Mitt Romney Votes With Democrats To Reopen Government Without Wall Funding
Freshman Utah Senator Mitt Romney was one of six Republicans to vote with Senate Democrats to end the partial government shutdown without the $5.7 billion President Donald J. Trump requested to fund the U.S.-Mexico border wall.
Mitt Romney joined Republican Senators Lamar Alexander, Susan Collins, Cory Gardner, Johnny Isakson, Lisa Murkowski, together making up the anti-Trump wing of the Republican held Senate, in an ill-fated attempt to end the partial government shutdown on Thursday afternoon.
The Utah freshman and former GOP nominee votes for the Democratic plan to reopen gov’t https://t.co/1E5ujnsPB3
— Robert Costa (@costareports) January 24, 2019
NEWS: Senate votes 52-44 for the Democratic plan to reopen the government without wall funding. That's short of 60, so it fails.
The Republicans who voted YES:
Lamar Alexander
Susan Collins
Cory Gardner
Johnny Isakson
Lisa Murkowski
Mitt Romney— Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur) January 24, 2019
Even with the failed two time presidential candidate’s vote, the Democrat plan failed to reach the 60 votes required to pass. The partial government shutdown will continue, as both Democrats and Republicans face increasing pressure to come to the table and reach a deal.
Many consider this vote to solidify Romney’s position in the Senate as a member of the #NeverTrump wing of the Republican Party.
This latest vote may also represent another one of Romney’s infamous flip flops, after the freshman came out in support of President Trump’s border wall earlier this month.
Big League Politics reported on January 2:
Utah’s incoming senator Mitt Romney came out in favor of President Donald Trump’s border wall after the president and the president’s supporters expressed their extreme displeasure with Romney’s criticism of Trump.
“I would vote for the border wall. That’s been part of my platform for many, many years. I think we should have a border wall on our southern border…That’s necessary but insufficient,” Romney said in his interview Thursday with CNN’s Jake Tapper.
President Trump pressured Romney to support border security on Twitter.
As the shutdown continues with no end in sight, Republicans willing to acquiesce to Democrats’ demands may come under increasing scrutiny.
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