first of all, will mitt romney run for senate, knowing him as you do? and secondly, will he be the kind of senator that josh earnest just described? >> i think all indications are that he probably will run. in terms of what kind of senator he is going to be, i do think you have to realize that mitt romney is a pretty conservative guy. he is not necessary by live goi -- necessarily disagree with trump on every single thing. i suspect romney will vote along with him which is the kind of behavior you could expect. i also think that romney, assuming he gets into the senate, will not hesitate to criticize the outrageous conduct of president trump that goes beyond any kind of policy. and that simply is kind of bizarre behavior that you see today, for example, with his nuclear taunting of kim jong un. mitt romney could be a critical voice in the senate in another respect as well. what happens if the democrats take control of the house in november, which now seems a likely occurrence. one would think that impeachment proceedings would be the order of the day. a

will this year end with a senator mitt romney? "the lead" starts right now. >>> president trump is kicking off 2018 by going on twitter, blasting democrats, calling for a political opponent to be thrown in jail, demanding a potential witness be investigated and praising himself. so no new year's pivot apparently. >>> breaking news. the longest serving republican in the u.s. senate says he is retiring. laying the ground for a republican civil war in a deep red state. that's a movie i think we've seen before. and also opening the door for mitt romney. >>> plus, kim jong-un offers a hand to the south and his finger on the nuclear button to the u.s. what is really behind the dictator's shifting tone? >>> good afternoon, everyone, welcome to "the lead." i'm jake tapper. for anyone hoping for any twitter related new year's resolutions from the president of the united states, some bad news today, he was back at this morning with blowback domestically after calling for the jailing of a hillary clinton aide and referring to the justice dep

well, mitt romney has a new statement out this morning on the president and, by the way, mitt romney may have new plans for his political future. my panel is back with me now. guys, let me read you what mitt romney now says. this is about the oval office meeting that we have all been talking about. the governor writes, the poverty of an aspiring immigrant's nation of origin is as irrelevant as their race. the sentiment attributed to the president is inconsistent with america's history and antithetical to american values. may our memory of dr. king buoy our hope for unity, greatness and charity for all. alice stewart, i want to begin with you here. as we said, former governor romney of massachusetts wants to be, we think, the future senator from the state of utah, so what do you make of the statement he put out this morning? >> i think he answered a lot of questions people had as whether or not he's going to be a check and balance on trump, if he was going to run on the issues facing the people of utah. and clearly he's going to push back on a lot of the things that the president says

none bigger than mitt romney. he hasn't announced he is running but just yesterday, he changed his twitter location from massachusetts to utah after long-time senator orrin hatch announced he will retire when his term ends at the end of the year. michele bachmann and tim pawlenty may run for the senate for al franken's old seat, the one he left behind in minnesota that tina smith now sits in. she was sworn in as you saw just the beginning of the show and she will only hold the seat until the end of the year. so everybody, thanks again for coming back in. i think this orrin hatch, mitt romney situation and the question whether mitt romney is going to run is so fascinating. as somebody who has watched former executives, former governors, former kind of alpha individuals try to get into the senate and to be one of 100, it is a tough transition. so my first question is, why does he want it? why would he want it i should say? >> i think that's a fantastic question. it occurred to me why does this guy keep trying to tak

so is it going to be mitt romne mitt romney?pular in utah because the families long association to the state and his personal involvement in the olympics. lives in park city outside of salt lake. if he decides to run he is a very popular figure. he will be challenged for the nomination. but my sense is he would be enormously popular. the lds church would be largely behind him and the statue that he would bring to the senate with because a lot of a lot of utah ones to come out and support him. >> sandra: the big question, would he align with donald trum donald trump? >> i think it would be -- in order for mitt romney to lose we would have to get steve bannon to find another alleged predator to run against them because that's the only way you will lose the state of utah to the democrats. i think mitt romney is very much the likely nominee and i think it's good let orrin hatch decided to step down. he's been in washington since 1977. he just passed the first tax reform in three decades. he repealed the obama individual mandate. i t

mitt romney is a winner.ody i believe honestly conserve utah very well and this is somebody who didn't go around and cry like a baby after and write "happened" and do it big book blaming everybody for everything. she was not a very good candidate. he worked ten times harder than she did. everybody knows it. her staff knows it. president obama knows it. she disappointed a lot of people who worked very hard and gave a lot of money to support her. the democrats know they need to pick someone else. mitt romney, i don't think there's any comparison between the two. >> jesse: he's probably going to win that senate seat. >> dana: if he runs? yeah. >> geraldo: who would he run against? >> kimberly: doesn't matter. >> greg: no more men. >> dana: the left loved mitt romney when he was attacking president trump during the campaign. they will turn around. >> jesse: another trump bashing rant. "the view" goes off the rails. >> geraldo: the trump presidency has taken a toll on most of the hosts at "the view." my old pal jo

