Baptist closet, truly not a real Catholic” Pence, and all their phony Christian ilk.
I have profound respect for Romney. I disagree with him on just about everything, but the display of courage gave me chills.
9
I've been among this man's fiercest critics over the years. Up until now, I've always pretty much regarded him as a cold-hearted, supercilious, sanctimonious, shallow, empty suit, willing to say or do anything to secure and maintain power.
However, it is clear that at the core of his soul, he is a man of profound wisdom, integrity, and most important, courage.
I've never been more pleased to admit that I was 100% wrong about a person.
Well done, Senator Romney.
8
Mitt Romney’s speech could have gone something like this: “Since I’m not up for re election for another four years, I don’t have to fear the president and his base and, by extension, for my job. Therefore, I will vote to convict.”
5
Mitt Romney voted to direct all congressional inquires of the executive to the justice system to be vetted for political motivation with all the other Republicans. The second was the more important article of impeachment.
2
Romney did the right thing, and kudos to him for that. But it's very telling of our time when merely doing the right thing gets lauds and hosannahs.
A "hero" is someone who risks life, or livelihood, in pursuit of the honorable. Romney is no hero; his physicalities have never been in duress. Insulting appraisals from scofflaws and scoudrels does not make anyone a hero.
5
The real question is whether Romney voted his conscience or voted REVENGE!
Before we laud the man for his bravery and valor, let's think about that.
3
@bsb , no,I don’t think we have to go negative on the only positive aspect of the entire Republican charade.
1
@bsb : absolutely. Romney detests Trump and the two had a bitter rivalry and Romney lost -- then went hat in hand to beg for a job from Trump. Trump HUMILIATED Romney -- teasing him about a job offer, then kicking him to the curb.
This is revenge and rather petty at that.
"But even Romney’s bitterest critics, left and right, ought to give him this: He voted without regard for personal advantage, without fear of partisan obloquy, and without an eye on the easy way out — all for the sake of his own self-respect.
The country would be a better place today if more people in positions of authority acted similarly."
Bravo to Mitt Romney.
This process demonstrated the strangest voting outcome ever. All the Democrats voted to impeach. All the Republicans voted against the impeachment. What kind of voting was that? Loyalty, solidarity, or were crimes actually committed.
I don't understand how they are all lawmakers; they all studied the laws, they all work in the government. So how can there be such a divide like that. Were the charges legal? Were the laws broken? How can there be such a divide if they all became lawyers. I don't get it.
1
The US court system is a racket for lawyers.
Mitt Romney deserves this article. He was brave enough to stand up for truth and American principles. He should be honored
"In other words, the exact opposite of our politicians today."
But I think Bret missed an important point. If he believes that Romney stood up for what was right - why is he not giving the label patriot to the Democrats who pursued the facts. We don't know what the political risk will be to the Democratic Party. But we know Trump's actions defied the very ideals our founding fathers tried to protect. The men and women that were Impeachment managers spoke eloquently and the truth. Trump and his enablers responded with name calling and threats. House Democrats made sure Trump's deeds came out of the shadows, to identify what isn't okay behavior. To make sure the threats to our democracy are out in the open. To chronicle it for history. Give them a thanks too Bret!!
9
@ NB in Maine:
Fox Trump Murdoch News has absconded the definition of “Patriot” to mean “Republican”. If you’re an American citizen you are all Patriots.
Don’t allow that phony Cable channel to redefine words, like Patriot or Christian or soldier or progressive or liberal or conservative or other standard democratic or religious representations of American life: community, place of worship, America flag, jurisprudence, citizenry, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, the Amendments or preamble: Who and how I love or what God or higher power or atheist or agnostic or pagan or “other” peaceful deity or religion is not for any local or state government body or federal administration or federal DOJ or TV Station(s) to define, or malign its citizenry” especially by abusing or co-opting the word patriot.
I remember doubting when Trump first made noises about running for President, and those New Yorkers who knew him said it might prove to be the end of the Republican Party.
An autocrat has no party, just accomplices and those he has paid off.
I have absolutely no doubt that there now will be a major effort to use the entire Party to destroy Mitt Romney. Not sure how you do that, but then when all this started Trump hadn't stacked the federal Judiciary and Supreme Court.
