Mitt Romney Loyalists Weigh Trump Support After Utah Retreat

—PARK CITY, Utah -- Mitt Romney loyalists who attended the former Republican nominee’s donor retreat over the weekend —- many of whom spearheaded the “Never Trump” movement —- are facing tough decisions about who to back this cycle.

The roughly 300 business and GOP leaders who attended the annual three-day “Experts and Enthusiasts” summit in Park City, Utah were mostly anti-Trump, said one former Romney aide, with “60 to 70 percent of people here disgusted with the state of the race.”

Summit attendees looking for guidance weren’t given any clear answers, but they did get the chance to hear from both anti-Trump Republicans, like Nebraska senator Ben Sasse, and party leaders who have endorsed Trump, including House Speaker Paul Ryan and party chairman Reince Priebus.

“These guys are a lot smarter than I am, and if they’re endorsing [Trump], it’s reassuring to me to say, ‘Well, that’s kind of where I’m leaning because I just can't stand the thought of Hillary,’” said Scott Keller, a former Romney backer from Utah who has decided to support Trump.

Keller added he couldn’t stand the thought of Trump, either, but “at some point you've got to pick somebody. The worst thing is to do nothing and not vote. “

The summit came as the Trump campaign is being questioned about its capacity to raise enough money to take on the Democratic campaign. Some pro-Trump attendees saw the retreat as an opportunity to win over more donors.

“What I’m hoping to do is get a release from [Romney], where he’ll turn to some of his more ardent loyal supporters and say ‘Yeah, I get it, I’m still where I am and I’m still gonna love you and respect you and be your friend,’" said Trump donor and top Republican fundraiser Anthony Sacramucci.

Donors at the summit were “released” by Romney to some extent. The former Massachusetts governor has been one of Trump's most outspoken critics and he didn’t hold back at the summit. But, he also made it clear that he understands why some have decided to back Trump.

Of Ryan, who endorsed Trump, Romney said: “I wouldn't suggest for a minute that he ought to change his position and adopt the one that I've taken.”

Still, divisions within the party were on full display this weekend. After Romney said a Trump presidency would lead to “trickle-down racism,” Priebus tweeted that he "couldn't disagree more" and that "SCOTUS is too important. Stop this and unite."

Though there were all sorts of whispers about getting Romney to either write himself in or run as a third party candidate, concrete “Never Trump” action seemed to have died down. Romney, once again, said he was not interested in running himself.

“That's something I'm not going to be doing," Romney said in an interview on CNN. "I would like to see someone run, but I think that's not very likely.”

In an interview, Romney confidante Spencer Zwick added, “There would certainly be enough money and support for a third party candidate, but I think that ship has sailed.”

A lot of donors are instead following Ryan’s lead and turning their energy to the House and Senate races, said longtime Romney confidantes Zwick and Lanhee Chen.

Asked if the lack of enthusiasm from donors might be a problem for Trump, who is already way behind the Clinton fundraising machine, Sacramucci said he was confident the Trump camp would get the donors it needed.

“Remember, we’re entrepreneurs. Donald Trump is an entrepreneur,” he said. “Last time I checked, I’m an entrepreneur. What do entrepreneurs do? They create new markets.”