mitt seriously considered taking the secretary of state position.s to see president trump do well. he wants to see our country do well. and i think that's going to be the overriding issue for him if he ends up becoming the next senator from utah. >> will mitt romney be a thorn in the side of president trump? >> i think ronna is right, governor romney wants to see the country do well, he wants to see the president do well. he disagrees on some things, he will speak out if he has a disagreement. he's a statesman and will voice his concerns if he decides to run for senate. >> you got that last clause in there. it does sound like it's a foregone conclusion he'll run. this is not a surprise, that people would expect mitt romney to put his hat in the ring if senator hatch retires, when he did. >> he would have to give up a lot to run for office again, but he does care about the issues, which is why he would look to return to public life. >> guys, the bigger question is whether he will position himself for a run for the 2020 presidential nomination. i thin

hopefully the mitt romney that has some integrity, the mitt romney who is the son of george romney, governorchigan, former presidential candidate who actually cared about the american people, mitt romney needs to remember he is second generation public servant. hopefully that mitt romney will show up and not the one who goes along to get long with the rest of his republican colleagues. >> rick, christina points to the tax bill. basically you got universal republican support there. almost all the republicans were onboard for that obamacare repeal. it does raise the question, the republicans who have expressed criticism of trump seem to be more about tone, about style. when it comes to substantive policy on most of these key questions, they have been there. where does romney fall in that? is his disagreement on tone? is his issue on policy? >> i don't know. do you get mitt romney the obamacare, or romneycare governor of massachusetts or do you get the utah very conservative mormon save the olympics. if he runs -- >> well, it's not always been clear with romney in the past. >> no. and if you li

does this open the door for mitt romney? also tragedy in costa rica as new details into the plane crash killed 10 americans including two families continuing to emerge. >>> we are learning more about the ten americans who died in a plane crash in costa rica on new year's eve. among them two families, 33-year-old tour guide guiseler. we have the latest on the investigation. >> a new years eave tragedy. 10 americans killed when their plane crashed just ten minutes after taking off from airport on costa rica coast. among them the weis family. mitchell was vascular and radiologist. leslie neat owe natal specialist. >> for an entire generation of a family to be lost in one tragedy is something that i don't know that i'll ever able to wrap my head around. >> the president of radiology associates of clear water calling mitchell tremendously skilled and the family 's rabbi calling the crash a tragedy. >> at any time is a tragic thing and at the end of the year awful way to go into a new year. >> reporter: bruce and eye reinstein ber

as far as wa kind of senator mitt would be, i think mitt would be a senator who would put the interestsstate of utah and the country first. i think he would uphold the constitution. i think he would work with president trump and other republicans on policy issues that make sense for utah and the country. but i also think that he would hold the president accountable and he would hold the executive branch accountable, as is required by article 1 of the constitution. and i think he wouldn't be afraid to speak his mind when necessary and to stand up tore fundamental american values. >> let's talk about what the priorities of utah might be. we have orrin hatch, who emphatically voted yes for the tax bill and then stood by the president and lauded him for getting that through. would mitt romney have voted for the tax bill? >> well, i think i should let mitt speak for himself on that. i don't know what his view on that would have been. but i will say that mitt romney is a republican, he wants the party to succeed. he wants the party to do well. he's concerned about the direction of the party a

i've met mitt romney before.now whether in utah that he ran for -- was the governor of another state across the country. a lot of those things would have to be decided over time. a great deal of allegiance of religion in utah. i don't know. be interesting to see what happens. it's a very competitive republican state. so i assume there will be several people joining the freeway. >> even if mitt romney to run, you wouldn't be surprised if others challenge him? >> no. my good friend mike lee took on a sitting senator out there. a lot of times their primary is a convention where only a couple thousand people vote, a lot of times conservatives have a bigger impact than others. the conservatives show up for their conventions. >> neil: you think mitt romney is a conservative? >> there's people that said, you know, obamacare was based on romneycare in massachusetts. very expensive. a government-directed healthcare sort of plan that most conservatives don't agree with. so that would have to be sorted out by those in utah,