When all is said and done, it is how we feel about ourselves and our lives that counts, and Mitt certainly can look at himself in the mirror this morning.
Hugh
6
I find it difficult to be moved by Mitt Romney’s stirring words — where was he when his noble sentiments could have made a difference? Having the courage of one’s convictions matters only when voicing those convictions can have real consequences. Sorry, Mitt – too little, too late…
3
Mitt is supposed to get his own planet in his next life.
What Senator Romney did was very brave. He seems to be an honorable and decent man even though he has made mistakes. His reasoning for voting to convict was awe inspiring to me because as he spoke he knew, as we did too what torture lies ahead for him. I find the sacrifice beautiful and tragic. I have been a progressive Democrat since I registered to vote in 1988 on my 18th birthday, and I say this in all honesty: I hope he does not leave the senate and I hope we get to have Mitt Romney as our President one day soon.
1
Mitt’s vote did not so much show him to be a patriot as it showed that there were 52 other Republican Senators who are not. And their leader Mitch doesn’t care a thing for the law or what may be right. Winning is everything to this Republican caucus and that means never concerning yourself with fact or right. Mitt’s vote on impeachment only kept him out of the pure cess that the rest wallow in.
13
Bret Stephens is the last person who should be assessing anyone’s principles, character, or courage.
8
That said, it was a principled decision, well laid out, on Romney’s part, and is indeed worthy of respect.
2
The bar for heroism is certainly low and the status diluted if Mr. Romney sets the standard.
2
@ MadModerate -
I would argue that Constitutional norms should fade a bit in a national crisis as major as war or The Great Depression and WWII. Not totally, but to some degree. War was one area the framers thought some limits on Constitutional norms needed to be applied. They didn’t think so in an economic crisis because our economy was not developed nationally that much when the Constitution was written. Alexander Hamilton was responsible for tying together a national economy, in great part. So it is rational to think that if they could have foreseen such a crisis, they would have provided some response to it. (My argument against “Originalism” in interpreting the Constitution.)
Comparing FDR’s time to today is ludicrous. Trump’s big issue (besides his narcissism) is immigration. Immigration has clearly not risen to an existential crisis level as large the Great Depression or WWII, much less that other time an American president veered significantly away from Constitutional norms, The Civil War.
Not every war rises to those levels, WWI didn’t, and Wilson’s and Congress’ support for the Sedition Act of 1918 was incorrect. Turning against Constitutional norms should have a sign that says, “Use in times of GREAT Existential Emergency”.
Trump’s abandonment of Constitutional norms deserves reprimand.
A true leader inspires courage, inspires us to action, inspires the best parts of ourselves, stirs our hearts to do good and inspires hope. Mitt Romney is such a leader.
Although I am not a Republican I have great respect for his stand and have always thought that he was and is a selfless person with true Christian faith.
Hurray for Mitt!
1
When John McCain died I assumed there were no decent Republican left anywhere. There's still one. We liberals can disagree with Mitt Romney all day about dozens of issues, but we must applaud him at this moment.
13
Listening to Senator Romney I was reminded to Joseph Welch's remark to Joseph McCarthy, "Sir, have you no decency." If memory serves, what followed was Edward R. Murrow's expose of McCarthy and his minions. Senator Romney is a lone voice in a bleak wilderness peopled by spineless individuals like Mitch McConnell, Lindsay Graham and the others. A sad time in American history from which it will take several generations to recover.
12
It’s heartening that Romney of all people, who has flip flopped through a wide ranging array of temporarily expedient positions over his political career would land on the right side of history in this one, shining moment. Although insufficient in the long run to impact the outcome, his proud resistance was in sharp contrast to his GOP colleagues, whose cowering response to Trump’s blatant abuse of presidential power was to exponentially increase that power. At least Romney’s stand showed America that character in the Republican Party - however remote - was still possible.
4
Kudos the Senator Romney. Still I can forgive others for voting not to convict, however all but a handful of Republicans, along with the dangerous enablers on Fox News, wouldn’t even acknowledge the malfeasance, and those people have done serious and permanent damage to the integrity and accountability of our Government.
4
"“I will only be one name among many, no more, no less, to future generations of Americans who look at the record of this trial,” he said in his peroration. “They will note merely that I was among the senators who determined that what the president did was wrong, grievously wrong.”
