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"All right, guys, the old man is here," he whooped to Ron Kaufman, one of his close advisers, as Kaufman faked a limp ahead of a four-mile hike at dawn Friday.

"It's just walking. Just walking," said Romney, flashing the same mischievous half-smile that he would don 30 yards later, when the 70-year-old began to jog the Wasatch Mountains switchbacks -- uphill. "We can handle that."

If the former private equity executive is at home anywhere, it is here -- among more than 200 of his donors and high-wattage friends.

The same can't be said of President Donald Trump.

None of those hikers came from the Trump administration -- and few, for that matter, even hear from them these days. The White House sent no official emissaries to one of the GOP's A-list donor summits. And so the annual gathering of Romneyworld here at a ski lodge resort served as a vivid reminder of the chasm that persists between the Republican Party's -- and Romney's -- donor base and the leader of the GOP.

Where Romney revels in the admiration of his fundraisers, Trump appears to shirk it.

"I don't think he spends his time reaching out to donors," Spencer Zwick, a much-heralded fundraiser for Romney and House Speaker Paul Ryan, said in an interview. "The way they got elected was not the way Romney built his campaign."

Trump has earned plaudits from Republican lawmakers for his heavy touch and willingness to call at all hours of the day to hear their thoughts. But that gameness does not extend the party's well-heeled class of givers, whom Trump scorned during much of the campaign and still to this day see Trump as an imperfect vehicle for a number of policy wins that appear increasingly out of reach.

One person filling some of the fundraising leadership void left by Trump: Sheldon Adelson, the party's largest contributor, who is preparing for possible headwinds ahead of 2018, according to a person with knowledge of his plans.

Adelson has begun sounding out other contributors, such as the Ricketts family, on forming a new super PAC that would focus on governors' races and state legislative races ahead of the next redistricting cycle in 2020. Adelson would be willing to commit substantial resources to the group, which is still in early talks but is envisioned as a heavyweight GOP group similar to the Senate Leadership Fund or Congressional Leadership Fund.

Adelson has also been staying in close touch with Trump administration hands in Washington -- last week, Adelson visited Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price, one of the architects behind the White House's plan to replace Obamacare.

Few other donors -- except for the big whales like Adelson -- have had as much contact from the White House. The donor-tending that Romney zealously embraced is missing.

But major GOP givers and their aides on the grounds of Romney's annual ideas summit continue to insist that for all the chaos of Trump's Washington -- thrown into stark spotlight just this week -- Trump is remaining palatable, even if, in the words one attendee, "the amount of chaos is pretty overwhelming."

Top Republicans have abandoned hope that Trump would govern as a steadier leader, and have begun to succumb to the chaos that has defined Trump's first five months. A recognition has taken hold, Republicans here said, that the drama is here to stay.

"His problem is not issues," said Kaufman as he trekked through mountain shrubbery, at least 15 minutes behind Romney. "His problem is style."

Some top givers maintain an "I told you so" air heading into 2018, observing that Trump had wrought the spectacle that discouraged them from supporting him in the first place. Yet a larger group eyes the midterms more humbly, recognizing Trump's poor popularity endangers the GOP's effort to retain the House.

"It's going to be a herculean effort on fundraising for the House," said one Republican involved, predicting a massive focus on outside money routed through groups like the Congressional Leadership Fund, whose president roamed the Stein Eriksen Lodge this weekend.

CLF, the main super PAC affiliated with Paul Ryan, is expected to consume much of the fundraising oxygen this cycle, no longer forced to compete with presidential super PACs in a midterm and with Republican donors seeing House races as higher fundraising priorities than Senate ones in 2018.

Ryan himself acknowledged the task before them, reminding some of the GOP's most loyal supporters in a private session here about the statistical history of midterm losses for the party in power, according to two people in the room.

Other Republican fundraisers similarly worry about a cockiness taking hold now that they have unified control of Washington.