that waves the way for mitt romney to run for the seat.ther voters can get behind a candidate so critical of the president. >> the president tweeting back to kim jong-un that his nuclear button is bigger and more powerful. critics say it is pushing us toward nuclear war. >> we'll talk about it our #one lucky guy who used to be on the hill big time. "outnumbered" top of the hour. >> julie: new information on the so-called sanctuary state of california with a warning now from the acting director of immigration and customs enforcement who says california better hold on tight because the state is about to be flooded with additional special agents and deportation officers. jonathan hunt in live in los angeles to explain. >> acting ice director is not making any attempt to hide his anger at the new laws and his anger at california governor jerry brown for not only supporting them but also for not supporting much of the work of federal immigration authorities. the acting ice director repeatedly warned californians about what he predicts will be d

mitt romney be a reliable republican vote on most things?eople in what capitol hill are expecting. he may not like president trump's tweaking or temperament temperament, but president trump is doing what fiscal conservatives want an following a pretty standard republican agenda in terms of legislation and nominees. imagine whatlt to hypothetical senator romney would break with president trump on. it will be interesting to watch. presume should we just mitt romney would be the candidate here? or could someone steal that from him? what is the likelihood there could be a democratic upset? sahil: the democratic upset in utah, it would be something they haven't seen in generations. up faceans could end planting with an awful candidate like roy moore. maybe democrats could have a chance. would have to face plant pretty spectacularly for democrats to have a shot. there are some significant legacy items in the senate, that will live on far past this time. program wasnsurance authored by senator hatch in 1997. that was just passed in -- and signed in

jason chaffetz who knows mitt romney. fought for mitt romney will weigh in about mitt romney.ake getting a bad rap for 200, alex >> our judges have reevaluated one of your response as few moments ago and take 3200 away from you ainsley: the jeopardy moment going viral this morning we will show it to you. brian: first, happy birthday to a guy i watched grow up. he is 37 years old. is he done as a new york giant? that's what eli manning looks like and is he celebrating just three wins this year. ainsley: happy birthday he is 37. ♪ your brain changes as you get older. but prevagen helps your brain with an ingredient originally discovered... in jellyfish. in clinical trials, prevagen has been shown to improve short-term memory. prevagen. the name to remember. which means everyone has access to our real reviews that we actually verify. and we can also verify that what goes down, [ splash, toilet flush ] doesn't always come back up. find a great plumber at angie's list. join today for free. find a great plumber at angie's list. if yor crohn's symptoms are holding you back, and your

so he -- >> mitt romney is not the kind of guy, listen, if mitt romney was willing to meet with the president, as i mentioned, don george on frog legs, mitt romney is not the kind of guy to forget what president trump said about him in the past. >> not at all. keep in mind, there weren't a lot of people sticking their necks out in the republican party against trump. it's a short list, flake is on it, a few other people. there are republicans at the moment of the "access hollywood" tape that came out and washed their hands, mike lee and others, but romney stuck his neck out and got battered by the president. he won't forget he's a proud man. >> he's a businessman and a politician. >> and he's a rich guy who is pillared for being rich. and donald trump went in there and he was not only rich but vulgar. >> celebrated. >> that really has to bug romney. and that is going to haunt trump. >>> do you remember when mitt romney was running? all the talk about carried interest. and when he worked in the private equity industry, he benefited from that egregious loophole in thement is. guess what happened

there was a rumor mitt romney wanted to come in and run.paper suggested he should step a side now that the tax bill had passed. >> that was the paper endorsed him? >> yeah. and he was getting pressure from trump to stay in. trump doesn't want mitt romney to come in. they are sort of rivals at this point. but i think a lot of people expected this. this was his moment to take stage left i think. >> real quick want to listen to his video announcement. he posted this on social media. let's watch. >> for over 40 years i've had the great honor of serving as your senator. as many of you know, i came up during the great depression living in a ram shackle house built with recycled lumber from the local scrapyard. my parents gave us everything they had. but in the -- >> all right. a little bit of a technical glitch there. as we see happen every day, right, when we are on social media. as part of that message he does say after much prayer and discussion with family and friends i've decided to retire at the end of this term. he's been serving as a memb

he did court mitt romney force equity of state. >> mitt romney would imagine he's really popular in utah have an opportunity to have a second or third act in american political life. i think you will be a force of something between the never trump in the loving trump all the time and it will be really interesting to watch him. >> bret: obviously primary potential in all kinds of things are up in the earth. mitt romney changing his twitter account from massachusetts to utah kind of gives you a little signal there of what's to come. what about the agenda coming up? we have a frenetic pace here to january 19th when the government essentially runs out of money. we are facing another fiscal cliff but there's a whole bunch of things. >> the president will be meeting with paul ryan this weekend and mitch mcconnell at camp david to go over and reconcile their agenda for the coming months. as you said, the budget is the most important thing. democrats have a chance to get more involved here. they're going to have to figure out what they can campaign on rather than just being against trump, and th