Romney's vote was, of course, the right one, but here he is being disingenuous.
2
Anyone who has read Edward Abbey's
novel "The Brave Cowboy," filmed as "Lonely Are the Brave" knows that the hero lost his life fighting for an ideal.
This hardly describes Romney, a Republican who has spent his entire life
voting for and defending every lousy GOP idea, especially when he benefited.
6
As admirable as Romney's vote on impeachment was, in the end it was only symbolic. With Trump's purges, Romney has the opportunity to act on the principles that led him to his vote against the abuse of power that, again, evident in this presidency. I urge him to take advantage of his newly-found position and decry the Trump's actions, reminding him and the Republican leadership that, unlike the governmental system in which his friends Kim Jung Un and the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia operate, this country does not give him license to consolidate personal power in his office.
6
Romney's speech was unique, in that it was based on personal responsibility, commitment to an oath to be fair and truthful, commitment to the idea that to undermine the oath taken in front of God, is to undermine one's relationship with God. and country. And when those commitments are factored, truth spoken aloud bears the only judgement: the President is guilty.
The Republican party is really big on using personal responsibility to act against the health, safety and security of Americans. We should take responsibility - if we can't afford healthcare, we should get better jobs. If we cannot afford both food and rent, we should tae responsibility for that, and figure it out - not look for food handouts or housing aid.
Yet when it came to using personal responsibility to judge the President who takes not, the GOP went quiet.
Mitt Romney recognized that he has to do the hard things; that makes him more honest and less hypocritical than anyone in his party.
9
Thank you Mr. Stephens, I have great respect for Mitt Romney, If you saw a sound bite of Mitt's speech, you wouldn't get it, too many people take cursory glances at things. Watch the entire speech America! take the time. It is brilliant and heart felt. Mr. Romney is a man of honor and a humility not often seen among politicians. Thanks Mr. Stephens, I am always drawn to your articles.
4
Political courage makes a patriot? That leaves you out, Mr. Stephens. You slice and dice and come down on your GOP side every time. Even with the lazy, Homer Simpson kind of line: "the exact opposite of our politicians today," you dodge behind the "sure, they all do it" lie. And Mitch McConnell went down a dark road? No, he trashed the Constitution of the USA and declared that general elections will suffice to amend the Constitution. Truly, the Second Amendment becomes more relevant every day.
7
As Romney shows, there is now only one way in which a good person can remain a Republican: by openly working against his own party. But I wonder. Now that lying, corruption and despotism have openly become the "brand" of the party, is even that enough?
4
I am 72. For more than half my life, I took for granted that all Senators would behave as Mitt Romney did. Yes, there were partisan arguments but when the stake involved the foundations of our nation, principles would triumph over party.
By nature, I am an optimist. With each passing day of this foul, corrupt administration and the GOP cult following, I know that I will not live to see balance, sanity and respect for the Constitution restored. Anyone who has studied cults knows it is almost impossible to deprogram members. With trump, we have not just the idolatry of an individual but a vast industry which depends on keeping the cult alive.
It will take generations to undo the damage. Perhaps our great-grandchildren will once again be able to expect most of our national leaders to behave as people with discernment and integrity, regardless of party affiliation.
24
Like most of us, Senator Romney has had times when he lived up to his principles and times when he didn't. But faced with the hardest test of his political life, he listened to his conscience and demonstrated his courage. When he was a presidential candidate, I recall reading a piece on his commitment to his faith and the role he played within his church--including, surprisingly to me, as a counselor to church members beset by troubles. It was clear during his speech in the Senate that he is a person of deep faith, a faith that made him obey his conscience. The contrast with those who loudly profess their faith, yet act against the tenets of that faith, could not be starker. Thank you, Senator Romney.
10
Mitt was a R that I could have voted for. Major reason Mitt missed my vote 2012 was that it was a vote for the GOP.
That sounds partisan but it is NOT; not in a traditional sense. I always leaned D but have voted R and admired Rs. I wore an "I Like Ike button"; I thought Senator Javits was a hero; Mitt was not a bad Gov.
