Romney announces Senate bid

WASHINGTON: Former Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, a frequent critic of President Donald Trump, announced on Friday he would run for a US Senate seat in Utah, confirming months of speculation about a return to national politics.

“I’ve decided to run for United States Senate because I’ve decided I can help bring Utah’s values and Utah’s lessons to Washington,” Romney, who is seeking to replace retiring Senator Orrin Hatch, said in a video posted to Twitter.

Romney’s video made no mention of Trump but his relationship with the president looms as a major issue in the campaign. Much of the video focused on Utah values versus the Washington culture.

“Utah has a lot to teach the politicians in Washington,” he said. “... Utah welcomes legal immigrants from around the world. Washington sends immigrants a message of exclusion. And on Utah’s Capitol Hill, people treat one another with respect.”

Trump has called for building a wall on the country’s border with Mexico and limiting legal migration. Romney, speaking on Friday evening at a Republican Party event in Provo, Utah, called Wednesday’s school shooting in Florida “senseless, debased evil.”

“We must take action to prevent this again,” he said, adding that this would best be accomplished at the state and local levels, not in Washington.