where this is headed is whether mitt romney throws his hat into the race. he is very much considering getting into that race in utah. would really suggest that mitt romney the former presidential republican nominee from 2012 would align himself with the likes of other republicans in the upper chamber who have been critical of this white house including people like senator jeff flake, bob corker. that is not a good thing for this president who i can tell you from my days on the campaign trail has a very very interesting past with the former governor, mitt romney. julia: kevin cirilli, moving on. combine all of this. what does all of this political machinations in d.c. and the agenda of the tax overhaul mean for the markets? , you had mentioned the market would be at its top the day the tax bill was signed and so what we're going to see this year is a tradable top u.s. equities. a couple things happened to our thesis. the tax bill came sooner and it was a little bigger. that could carry us through our original target towards maybe 3000 if things get out of co

let me read you what mitt romney wrote.y of an aspiring immigrants nation of origin is as irrelevant as their race. the sentiment attributed to the president is inconsistent with america's history and atithetical to american values. this is interesting for several reasons. he's a senior republican, an el elder statesman of the party. sheems he seems to be leaning toward running for senate in utah. what role will he play going forward if he begins a u.s. senator? >> i think romney, there was reporting that president trump wanted orin hatch to run for re-election and he did not. i think if mitt romney gets there, he'll join and perhaps lead the anti-trump caucus among the republicans. donald trump lost the utah primary in 2016. >> he doesn't have to worry about the base at all, to an extent. donald trump won, i think, just 51% in utah voted against donald trump. i was struck by the timing of what governor romney did today. would he state where he stands in relation to the president. this seems to be that statement. >> it seem

mitt romney changing his twitter location from massachusetts to utah yesterday. any doubt he'll run and do we expect him to return to being this trump critic? >> yeah, romney has been a pretty consistent figure through most of his time in politics and he's had no problem coming out as somebody that would hit the president hard. now, my sources tell me that they expect mitt romney to get into the race, that it's a natural fit and he is somebody who still has a lot of appeal within the republican party. the republicans are facing a challenge here heading into 2018. they need to decide whether they're going to put president trump out front and center, whether they want to rile up the base or whether they need to figure out how to reclaim that middle ground. somebody like mitt romney lives in the middle and could be really appealing to voters. >> and will stooeeve bannon hav primary challenge waiting for mitt to get in that race. >>> the twitter tirade targeting his own justice department. the president going after former hillary clinton aide as well as james comey s

no fan of mitt romney's. they tried to make a mends at a state dinner and potentially mitt romney was going to be offered a cabinet position but ended up leaving with nothing after this meeting you see here. many people thought donald trump was just playing romney for a fool trying to lure him in only to embarrass him. he doesn't want romney to be a senator. >> what is sort of interesting about this is that hatch had become massively unpopular in part because of his strong embrace on policies. you saw that when they blasted him and said he should retire. even though utah is a very republican state it is not the republican trump brand of politics. and it was a state where romney did very well and trump did very poorly in 2016. you look at romney and him blasting trump over the last couple of years it might have made him unpopular with the national republican base but that sort of posturing helps him with utah republicans and the electorate. he is in a much stronger position to run that race. >> the third party

up next, rinos mitt romney and jeff flake violating reagan commandment.they are inex applicationably grumpy, nasty anti-trump percent. charlie hurt joins us next. a new jersey family discover i a painting in their basement was a long lost recommend grant. liberty mutual stood with me when this guy got a flat tire in the middle of the night, so he got home safe. yeah, my dad says our insurance doesn't have that. what?! you can leave worry behind when liberty stands with you™. liberty mutual insurance. ...from godaddy! in fact, 68% of people who have built their... ...website using gocentral, did it in under an hour, and you can too. build a better website - in under an hour. with gocentral from godaddy. lou: ask "strange inheritance"" returns tonight at 9:00 p.m. joining us, the host of "training inheritance." you have got everything from six guns to recommend brand. tell us what happened? jamie: we always leave these shoots and say you can't make it up. we find it unbelievable people have these treasures. they write us, we show up, and we get to tell grea

more of a trumpian mitt romney? alix: on the flipside i feel like him being part of been ranly hurt him when he before. now it's like we already elected donald trump so brain is like nothing at the end of the day. >> utah has already had a couple of special elections. the general utah voter has been more towards the free trade old-time central republican kind of viewpoint. there are a couple of interesting aspects for wall street. who takes over senate banking. is it chuck grassley who now runs judiciary, the drug . like grassley because he has been anti-pharmaceutical companies. it could be michael crapo. pat toomey probably takes over banking and he is very much a d regulator. some important implications for wall street. also, but schuster. congress are present in pittsburgh's mind. he runs the transportation committee and he says he is retiring so he can spin this entire year working on getting an infrastructure bill and if he's really dedicated some analysts are saying maybe he moves trump and the republicans cl