I lean Progressive and Liberal yes but not in a partisan way. Rather in a scientific way. Weighing the evidence and rationality my verdict falls more often that way. But best plan should win IF THINGS EXISTENTIALLY EVEN! Of course the Ds not always right technically nor the Rs always wrong nor vice versa.
But I am is a patriot! I fought for the ideals of my Country NOT for any Party.
And today's GOP is full bore antithetical to our founding ideal of secular liberal democracy, to truth, to modernity. It is the Party of Theocratic Authoritarian Plutocracy (TAP) at any cost.
The GOP not only counters the Progressive argument but also ANY RATIONAL AND TRUTHFUL ARGUMENT that threatens TAP!
I do believe a vote for the GOP is a vote against America! Not because of its tax plan, or heath care plan, or infrastructure plan, or lack thereof but because their regressive path is a path existentially away from honor, truth, fairness, modernity. It is existentially pointed away from our ideals. The D Party for all its imperfection is NOT an existential danger; the GOP is! I vote accordingly!
17
@IAmANobody
I like Ike Button!!! that's fantastic!! Nice intelligent comment "I am a nobody!".
1
“They will note merely that I was among the senators who determined that what the president did was wrong, grievously wrong.”
Senator Romney was not even the only Republican Senator who determined what Trump did was wrong - he was the only one with the courage to act.
9
In the end the only thing we have left is our integrity.
5
Very nice. But Mr. Stephens might have dared to emulate Mr. Romney by writing that our Republican politicians, and not merely “our politicians,” are the opposite in courage to the one who dares to act on his conscience. Surely, Democratic senators from purple and historically red districts showed equal courage in voting to convict. Nor are the remainder to be grouped with Republicans whose votes to acquit are the very epitome of cowardice in action.
8
The Republican caucus in the Senate has one hero and 52 cowards. That’s the sad reality. 52 cowards who let Trump get away with trashing the constitution because they are afraid of being bullied by tweet.
52 Senators who failed to discharge their basic duty: to protect democracy.
Their cowardice has consequences. It’s not an abstract vote. The first of their victims: Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman who was escorted from his place of work because he stood up to the president and the 52 cowards did not.
1330
@Oliver Herfort: There won't be any more whistleblowers. And no congressional inquiry of the executive will go unchallenged in the courts.
Good luck!
29
@Oliver Herfort
Was it fear that prompted the Republican's acquittal of Trump? Or were they paid off, by McConnell, with Dark Money?
33
@Oliver Herfort
Agreed, however I wonder when Mr. Stephens was born or if he knows history.
The gop has never been averse to dirty tricks or really any reprehensible behavior as long as they win. That's it.
They have been more than disingenuous and dishonest since FDR at least. So then they win and proceed to steal everything we have, or had I should say.
Then cry about the shortfall and start looking at that pesky Social Security and Medicare.
Cowards all, for quite awhile now, and still they are propped up by lies and dirty tricks, again.
The laughing, grinning tableful of 'Christians' at that 'prayer' breakfast is who we are now. Yes, grin and applaud while listening to a degrading litany of pettiness and revenge.
This is where we find ourselves, America. Good look?
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Imagining a Democratic “Trump” is at this point in history ridiculous.
The contemporary post Reagan conservative movement birthed Trump. He is part and parcel of it. There is no similarly huge truth-denying, hate-espousing, and corrupt trend in the current Democratic Party.
I get really tired of people trying to play Trump down as either politics as normal or not uniquely Republican. It’s dumb both-sides nonsense spouted by people who can’t take a hard look at just how badly conservative politics in this country have gone wrong.
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@CS FDR was a good and decent man fighting for fairness, but his violations of constitutional norms arguably exceeded Trump.
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"Conservatives used to believe this..." No, they never did. Their "principles" were always a sham -- the alacrity with which they all but unanimously embraced Trump proves that. There are almost no principled conservatives, and never were.
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I'm just so disgusted with Trump. How low he has dragged us. And now I have to read regularly about foul-mouthed, petty-minded Don Jr. What happened to the party that nominated Romney for the presidency? Ugh.
6
@bgp: Step back, and look at the history that unspooled from the defeat of Goldwater 1964. Review the formation of George Mason U, a spin-off from UVA, Jefferson's creation. Check the control of GMU by Koch and their money. And BTW, among their "notable" products, they count Ken Cuccinelli
What this article fails to enforce is that the Democrat congressmen also showed bravery. The whole impeachment trial required bravery and decency. Partisanship is no excuse nor paravane to hide behind.
