Mitt Romney’s Sons Tried To Convince Him To Not Run For President

Mitt Romney’s five sons made a rare joint public appearance on Thursday evening, when they sat down with Conan O’Brien to talk about their father’s presidential campaign.

While appearing on TBS’ “Conan,” the five Romney brothers– Tagg, Matt, Josh, Ben, and Craig — weighed in on how their lives may change if their father wins the election.

“We’re nervous about it,” Josh, the middle brother, said. “It’s one of those things. Our lives are pretty good as they are, but this is one of those things where we recognize it’s good for the country for my dad to run but not necessarily good for us, so we are going to try and keep our lives as normal, as consistent as they can possibly be over the next few years.”

Josh said that his father’s failed bid for the Republican nomination in 2008 made the family wary of another campaign.

“We knew what we were getting into this time, so we were definitely more hesitant,” Josh said.

Matt, the second oldest of the Romney sons, admitted that he had similar reservations about his father’s second stab at the presidency.

“I didn’t want him to do it,” Matt said. “I tried to convince him not to. I think there were a few of us who tried that … but I just felt like, for us as a family, this isn’t the best thing. But, as Josh said, for the country we think it’s the right thing.”

The Romney sons have had a relatively small role in their father’s 2012 campaign, largely staying out of the spotlight except for a few election night appearances and fundraising efforts. In 2008, they had a much more prominent role: an RV known as the “Five Brothers Bus” was a regular sight at campaign stops, and the brothers maintained a blog that offered details from life on the trail.

Below, a look at other political kids who have hit the campaign trail:

Loading Slideshow...

  • The Huntsman Girls

    Former Utah Governor Jon Huntsman’s three oldest daughters made a name for themselves by tweeting from the campaign trail using the a href=”http://twitter.com/Jon2012girls” target=”_hplink”@jon2012girls/a account in 2012. Liddy, Mary Anne and Abby, all in their mid-twenties, have steadily gained followers since the campaign.

    Huntsman’s daughters have also done a slew of television interviews, and have produced a few campaign videos of their own–most notably, a href=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iOYVB2hc0HA” target=”_hplink”a parody/a of Herman Cain’s infamous smoking ad.

  • Meghan McCain

    Arizona Senator John McCain’s daughter was a staple on the campaign circuit in 2008, often blogging about life on the trail. Meghan, who has been vocal on issues like same-sex marriage and abstinence-only education, hoped to help her father connect with the younger generation of voters.

    The 27-year-old has since parlayed her campaign season fame into a career as a political commentator. She writes a column for the Daily Beast, released a campaign memoir in 2010 and was recently hired as an MSNBC contributor.

  • The Romney Brothers

    Former Massachusetts Governor Romney’s five sons, who were a frequent sight on the campaign trail in 2008, have reemerged to support their father in his latest presidential bid. Oldest son Tagg has been giving interviews and a href=”http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/13/mitt-romneys-son-tagg-to-woo-young-gop-donors_n_1144965.html” target=”_hplink”courting/a young GOP donors, while middle child Josh meets with voters in Iowa. Craig, Mitt’s youngest son, has also made a few appearances with his father.

  • Rand Paul

    Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), the son of libertarian Ron Paul, has been active in his father’s latest presidential campaign. He often sends e-mails on behalf of the elder Paul, a congressman from Texas, and has made appearances on the trail to stump for his dad.

  • Elizabeth Santorum

    Former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum’s 20-year-old daughter–shown here during her father’s unsuccessful re-election bid in 2006– was a fixture on her dad’s failed 2012 presidential run. Currently a student at the University of Dallas, Elizabeth took time off from her studies to meet with voters in Iowa, host events and give radio interviews.

  • The Palins

    In 2008, GOP Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin’s family made a splash on the campaign trail. The former Alaska governor’s five children–Track, Bristol, Willow, Piper, and Trig–often appeared at campaign events with their mom, even after news broke that teenage Bristol was pregnant.

  • Beau Biden

    Beau, Delaware’s Attorney General, introduced his soon-to-be-VP dad Joe at the 2008 Democratic National Convention. His speech, which detailed the auto accident that killed his mother and sister, moved some delegates to tears.

  • Sarah Huckabee

    Mike Huckabee’s daughter, Sarah, took on a bigger role in her father’s campaign than the usual routine of stump speeches and photo-ops. She acted as her dad’s field director and top campaign adviser, and reportedly played an integral role in her dad’s surprising Iowa caucus win.

  • Cate Edwards

    Cate first started campaigning with her dad, a former Senator from North Carolina, while an undergrad at Princeton in 2004. During his 2008 campaign, she started making campaign stops on her own in key states like New Hampshire. After news of her father’s affair broke, her role took a decidedly different turn as she stood by Edwards during his perp walk from a Winston-Salem courthouse.

  • The Bush Twins

    The Bush Twins were notably absent on the trail in 2000, but became more publicly involved in George W. Bush’s reelection campaign in 2004. They made appearances on their father’s bus tour through swing states, and worked at the campaign’s Arlington headquarters.

Views: 0

You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

Leave a Reply

Powered by WordPress | Designed by: Premium WordPress Themes | Thanks to Themes Gallery, Bromoney and Wordpress Themes