"We're going to think: "Oh wow, look what we did. We won with Trump and we're just going to sweep '18'," said one GOP donor. "I think we have to be very careful thinking that what Trump was able to pull off, Republicans can pull off."

And Zwick, Ryan's chief fundraiser, warned of trouble "if the end of 2017 happens and there aren't some wins on the board."

The turbocharged Democratic fundraising base, meanwhile, has even "overwhelmed" institutions like the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, one top Democratic fundraiser said in the last week.

Romney is described as eager to campaign in the midterms as well. But how much Trump would welcome someone like him in the 2018 campaign is one of the bigger questions hovering over their relationship.

Despite his fervent, personal criticism of Trump, Romney allies feel they have avoided any blackballing -- successfully using chief of staff Reince Priebus and Ryan to get names in front of the president for administration posts, such as Andy Puzder for Labor Secretary and Jim Donovan for Deputy Secretary of the Treasury, Both of those Romney friends later withdrew from their confirmation processes.

But alas, Trump's footprint at Romney's star event remained meager.

Ronna Romney McDaniel, the new chair of the Republican National Committee and Mitt Romney's niece, has earned early plaudits from GOP givers. But she was a late scratch here at her uncle's retreat -- she went to Georgia to campaign in that state's special election -- leaving Trump forces without a strong surrogate, never mind an official White House presence, on the premises.

Last year, then-RNC Chair Priebus strongly urged anti-Trump holdouts to jump on board, telling them that Trump would win in November with them or without them. The sole Trump hand on the scene this year was Trump fundraiser Anthony Scaramucci, who does not yet even technically work for the administration.

But for now, Romney appears willing to revel solely in the veneration from his network, even if not from Trump's.

"This guy here -- if you don't know him -- he's done seven of the seven peaks on seven continents," Romney regaled to the queue Friday morning, as the former governor awaited the turning chairlift. He pointed to his friend. "And he's sailed the seven seas."

"This guy here," shot back the associate. "He ran for president!"

"And I lost," Romney said, before his four-seater began to descend.

Read more:
Republican fundraisers can stomach Trump -- if only he'd call - CNN

"I am troubled by the timing and reasoning of Director Comey's termination," Senate Intelligence Chairman Richard Burr, a North Carolina Republican, said in a statement.

Arizona Sen. John McCain said he was "disappointed" by the incident. Sen. Bob Corker, who chairs the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and occasionally advised the Trump campaign last year, said he also had concerns.

"Regardless of how you think Director Comey handled the unprecedented complexities of the 2016 election cycle, the timing of this firing is very troubling," said Sen. Ben Sasse of Nebraska in a statement.

Rep. Justin Amash, a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, said in a tweet that he would introduce legislation supporting the creation of an independent commission to investigate Russia's interference in the election.

Amash is one of four Republicans who have signed on to legislation that would force Trump to release his tax returns.

"While the case for removal of Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comey laid out by Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein was thorough, his removal at this particular time will raise questions," Corker said in a statement. "It is essential that ongoing investigations are fulsome and free of political interference until their completion, and it is imperative that President Trump nominate a well-respected and qualified individual to lead the bureau at this critical time."

Other Republicans came to Trump's defense or placed the blame for Comey's firing squarely on the shoulders of the former FBI director.

House Speaker Paul Ryan, in an interview with Fox News' Bret Baier on Wednesday, said Comey was "compromised" and supported Trump's decision.

"I think the truth is James Comey, who is a worthwhile and dedicated public servant, I think he had just basically lost the confidence of a lot of Republicans and a lot of Democrats," Ryan said. "Most importantly, he lost the confidence of the President, and it is entirely within the President's role and authority to relieve him."

Ryan also dismissed calls for an special counsel or independent investigation into potential collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia.

"I think the intelligence committees are the ones that should do this," Ryan said.