i'm not a fan of mitt romney.e things he said about the president were deeply offensive to me, but if the president can get the compromise with mitt romney he can compromise with pretty much anyone. i think mitt romney would be a reliable vote on fiscal conservative issues and i hope the people of utah to know what they are doing. >> sandra: we will see where that all goes. there's a lot of indications and a lot of fingers pointing to the likely possibility that this may happen. michael cavuto, thanks for coming on, good to get your thoughts and perspective, sir. >> thank you. >> sandra: the founders of the firm behind the anti-crime dossier, fusion gps, now say they are the real victims in all of this. bill browder, once targeted by fusion gps himself isn't shedding any tears. he is here to tell you what they won't when we come back. ♪ fisher investments avoids them. some advisers have hidden and layered fees. fisher investments never does. and while some advisers are happy to earn commissions from you whether yo

mitt romney changed the location of his account from massachusetts to holladay, utah. >> mitt romney got accused of being a carpet bagger guy going to massachusetts. he has a lot of ties. he moved in next door to his son hol hole holladaay it won'tn issue in utah. >> katie: president trump barely won utah he squeaked it out. he is going to have to figure out what the people of utah want. if you look at the polling already, he is in the lead by something like 76%. ask people why they like him and why they want to send him to washington. they believe he would be a good check on the president. might be different than other senators but i think overall he will line up with the agenda. doesn't mean that people of utah are pro-trump. >> harris: importance of what you are laying thought terms of the electorate is critical. in other areas that we have seen, you know, particularly in alabama where the president backed luther strange at first, you had somebody like an insurgent movement via steve bannon come in. i don't know that that would necessarily work as well in utah whether you have so

mitt romney. >> yes. and i know in washington there's this perception sometimes that people attack each other and afterwards they go out to the bar and they're slapping each other on the back and they're really friends, you know, nancy pelosi and whoever. this is not one of those cases. >> they actually hate each other. >> president trump does not like mitt romney. he really does not like him and i'm not plugged into mitt romney world, but there's every indication that he does not like him, either. so, i almost feel like this is the scene in the soap opera where you think the villain, mitt romney, died in an explosion, but he was real loin a deserted island, but he's going to make his comeback. >> to keep the fiction going, it is likely a disappointing fiction, if he prevails, if he goes to the senate, become a one-man protest machine. i mean, he is a conservative republican who on matters like tax policy would probably disappoint a lot of people looking for someone to say the sorts of things that he said

growing speculation that mitt romney may run for the senate seat. if he win, he will have to work with donald trump. but remember what trump thought of him durning the campaign. >> i backed mitt romney. i backed him. he was begging for my endorsement. i could have said mitt, drop to your knee, he would have dropped to his news. the last election should have been won except romney choked like a dog. he choked. he went -- i can't breathe. i can't breath. he walks like a penguin on to the stage. have you ever seen -- like a pengu penguin. >> president trump made those comments after mitt romney called trump a phony and fraud. but now it seems as if the unstable relationship between the two is warm willing up. days after orrin hatch announced his retirement, trump spoke with romney on the phone fueling speculation that romney might run for senate in utah in the midterm election. romney has yet to make his plans public, all this trump distances himself from steve bannon after the book where bannon said derogatory statements. joining me now is the preside

up next, rinos mitt romney and jeff flake violating reagan commandment.t only anti-trumpers, they are inex applicationably grumpy, nasty anti-trump percent. charlie hurt joins us next. a new jersey family discover i a painting in their basement was a long lost recommend grant. each year sarah climbs 58,007 steps. that's the height of mount everest. because each day she chooses to take the stairs. at work, at home... even on the escalator. that can be hard on her lower body, so now she does it with dr. scholl's orthotics. clinically proven to relieve and prevent foot, knee or lower back pain, by reducing the shock and stress that travel up her body with every step she takes. so keep on climbing, sarah. you're killing it. dr. scholl's. born to move. lou: ask "strange inheritance"" returns tonight at 9:00 p.m. joining us, the host of "training inheritance." you have got everything from six guns to recommend brand. tell us what happened? jamie: we always leave these shoots and say you can't make it up. we find it unbelievable people have these treasures. they

