Appearing on “Morning Joe” Friday, “Meet The Press” moderator Chuck Todd said that Mitt Romney probably did not expect “public skepticism” within GOP circles about a possible 2016 bid to be “so harsh” and “public.”
The NBC host added that the backlash Romney’s incurring is probably due to Jeb Bush’s presence and is “coming faster than he probably expected.”
Todd pointed out to the reaction of former Minnesota Republican Rep. Vin Weber, Romney’s 2012 campaign co-chairman. Weber told Bloomberg Politics Thursday that a third run would not be a good idea, adding that he’s “not happy, frankly, with the way that he’s chosen to re-enter presidential politics.”
TODD: When I heard that he himself was making these phone calls over the weekend to various party elders and leaders in the key early primary states, that convinced me that he wants to do this. He clearly is looking for an opening. I’m guessing he didn’t think the public skepticism would be so public and, frankly, so harsh. I would say when you look at the Vin Weber comments, this is a guy from Minnesota, this is a guy that doesn’t — he’s not a bomb thrower. He’s not somebody that would in the party that you would call a bed wetter or something like that. This is sort of like a — just sort of your typical establishment Republican. And to me that was, he was giving voice to a lot of things … a lot of what I’m hearing. This backlash against another Romney bid is coming faster than he probably expected and I think it’s because of the presence of Jeb.
DONNY DEUTSCH: Chuck, a theory, and none of this is a surprise. Does Romney almost have to come out of the gate, I don’t want to say un-Romney-like, but really looking 2.0. Something fresh, something different to give people permission to believe — it’s almost if he comes out and he’s the same Romney he’s got no shot. If I were whispering in his ears, which I do often late at night, I would be saying, we need fresh here.
TODD: Yes. That’s going to be hard to do if you’re running for a third time. He’s got to be careful. He’s always had an authenticity problem, so he can’t do that. He can’t come out and say hey, it’s a new, new Romney. He can’t be doing that. Look, I think you have every remember a core thing about Mitt Romney: the man has never failed at anything before other than this. He’s a very driven guy. I think sometimes, you know, we all wonder what’s the political motivation here. I think part of this is personal for him. He’s never failed at something. He wants to succeed. I think this is one of those, if he’s got the energy, you know, he’s thinking why not, why not. Then you at, you realize, this could be the last shot at a Republican president for another ten years. So this is his last shot.