"Today's announcement is likely the inevitable conclusion of Director Comey's decision last July to bypass the longstanding protocols of the Justice Department and publicly announce the reasons he had decided not to recommend an indictment of Hillary Clinton and to offer his personal views of Mrs. Clinton's actions," Republican Sen. Susan Collins said in a statement.

"Any suggestion that today's announcement is somehow an effort to stop the FBI's investigation of Russia's attempt to influence the election last fall is misplaced," Collins said. "The President did not fire the entire FBI; he fired the director."

The decision also had two traditional Republican allies apparently at odds. While McCain said Comey is "a man of honor and integrity, and he has led the FBI well in extraordinary circumstances," one of his closest friends -- Sen. Lindsey Graham -- said that he disagreed.

The South Carolina Republican, who is leading one of four investigations into Russia's interference in the 2016 election, said Tuesday he supports Trump's decision.

"Given the recent controversies surrounding the director, I believe a fresh start will serve the FBI and the nation well," Graham said in a statement Tuesday. "I encourage the President to select the most qualified professional available who will serve our nation's interests."

Republican Sen. Marco Rubio said he was not commenting on the firing specifically but expected the Justice Department's investigation to continue largely unchanged.

"I would expect the FBI to continue to function along the lines that we have come to expect it to function," the Florida Republican told CNN.

Sen. Jeff Flake, a Republican who's up for re-election next year, tweeted that he couldn't explain Trump's decision.

CNN's Manu Raju contributed to this report.

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Comey firing troubles top Republican lawmakers ...

Q: Has Sen. John McCain renounced any affiliation with the Republican Party?

A: No. That claim was made in a fake news story published by asatirical publication.

I just read John McCain left the Republican Party, is this true?

Sen. John McCain is still a Republican, despite bogus reports that claim otherwise.

A story posted on WashingtonFeed.com says: Senator McCain has definitely renounced any affiliation with the Republican Party. It purports to quote the Arizona senator as saying, I am and always will be opposed to Donald Trump. In fact, Ive decided that any party that supports supports [sic] him supports the worst America has to offer. For that reason, Im leaving the GOP and Caucusing [sic] as an independent with the Democrats.

Facebook users flagged the story as potentially fake using the social networks tools for reporting a hoax. They were right to be suspicious.

McCain has not switched parties. That quote first appeared in an April 13 story by Americas Last Line of Defense, which falsely claimed that McCain made the announcement during an appearance on Fox and Friends. It was the second time this year that the website published a phony story calling McCain a traitor for purportedly leaving the GOP.

Regular readers of FactCheck.org know that Americas Last Line of Defense publishes fake stories as satire. A disclaimer on the site reads: Americas Last Line of Defense is a satirical publication that may sometimes appear to be telling the truth. We assure you thats not the case. We present fiction as fact and our sources dont actually exist.

Press releases published on McCains Senate website still refer to him as a Republican, as do his official Twitter and Facebook pages. There also has been no mainstream news coverage of a switch, such as there was when the late Arlen Specter, a longtime Republican senator for Pennsylvania, joined the Democratic Party in 2009.

As we have written before, fake news sites often copy content from one another. In this case, the Washington Feed copied its story from the Conservative Patriot blog, which published a paraphrased version of the fictional story fromAmericas Last Line of Defense.

But unlike WashingtonFeed.com, ConsPatriot.com includes a disclaimer that says, All the information on this website is published in good faith and for general information purpose only. http://www.conspatriot.com/ does not make any warranties about the completeness, reliability and accuracy of this information.

Rumors of McCain leaving the Republican Party are notnew. He has previously denied legitimate news reports that he had considered switching parties in the early 2000s.

In 2007, for example, the Hill, a congressional news publication, reported that former Democratic lawmakers said that McCain was close to leaving the Republican Party in 2001 after losing the Republican presidential nomination to George W. Bush.

But McCain said that wasnt the case.

As I said in 2001, I never considered leaving the Republican Party, period, McCain said, according to a statement released by his campaign, the Hill reported in 2007.