up next, rinos mitt romney and jeff flake violating reagan commandment.y are not only anti-trumpers, they are inex applicationably grumpy, nasty anti-trump percent. charlie hurt joins us next. a new jersey family discover i a painting in their basement was a long lost recommend grant. ooooooh snap!! every truck guy has their own way of conveying powerful. yeeaaahhh boy. kind of looks like a monster coming to eat ya. holy smokes. that is awesome. strong. you got the basic, and you got the beefy. i just think it looks mean. incredible. no way. start your year off strong a new chevy truck. get a total value of over $9,600 on this silverado all star when you finance with gm financial. find new roads at your local chevy dealer. let your inner light loose with one a day women's. ♪ a complete multivitamin specially formulated with key nutrients plus vitamin d for bone health support. your one a day is showing. retail. under pressure like never before. and it's connected technology that's moving companies forward fast. e-commerce. real time inventory. virtual cha

his promises are as worthless as a degree from trump university. >> poor mitt romney. poor mitt. he choked like a dog. you ever see him in athletics? he's a choker! and he walks like a penguin on to the stage. you ever seen? like a penguin! >> insults aside, and the insults did elicit a lot of laughs, whether you liked mitt romney or liked donald trump donald trump or hated either one of them, but there were serious charges from mitt romney, that this man is not fit to lead. that he was calling for the killing of families of terrorists. so donald trump really believed these things when he said it and he defended it when he said it and now he's president of the united states. and now there are serious questions about his judgment. about whether or not he thinks white people deserve more than african-americans or than lat o latinos or do people from white european countries deserve to be here more than haiti. these are very serious issues the country is debating? which side of the fence is mitt romney going to fall? is he going to come out and be the moral leader that we saw him be

up next, rinos mitt romney and jeff flake violating reagan commandment.hey are not only anti-trumpers, they are inex applicationably grumpy, nasty anti-trump percent. charlie hurt joins us next. a new jersey family discover i a painting in their basement was a long lost recommend grant. building a website in under an hour is easy with gocentral... ...from godaddy! in fact, 68% of people who have built their... ...website using gocentral, did it in under an hour, and you can too. build a better website - in under an hour. with gocentral from godaddy. you or joints. something for your heart... but do you take something for your brain. with an ingredient originally found in jellyfish, prevagen is the number one selling brain-health supplement in drug stores nationwide. prevagen. the name to remember. lou: ask "strange inheritance"" returns tonight at 9:00 p.m. joining us, the host of "training inheritance." you have got everything from six guns to recommend brand. tell us what happened? jamie: we always leave these shoots and say you can't make it up. we fin

number two, with he mentioned the name mitt romney. romney has made it clear, he is interested in this race if orrin hatch doesn't run. take a look at this, romney very popular. mitt romney moved out to utah a couple of years ago. he'd been there before, running the olympics in 2002. this is a state he absolutely cleaned up. when he ran for president in 2008, republican primary in utah, mayor mayor got 90% of the vote. there are few politicians in any state in the country as popular as mitt romney in utah. so you add those two factors together, check this out, this is kind of a weird poll, but the only one that's out there. they threw a bunch of polls together of utah politicians and asked voters, if you had a chance, who would you want in the senate? mitt romney, it's not even close. he's out there at 44%. but look at this, by the way. orrin hatch was sitting pack at 8%. a u.s. senator for more than 40 years was getting lapped like six times by mitt romney in this poll. that's what hatch was up against. that's a big part of the story

his promises are as worthless as a degree from trump university. >> poor mitt romney. poor mitt.choked like a dog you. ever seen in athletics? he is a joker. and he walks like a penguin on to the stage. you ever see -- like a penguin! >> this is the state of american politics. you're a satirist. you can't outdo this. >> no. >> "snl" can't outdo this. this these guys with the penguin the penguin walk and the choke and the choke. and dwlet is ryet there is romne cerebral putdown. >> that's why i think this moment is made for this. isn't america crying out for this? surely conservatives and republicans do not want a president saying that word and do not want a president doing the sort of things he has been doing. but you can't -- you know, the democrats may well take over the senate. but you're not going to have chuck schumer as an acceptable counter weight in the eyes of most americans or many americans to donald trump. you need somebody like mitt romney whose got nothing -- well, he has some glory in doing it. but he is not going to be the president. he may not -- >> he is already

obviously mitt romney knows the highs and lows of politics. this racket? >> well, i think he really does believe that he has something to offer to the national debate, particularly with the issues that we're dealing with now days in american politics. >> and those issues -- >> national security. >> is it issues or is this somehow a comment on president trump's leadership? >> well, i think it's both. i think it is the fact that we have national security foreign policy on the front burner that are very important, also the economy and how we transition to a new economy but also the fact that there are a bunch of people out there who do feel like we need a principled leadership and a principled defense of american leadership. one of the differences i expect that governor romney would have with president trump is this idea that you can say anything, do anything and walk it back. and it doesn't send a message to the globe about our position or who we are. and i think the governor would be somebody who would stand in principled opposition to those th

