American Leadership During Times of Crisis: A Conversation with Mitt Romney

GRACE XU: On Tuesday, the Georgetown Institute of Politics and Public Service hosted its final virtual forum event of the semester, “American Leadership During Times of Crisis,” which featured Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) in conversation with GU Politics Executive Director Mo Elleithee. 

The former Massachusetts Governor and 2012 Republican presidential nominee shared his thoughts on the current national response to COVID-19, federal and state responsibilities in this crisis, and how the United States can assert leadership both at home and abroad. 

While the world has arguably become accustomed to looking to American military and economic leadership over the past century, Romney admitted that “our response looked slow compared to other people” in the first phase of the pandemic. He cited the lack of sufficient testing and personal protective equipment for effectively combating the rapid spread of the coronavirus. 

However, the Senator was optimistic about the recovery phase, noting that “we have the potential to stand out in a positive way” when it comes to developing treatments and vaccines. In addition, Romney affirmed that the U.S. is poised to be a “key leader” in stimulating the global economy and providing stability, with the dollar continuing to be “the safest place for people to put their money.”

Looking beyond the COVID-19 crisis, Romney assuredly stated that “the U.S. and China will be the two nations that stand out,” especially in terms of technology. As China rises, “it is very much in American interest…to be involved in the world,” Romney emphasized. He repeatedly warned against turning inward and highlighted the importance of American engagement to ensure a safer, more prosperous world. In this regard, he believes the COVID-19 crisis has the potential to “wake up” Americans to the broader economic threat that China poses. 

When asked about his view of President Trump’s widely criticized move to pull funding from the World Health Organization, Romney acknowledged that the WHO is “more political than they should be,” but asserted that he would push the country to be “involved in these institutions” in order to make them “more effective.” Leveraging American relationships around the world will be crucial to not only dissuading China from being a “predator,” but also ensuring that they “play by the rules.” 

Shifting his focus to the domestic pandemic response, Romney said he would prioritize a “centralized coordination effort” for manufacturing tests and distributing them to the places with the greatest need. Although he does not blame the current administration, he reflected that its response has been “less than my personal style.” The Senator praised the private sector’s “inspiring” mobilization, but emphasized the general need for more expertise on the government side — “the key in leadership is recognizing when you’re not the smartest guy in the room.” 

While the lines between federal and state government roles have become increasingly blurred during this crisis, Romney asserted that there are some tasks that can be delegated. For instance, ventilator distribution is more efficient through federal coordination, while reopening measures should be left to states. This crisis is “not our first rodeo” as a country, and neither is it for Romney himself. Bringing in his past government and business experience, he explained the need to perform a “strategic audit” of the situation, “focus…and determine what is the most essential thing to get right,” and “build the right team.” 

Addressing the growing political polarization, Romney turned to history, arguing that civilizations and countries have typically united under one of two conditions. Either a crisis became “so severe it woke people up” or a leader like Lincoln or Churchill was able to overcome the resentment and division. The former Presidential nominee expressed his firm belief that “this [current] crisis may be the kind of thing” that eventually brings our nation together. 

The latter half of the conversation was guided by student questions that focused on American leadership from a broader, long-term perspective. While there is “very powerful political juice to being highly divisive” at the moment, Romney is optimistic that the trend toward increasing partisanship will be undermined by an “ultimate rejection of the extremes.” As a current member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Romney also encouraged greater investment in economic and diplomatic relationships around the world. 

Politically, Romney highlighted that the Republican Party has changed significantly since 2012, with fiscal discipline and moral character losing their ideological centrality. Although it is “likely that the incumbent will win [re-election],” Romney is more concerned with how the post-Trump Republican Party will earn the support of young voters, minorities, women, and college-educated white individuals. 

The evening concluded with these wise words from Senator Romney: “Leadership is not something that happens just by one person at the top or even by fifty governors or by CEOs or religious leaders or so forth. Leadership really happens on a person-to-person basis…I am confident in our country because we are fundamentally a good people that care about our kids, that care about their future, that care about the values that have always characterized the United States of America.” 

Grace Xu hails from Atlanta, Georgia and is a freshman in the School of Foreign Service studying International Politics.