U.S. Sen. Mitt Romney says he’s “sickened” by the dishonesty the Russia investigation found in the Trump White House, but the American president fired back that Romney should have put the same energy into running for president in 2012 that the Utah Republican has tapped in criticizing him.
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“I am sickened at the extent and pervasiveness of dishonesty and misdirection by individuals in the highest office of the land, including the president,” read Romney’s statement.
Romney also tweeted Friday that in reading the special counsel’s report, he was “appalled” Americans working on U.S. President Donald Trump’s campaign had welcomed help from Russia.
On Saturday, Trump responded via Twitter, saying if Romney “spent the same energy fighting Barack Obama as he does fighting Donald Trump, he could have won the race (maybe)!”
In 2012, Romney won a slightly greater percentage of the popular vote than Trump did in 2016. He’s one of the few prominent Republicans to criticize Trump since the U.S. president’s election.
—With a file from Jessica Vomiero