could orrin hatch make way for mitt romney in utah? we'll discuss on early start. >>> two new democrats set to take their seats in the u.s. senate today although their tenure there may be short lived. orrin hatch, the longest serving senate republican is ready to call it a career after 7 terms. his departure paving the way for trump critic mitt romney to run for that seat. let's get more on this state of play in the senate. >> reporter: good morning. a new year and a lot of new changes this week here in congress. later today, vice president mike pence will swear in two new senate democrats. doug jones who won that senate race in alabama against judge roy moore, and tina smith, the lieutenant governor of minnesota who replaces al franken. he resigned of course after multiple allegations of sexual misconduct. also adding to the mix changes up here this week, orrin hatch of utah, he announced on tuesday that he will not seek re-election and that he will be retiring. >> when the president visited utah last month, he said i was a fighter. i

most people in utah are expecting mitt romney to run, so the question now is, what kind of senator mittll be. if he does run, he'll almost certainly win. the question is, what kind of senator will he be? will he want to hold trump accountable, or will he use his influence to try to pass major republican legislation, in which case he'd probably try to mend fences with the white house. time will tell. >> right. and joe watkins, finish us up on that. is it the severe conservative? that's what mitt romney described himself as in 2012, or is it the progressive who governed a blue state in massachusetts? by the way, can i say this, can you imagine if ultimately the fate of the affordable care act in a 51/49 scenario comes down to the senator who truly was the godfather of it in massachusetts? joe watkins. >> of course, politics is like theater, and mitt romney is a very smart guy. he will be who he has to be, and what he had to be, who he had to be in massachusetts may be different from who he's able to be in utah, a state that's heavily mormon, that has values, that he understands deeply. so

donald trump is a phony. >> poor mitt romney, poor mitt. he choked like a dog.letics? he's a choker. and he walks like a penguin on to the stage. you ever see? like a penguin. >> the complementary part, when he was talking potentially about becoming potentially the next secretary of state. what do you see for how this relationship could be? i guess some people will ask, is there any kind of score to settle here. >> yes, well, i mean, i think those clips illustrated something important, which is that mitt romney, you know, clearly did what he could to try to stop donald trump from winning the republican primary. refused to endorse him in the general. unlike most republicans. once trump won, romney learned what i think a lot of republicans in washington have learned. which is the best way to influence this president is to cozy up to him, is to flatter him, right? to say nice things about him. that's the way you have some influence. obviously, that potential cabinet appointment didn't -- what was not meant to be, trump did not make romney secretary of state. what i

orrin hatch is retiring and now mitt romney might be stepping in. what senator romney could mean for president trump. also, a key watergate figure could rally the legal team and a leading russia investigator says to send more indictments in 2018. you're watching "the beat" on msnbc. u could start your search at the all-new carfax.com that might help. show me the carfax. now the car you want and the history you need are easy to find. show me used trucks with one owner. pretty cool. [laughs] ah... ahem... show me the carfax. start your used car search and get free carfax reports at the all-new carfax.com. you or joints. something for your heart... but do you take something for your brain. with an ingredient originally found in jellyfish, prevagen is the number one selling brain-health supplement in drug stores nationwide. prevagen. the name to remember. for my constipation, i switch to miralax. stimulant laxatives forcefully stimulate the nerves in your colon. miralax is different. it works with the water in your body. unblocking your system naturally

. >> we can't let you go without asking you the question on mitt romney as the sixth mitt romney son former adviser to the presidential nominee. look, mitt romney, you said, will not be a supplicant to donald trump. >> if he decides to run. >> when he enters the race. look, he put out a statement critical of the president. but is not being a supplicant the same thing as going full bulworth if mitt romney is capable of that? will we see a mitt romney completely unshackled inside the senate? >> completely unshackled, trying to think of a mitt romney version of what completely unshackled would be, but a very strong-willed, principled advocate for what he believes in. one of the big things you see now is that there has been a gravitational pull towards having mitt romney re-enter political field because they want somebody who is going to promote substance, somebody going to confront, you any, a president when he says things like was alleged during that white house meeting. and that the party needs a counterbalance to that type of rhetoric. so i think he would be somebody who would be wil