Those who stood up to Trump, both on the left and right, deserve credit.
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Your column suggests that you and Mitt are two naive peas in a pod. The left is pursuing culturally destructive ends and will stop at nothing to accomplish them. This quaint notion that the Bernie supporters and others on the left have any intention of engaging in civil discourse about ideas is foolishness. They do not discuss, they destroy. Trump understands that but Mitt and those who pretend to think he voted to convict because he is a man of honor are clueless about the left’s brave new world.
What Romney did put to shame the other 52 Republican Senators. Of course they are indignant, it was a well deserved slap in the face and few can accept that as a rightful punishment.
He must be the coward, unable to silence his conscience like the rest of them.
3
My father told me a story from his youth. It was about his father seeing the funeral of FDR. It was the first time he had ever seen his father cry, and it astonished him. His father would rant and rave about FDR. He hated him. When my father asked his father why he was crying, he said because that man was a patriot. I thought they were all gone. I was mistaken.
3
If it was anyone else but Romney I'd believe his actions were real. But it was Romney, so it was all fake. He denounces Trump, then vies for a top job in his administration, and then buries him in a pompous impeachment speech. That doesn't make him brave, or a true patriot. It makes him what he's always been, an opportunist. Dems will love him, columnists will fete him, but the electorate will look at him with nothing but disdain.
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No one will accuse me of being a fan of Mitt Romney but I must disagree. The negative consequences of his choice will far outweigh any advantage. The Trump tribe will find ways to make him suffer for his vote, I imagine the death threats have already begun. So no this action at least is not opportunistic, no action taken in the face of tyranny is opportunistic regardless of its perceived intent. If we want more conservatives to stand against Trump and his cult of personality then disparagement isn’t acceptable. All who oppose tyranny are allies if only of the moment. Trumps tyranny must not stand.
2
Trump pays the media's bills.
"[P]ermanently lost to Republicans amid their supposed victory in the impeachment saga is the hope of having a leg to stand on when, in the fullness of time, a future Democratic president behaves toward them exactly the way Trump behaved last year."
Oh please - they'll recite verbatim the pious proclamations that they issued during Clinton's impeachment, without a trace of irony and without giving a moment's thought to their blatant hypocrisy. A "leg to stand on" isn't needed, when you don't stand for anything.
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Romney showed a lot of courage when he was destroying companies and workers by sending the products and jobs to China? He is just a RINO globalist who can’t accept the fact that Trump is president while he lost in 2012. Say what you want about Trump’s style and rough edges but did we ever hear a politician stand up for the working class before Trump? Why does Trump retain his base? Because his supporters believe that nobody else has their backs. Funny how Mitt is lionized by the left at this moment when he was excoriated in 2012. Kind of like the left’s flip flop on the IC, whom they have hated for 60 years but suddenly they are heroes because they led the coup against Trump. Sheer hypocrisy, as usual.
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“The right-wing vituperations descending on Romney, directed by the president and amplified through his media minions, are no better than the left’s cancel-culture warriors, seeking to wreck the lives of anyone who falls short of expectations or doesn’t toe the ideological line.”
Sorry, but it is well-documented that the lion's share of hypocrisy is horded by McConnell ,(f Trump gets to nominate someone for the Supreme Court this late into his term Mitch will have no problem outting that through, sorry Judge Merrick Garland) or Lindsey Graham (Nixon became impeachable as soon as he refused to comply with subpoenas for evidence) or the whole lot of Republucans who trued to get rid of Clinton for an in appropriate co sensual tryst but refused even to censure Trump for a grave abuse of foreign policy oower and corruption of democratic process AND who would not have hesitated to impeach and convict Presiident Obama for that same behavior (if they could have even falsely attribute it to them,)
Romney is the only senator left in the morally bankrupt Republican Party who stands for values and integrity. Alas, the other senators in the NOTHING PARTY have sold their soul to the divisive fear mongering corrupt creature in the White House. Romney’s act reflect his love for our great nation. It is pathetic to see the transformation of Rubio, Graham, Collins, Paul and Murkowski. They will support any corruption or criminal act by con man to remain in power. Alas, they were elected to serve the people and support our constitution. Con man is transforming our nation to a banana republic as reflected by daily crimes by con man, his family and cronies and filling of judiciary by most incompetent and compromised individuals in US history. He is for sale and he would anything to destroy the basic foundation that protects the people to fatten the wallets of the crooks. It is a shame that some people don’t see the con man’s true color. Senator Romney brings a fresh air in our current environment of doom and gloom.
