Sen. Mitt Romney became the only Republican to vote against one of President Trump judicial nominees for his past statements about former President Barack Obama.
Mr. Romney voted “no” against Michael Truncale to represent the Eastern District of Texas as a federal judge for calling Obama a “un-American imposter” in 2011.
Mr. Truncale said he was “merely expressing frustration by what I perceived as a lack of overt patriotism on behalf of President Obama,” adding he believed Mr. Obama was an American citizen as he did not believe in “birtherism.”
The Utah Republican still voted no, adding his comments were the main reason for his deviation.
“He made particularly disparaging comments about President Obama. And as the Republican nominee for president, I just couldn’t subscribe to that in a federal judge. This was not a matter of qualifications or politics. This was something specifically to that issue as a former nominee of our party,” Mr. Romney said after the vote, according to Politico.
The senator’s flip was not enough to block Mr. Truncale’s nomination, which passed 49-46.
Mr. Romney lost to President Barack Obama as the Republican candidate in the 2012 presidential election.
• Bailey Vogt can be reached at bvogt@washingtontimes.com.
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