i really expect that mitt will enter this race. i think that he will probably go along with republican policy initiatives, many of them as you would expect a republican to do. but when it comes time to hold the executive accountable, to make sure that our democracy remains independent from foreign interference that we're taking appropriate precautions to prevent countries like russia from interfering and holding americans accountable if they cooperate with the foreign powers intervention like that, i think we'll find that mitt romney will do that if her pursues the race and is expected. >> in your view, is donald trump dangerous? >> absolutely. >> in your view, is that idea of donald trump being dangerous something democrats should message toward or something that would actually hurt them? >> this is a big country. i think part of -- this needs to be an ambitious, creative movement to protect this country. i don't think about this as a democratic movement, i think of this as a protect the country movement. and i think the movement

he urged hatch to run again because mitt romney is considering running. romney coming back on the national scene, are traditional like him, are they still welcomed? >> i don't know. what is so interestings, if you look at the investments, there have been very few republican-elected officials and senators willing to be openly critical of trump. unlike corker and flake, they are retiring. this is in the direction of trump. romney who has been willing to stand up and say explicitly that he isn't presidential or fit to be and criticized throughout his administration, if he were to serve in the senate, it would be a beachhead or bulwark for this kind of encroaching pro--trump. >> doug jones, the alabama democrat sworn into week, tina smith, what does doug jones mean? >> it certainly limits the flexibility that mccome and republicans have in getting an agenda passed in the senate. and it was a shot of adrenalin for a party that is now talking about being able to compete in all kinds of places, not only in blue states. they are feeling bullish. and feeling bette

still to come, what is mitt romney up to? we'll talk about whether he plans to run for orrin hatch's seat in the senate. but first dak a qaa hits a wall. >> we want to get rid of chain migration. very important. and we want to get rid of the lottery system. >> we will ask congressman castro about the ultimatum and what it means for hundreds of thousands of d.r.e.a.m.ers living in the u.s. >>> i don't expect to have one. i certainly don't want to have one but if the democrats want to shut down the government because they can't get amnesty for illegal immigrants, then they're going to have to defend their actions to the american people. they didn't do that last night and i suspect they didn't do it because amnesty is not popular and it would be unhelpful to their cause. >> joining me now, a member of the house intelligence committee, texas democratic congressman joaquin castro. congressman, thank you for being here. >> thank you for having me. >> i want to start with what senator cotton was talking about there and we've been he

you said this last night, senator orrin hatch, help mitt romney had changed his -- how mitt romney haded his location on twitter. >> two new democratic senators were sworn in, tina smith replacing al franken who resigned in the wake of allegations of sexual misconduct. doug jones, the democratic senator of alabama, the first democrat to win in that state in 2.5 decades. he defeated roy moore in the narrow upset victory some weeks ago. that is now going to make this a 51-49 republican let's than it, as slim a margin as you can imagine. squeeze on anyhe major republican initiative they tried to do this year without bipartisan support, infrastructure the president says he wants. welfare reform and entitlement cuts that paul ryan has indicated he may try to push for. the senate will be were a lot of legislative efforts hit a wall or find bipartisan support. mitt romney change his location from massachusetts to utah and lived in utah for several years but an indication he is thinking about running for the seat and does not want questions about his residency. vonnie: thank you for that. sher

he now paves the way for another well-known republican from utah, mitt romney, to run for a seat. >> our reporter is live in the newsroom with details.>> reporter: mitt romney has yet to say whether or not he would run, but hatch was under pressure from president donald trump to stay on. we know that mitt romney has been critical of the president. 75% of orrin hatch's constituents said he should not rerun. on christmas, hatch's hometown newspaper ran a front-page editorial calling him the utah one of the year, but went on to say he had become a fan for president donald trump and had a -- an unquenchable search for power. he thanked the newspaper for being honored as the utah one of the year, but is taking the advice and stepping down. he says he looks forward to spending time with family. >> every good fighter knows when to hang up the gloves. for me, that time is soon approaching. that is why after much prayer and discussion with family and friends, i have decided to retire at the end of this term.>> reporter: on facebook, i joined the people of utah and tacking my friend, orrin hat

i would expect mitt romney to play similarly in that role.ertainly, he's been critical of donald trump in the past, in the not-too-distant past. but if he's representing the people of utah and if he runs, he most likely will win. i think it's almost a me metaphysical certitude he would win. i think you would see mitt romney stand up and be the statesman, but also standing up for the people of utah. >> senator al franken, he's out now. tina smith who was appointed by the governor to temporarily fill his seat is going to run for that seat permanently and now looks like michele bachmann height throw her hat in the ring. she said in an interview yet, the democratic party even admit they threw al franken turnt bus because they wanted to look pure. jake, could this roundabout defense of franken encourage voters who may lean democratic to really seriously consider michele bachmann? >> michele bachmann comes from a wing of the republican party that was on the fringes not too long ago until donald trump brought them into the mainstream. i would be ext