Editors note: FactCheck.org is one of several organizations working with Facebookto help identify and label viral fake news stories flagged by readers on the social media network.

WashingtonFeed.com. Boom: McCain Makes Major Announcement About His Future Republicans Cheering! Accessed 7 Jun 2017.

Americas Last Line of Defense. About Us. Accessed 7 June 2017.

Stryker. Breaking: John McCain Goes Full TRAITOR! Does the UNTHINKABLE! Thelastlineofdefense.com. 13 April 2017.

Kiely, Eugene, and Robertson, Lori. How to Spot Fake News. FactCheck.org. 18 Nov 2016.

Cusack, Bob. Democrats say McCain nearly abandoned GOP. Thehill.com. 28 Mar 2007.

McCain, John. McCain Applauds Senate Passage of Bill to Enhance Accountability and Protect Whistleblowers at VA. Mccain.senate.gov. 6 Jun 2017.

@SenJohnMcCain. U.S. Senator John McCain (R-AZ), Chairman of Senate Armed Services Committee. Twitter.com. Accessed 7 June 2017.

@JohnMcCain. About. Facebook.com. Accessed 7 June 2017.

Hulse, Carl. Specter Switches Parties. The Caucus Blog. New York Times. 18 Apr 2009.

Bailey, Chelsea. McCain Calls Trumps Dictator Praise Very Disturbing. NBCnews.com. 2 May 2017.

Watkins, Eli. McCain calls on Trump to clarify wiretapping claim. CNN.com. 14 Mar 2017.

Read more here:
John McCain Still a Republican - FactCheck.org

With all the controversies, scandals, tough headlines and reported infighting in the White House, it would have been easy for Republican power players speaking at this weeks E2 Summit to vent and bash the Trump administration -- but they didnt.

Those Republicans invited to speak at the annual E2 Summit this weekend -- far from Washington in Park City, Utah, -- have been some of the vocal critics of Donald Trump, but instead of distancing themselves from the president, they instead told friends and colleagues at the event they are cautiously optimistic about his administration and want to help it succeed.

Dont you want to help the president? Dont you think we all should? Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., asked the intimate crowd of businessmen and politicians from around the country.

We are much closer than we were just immediately following the election, the summits host, former Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, said about Trump.

I think we have a president who is learning, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., agreed. Hes got a national security team that is as strong as I have ever seen.

Despite very public disagreements with the current president, all three of these men spoke kindly as they offered their advice, driving home the idea that they still think congressional Republicans and Trump could work together. They spoke about building bridges with the administration and their confidence in the current cabinet.

Graham, McCain and Romney all agreed, first and foremost, that the president needs to take a tougher stand on Russia and acknowledge the severity of Vladimir Putin's attempt to interfere in the 2016 U.S. election. Romney said that much of the conspiracy theories about Trump, his taxes and his staff could have been avoided had the president said outright, this is outrageous.

No one is suggesting it affected the outcome, but [Russians] tried to affect the outcome. This is outrageous, he said, suggesting Trump tell the country, I hope the FBI carries out a thorough investigation of who has anything to do with this and lets move on.

Instead, when you attack and say it is fake news, you just bring more and more attention and more and more people say, whats going on here?'... The more you stir a turd, the more it stinks, he continued.

Graham said Trumps relationship with Putin was his single biggest problem with the president, but added, again, that he wanted to help him.

He believes talking about Russian interference delegitimizes his win, Graham echoed. Thats not true.

The South Carolina senator urged that the president back the bill he and McCain authored to increase sanctions on Russia, and threatened to work to override a veto should the president refuse to sign it. I think it would serve the president well if we publicly say, This is right, we should punish Russia for interfering in our elections.

I will do anything I can to help this president, except give up my own judgment, he added.

McCain told the crowd he is glad the president is calling Graham, his former primary opponent, more frequently. Graham joked that he begged the president not to tweet on Thursday during the Comey hearing. Listening, these men said, could serve the president well.