1
«Was this the same man who denounced Donald Trump as a “con man” in March of 2016 and then auditioned to be his secretary of state that November?... »
Oh yes. This is the same Mitt Romney who once assured us that abortion rights were safe with him and then promised he would do anything to stop abortion. The same Mitt Romney who cheered Trump’s birther lies and who lied that President Obama was on a global apology tour for the United States. The same Mitt Romney whose anti-immigrant rhetoric (remember self deportation?) paved the way for Trump’s anti-immigrant rhetoric. The same Mitt Romney who once declared that he would separate his faith from our governance and who this week explained his vote by saying that his faith guides everything he does. Same Mitt Romney.
His vote was the right thing to do, but there is no reason to think it comes from any deep principles. Romney gave himself a moment in the spotlight and a potential starting point for a later second run at the presidency - all knowing full well it would not change Trump’s fate. Mitt Romney is a calculating politician, as he has always been.
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Lonely Are The Brave...Douglas & Matthau at the top of their game. God bless ‘em.
Romney is human with human foibles. He is a politician with a politician’s foibles. But when push came to shove he did what was right.
What more should we want?
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“The right-wing vituperations descending on Romney, directed by the president and amplified through his media minions, are no better than the left’s cancel-culture warriors, seeking to wreck the lives of anyone who falls short of expectations or doesn’t toe the ideological line.”
While I am no fan of cancel culture, Stephens offers a blatant understatement, if not false equivalency. The lefties he refers to here are generally neither condoning criminal behavior nor doing so for political gain or retribution, but out of lofty ideals, even if sometimes applied overzealously.
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Two observations:
What is this "cancel-culture" stuff about the left? It is the right that wants to regulate the private lives of Americans--the bodies of women, who may marry, whether trans persons may be treated.
And then, what will happen to the Republican party over the next decade? Even though a minority party of the old, the white, the patriarchal, they are trying every which way to steam roll the rest of us. Will the majority of us be able to overcome their stacking of the judiciary, their voter suppression, their Electoral College and Senate inherent inequity? Will the Trumpian autocracy and disinformation destroy our government? Or will it all catch up with them and the party truly disintegrate and be replaced? It seems hard to fathom that it could reform itself.
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I don’t know about “without regard for personal advantage.” In big decisions motives are almost always mixed. How big a part Romney’s conscience played in leading him to cast his dissenting vote I wouldn’t presume to guess; generosity compels me to assume it was a large one. But knowledge of the world, of politics in general, and of Romney in particular make me assume that a calculated positioning himself for a post-Trump future played a part as well.
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The question begs - if the economy was going South, how many Repubican Senators would have been more courageous.
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I think Dalton Trumbo wrote the screenplay for "Lonely are the Brave." There's some insight there for sure. Right? Even after all these years, I cannot shake the image of Douglas's character Burns and his horse Whiskey being struck down in traffic in the rain. I think it got to playwright Sam Shepard, too. I think he referenced it quite heavily in "True West." For some of the same reasons mentioned by Mr. Stephens perhaps. Here's to Kirk Douglas! The best kind of American hero! And thanks to Senator Mitt Romney for his stand.
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At some point in the not so distant future, an artist will construct a memorial to the GOP politicians who supported Trump during theses times.
The memorial will be modeled on one of Dante's rings and it will include the names of each person who decided their cult of personality outweighed their oaths to defend the US Constitution.
It will be Trump's wall. But to the people who once believed in a land ruled by laws and not by cults will have deemed it for what it was: The wall of Cowards.
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I hope that the actions of Mitt Romney, who in his own words is a profoundly religious man (" My faith is at the heart of who I am.”) give courage and support to others of faith so that they can break away from the cult of trumpism and stand for truth honesty and decency and against what they know in their heart is the polar opposite of those virtues. Let the Utah caucus results be one indication of their ability to do so.
