Despite Jared Kushner's Efforts, Mitt Romney Thought Trump Was Not Smarter Than A 3rd-Grader, New Book Reveals

Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), who recently confirmed that he will not seek reelection in 2024, apparently does not have a great opinion about former President Donald Trump’s intelligence, a new book has revealed.

What Happened: Despite efforts by Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner to convince that the former president was smart, Romney did not buy into the argument, excerpts of his yet-to-be-published biography “Romney: A Reckoning” shared by HuffPost showed. The book authored by McKay Coppins will hit the stores on Oct. 24, the report said.

Kushner reportedly tried convincing Romney once that Trump was being strategic by acting obscenely in order to draw attention to his message and rally his supporters around. The senator, who initially was vacillating on it, finally concluded otherwise. “I think he’s not smart. I mean, really not smart,” Romney reportedly said in the book.

Following Trump’s suggestion at a White House press briefing during the early days of the 2020 pandemic that Americans should inject themselves with bleach to treat COVID-19, Romney reportedly said, "It's like, how is that possible for someone over the second or third grade to think that?”

In the biography, Romney has lashed out at not only Trump but also his own party men for putting their political ambitions ahead of the best interests of the nation, the HuffPost report said.

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Why It’s Important: Although Trump backed Romney when the latter contested for the senate post in 2018, the relationship between the two soured soon after. During Trump’s two impeachments, Romney, who himself unsuccessfully contested the 2012 elections as the Republican nominee, voted against him.

The report also noted that Trump came off as an intellectually challenged person for many of his own party men and aides. Former White House Chief of Staff John Kelly reportedly called him an “idiot” and former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson called him a “moron” in 2017.

The division among GOP members is in the open after Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OHIO), backed by Trump, failed to get the required votes to win the House speaker election.

Trump is in the fray for securing the Republican nomination for office in the 2024 election. Despite several legal setbacks, he has pushed comfortably ahead of his GOP rivals to clinch the nomination.

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