I want you to understand, despite of all this clutter, that we can pull it off," Graham concluded his remarks. "We can do things that are good for this country and President Trump can be a consequential president. But if he doesnt adjust the way he is behaving and he doesnt let people help him, he is going to lose the last best chance our Republican Party has to change America and make our voice heard."

During the event, Graham also offered domestic policy advice. He complimented the presidents willingness to take bold actions and offered that he go big on environmental and immigration issues.

At the end of the day, the one thing I can tell you about Trump -- the good, the bad and the ugly -- he is willing to do things that no other Republican would think about doing, Graham said. How about a carbon fee?

He argued that the president could both reinvigorate the coal and clean energy technology industries by calling for the federal government to put a price on carbon. A rather liberal idea, Graham said, could have economic advantages for the country and political pluses for his party.

If you are from 18 to 35 [years old] this is a top-five issue for your consistency. Whether we like it or not, young people have been educated through movies and TV that we need to be better stewards of Gods creation, he said. We need to get into environmental game and not give it all to Al Gore.

Is it hard politics? Hell yes, he added. Trump might do it. I am going to advocate that he thinks big.

Romneys advice for the White House was statelier -- almost grandiose. Without naming Trump, he closed his speech with a soliloquy, which seemed to allude to the current president and what his ideas and term so far had meant for the reputation of the country.

If you want to make America great, youve got to believe in goodness, he said, becoming emotional and choked up at times. We stand with good people and good leaders."

What does this country represent? Human rights, freedom of speech, freedom of religion, a conviction that we should aspire for every person to have equal opportunity, he continued. Do we welcome the huddled masses of the earth yearning to be free? That's who we are. That's the cost in the ground in Arlington.

Read the rest here:
Romney, McCain and Graham urge Trump to act on Russia, listen to those offering help - ABC News

Former CBS News anchor Dan Rather is predicting that some Republicans could defect from President Trump if his poll numbers slip below 30 percent.

"They're afraid that he may have indeed committed some impeachable offense, and also they're hearing from home that a lot of their constituents have increasing concerns about the Trump presidency," Rather told CNN's Don Lemon.

"As long as he's able to hold that 35, 38 poll rating you may not see that, but I repeat for emphasis, once it gets down below 30 percent, you'll see some Republicans going the other way," said the longtime host.

Despite being saddled with a steady stream of controversies and consistently low approval ratings in his first months in office, Trump has largely maintained the backing of GOP lawmakers.

Trump's approval rating currently sits at 39 percent, according to a Real Clear Politics average of presidential job approval ratings. Among Republicans, his approval rating is much higher.

The president has faced mounting controversies, particularly related to the ongoing law enforcement investigation into Russian election meddling and possible collusion between his election campaign and Russia. Trump has repeatedly called the probe a "witch hunt" and has denied any wrongdoing.

The latest controversy came on Thursday, when fired FBI Director James Comey told lawmakers during a congressional hearing that Trump had once asked him in private conversation for a pledge of loyalty and then to drop the bureau's investigation of former national security adviser Michael Flynn.

Republican lawmakers, including House Speaker Paul RyanPaul RyanDan Rather predicts Republican defect if Trump approval falls below 30 percent Ex-GOP rep: Ryans impeachment claim about Trump 'isnt true' Tom Brokaw: 'Trump ran as a big time exec, not as an apprentice' MORE (R-Wis.), acknowledged that the president's requests may have been inappropriate, but defended his actions as rookie mistakes the result of Trump's lack of government experience.

But some of Trump's highest-profile policies have spurred backlash, as well. His decision last week to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris climate accord, for example, sparked nationwide protests and prompted vows by numerous business leaders, governors and mayors to uphold the agreement in spite of Trump's announcement.

A Washington Post-ABC News poll conducted in the wake of Trump's decision found that nearly six in 10 Americans oppose withdrawing from the climate deal.

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Dan Rather predicts Republican defect if Trump approval falls below 30 percent - The Hill (blog)