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Indeed, lonely are the brave; especially when all the rest feels attacked by one's moral courage to let them know they are cowards, thrashing the truth, hence justice, despicable minions to an egregious beast in-chief, I guess waiting to see how and when Trump may bankrupt this nation. In fact, we the people, shall be called morally corrupt if we keep looking the other way. It has been said that 'indifference kills'. True!
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Since voter sentiment zigzags the Republicans will look for a ‘principled ‘ candidate next. Did they just find one?
2
Perhaps Romney could further his service to America by running as a conservative third-party candidate in the upcoming Presidential election? Just a thought.
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One of my favorite movies.
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Romney is the kind of good man that this country needs to flourish and survive.
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My cousin and I watched A Few Good Men last night as we felt we both needed a booster shot of truth standing up to outrageous, unchecked power.
What we're witnessing in this country right now is truth being stranger than fiction, although I can picture the president having a complete Colonel Jessup meltdown, scuffling with MPs as they escort him from a courtroom or the White House.
I am no Republican, but am proud of Mitt Romney for standing up and speaking his heart, mind, and faith to a completely reckless group of Republican Senators who wouldn't recognize honor if it smacked them in the face.
2
Romney reminds me of one of my own heroes, Thomas Cranmer, the original author of the Anglican Book of Common prayer. A weak and vacillating man, trying to survive in a reign of terror, burned at the stake by Bloody Mary, who at the end was able to pull himself together and do the right thing, thus becoming a martyr for his faith. We would do well to emulate these very ordinary saints. Courage is not the absence of fear; it is right action in the face of fear.
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Why is Romney considered a hero for doing the right thing? Why is that heroic? It is expected. Apart from the fact he had nothing to lose-no election for 5 years, no money or security to lose, and nothing on the line for him-so he’s ridiculed by a crazy person on Twitter , at the National Prayer breakfast -so what-look at those who did the right thing in testifying before the House Committee-those are the heroes, not poor rich Mitt-who drove to New Hampshire with the family dog in the roof of his car!
2
Give me a break. This is a puff piece, placing Romney at the pinnacle of moral virtue in utterly amoral political dynamic. Romney is a republican. He is who he associates with. His party spinelessly bowed to the personality cult of Mr. Trump, aiding and abetting a man who will indeed usurp the constitution and the rule of law.
Our institutions are buckling right now. The government seems incredibly weak. This is not a time for petty politics. The center will not hold, and thats the danger Romney faces.
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He will not be too lonely; he now shares his place in history with Margaret Chase Smith, Joseph N. Welsh, and all the others who spoke the truth, inspired by character and bolstered by faith.
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Romney committed political suicide for a cause greater than him , and for that we should applaud him . As with everyone else, he now becomes a saint.....but he is just a man who followed his conscience....and for that we should appreciate him. In the end Senator Romney and put country above loyalty to a man who has no loyalty except to himself. As usual people should study the past in the world and worry that it can repeat itself. Americans of all parties unite to expel this demigod from the highest office on earth by our ability to oust him from this office by voting for the good of this country not political party.
A well-deserved tribute to Mitt Romney. One line that perhaps doesn't ring true: "Conservatives used to believe... that political dirty tricks should never be normalized." Where does that leave tricky Dick Nixon, Lee Atwater, and the swift-boating of John Kerry? A shameful (albeit successful) record that is not matched by anything the Democrats did over the same time span.
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Thank you, Senator Romney, for doing what’s right.
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I’m grateful Romney did this. It was (and is) a tiny glimmer of hope in this madness. If you’ve not listened to his feature on the NYT’s The Daily (podcast), I recommend you do. He gave a journalist access to him the night before and morning of Wednesday’s vote in the Senate. Hope, and my work at securing voters for the 2020 election are what keep me going.
1
The contrast of Mitt Romney and Susan Collins in the vote says it all. The quiet dignity of Romney and the staged concern of Collins are worlds apart.
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Well said and a great movie pick. Douglas often said it was his favorite movie .
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The best thing Romney could do for America at this stage is to enter the race as a conservative third party candidate for President.
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Finally something that I can agree with. Finally a man of integrity in the Republican party.
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