Why "Senator Mitt Romney" Would Be Trump's Worst Nightmare
The biggest political star of the new year is the hypothetical lawmaker, "Senator Mitt Romney." The Grio's Todd Johnson joins Cheddar to evaluate the former governor's chances if he chooses to run for Senator Orrin Hatch's (R-UT) seat. The managing editor thinks Romney's immense popularity in the state would be enough to carry him to a victory.
Then, we look back at the former GOP presidential candidate's relationship with President Trump. Johnson walks us through the frenemies' history, from their infamous Jean Georges dinner, to Romney calling the president a "phony" and a "fraud." We consider Hatch's decision to retire after the president asked him to remain in the Senate.
Finally, we recap two of the president's most-talked-about tweets. Johnson explains how the media can cover Trump's fake-news awards without promoting it as a legitimate awards show. Then, we put the president's North Korea "button" comments in the context of his larger foreign-policy approach.
There has been a series of violent attacks in Afghanistan in the past week as U.S. troops withdrawal deadline approaches. The evacuation effort is winding down with 1,200 people evacuated in the last 24 hours, compared to last week's 24-hour span high of 21,000, and it is reported that there are around 250 people still waiting to be airlifted.
Dan Lamothe, national security reporter at The Washington Post, joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss more on what is going to happen when all evacuation and withdrawal missions are completed.
Futures pointed to a slightly higher open on the heels of Fed Chair Jerome Powell saying the central bank is on track to taper its asset purchases later this year. Milton Ezrati, Chief Economist at Vested joined Wake Up with Cheddar to discuss.
