Romney loyalists ponder a future with Trump

PARK CITY, Utah (AP) — Republicans Mitt Romney and Reince Priebus are delivering speeches within moments of each other with opposite messages that underscore the challenge facing the party as it comes to terms with its controversial presumptive presidential nominee, Donald Trump.

The speeches, delivered Saturday at Romney's annual business and politics summit at a five-star ski resort, were enough to cause whiplash.

Priebus, the chairman of the Republican National Committee, told several hundred of the party's top donors and strategists that Trump can be an effective president, and he's going to win with or without elite GOP support.

Romney, the 2012 nominee, told the same group later Saturday that Trump is setting a bad example by promoting "trickle-down racism," and the party must look beyond this presidential election to find its future.

JULIE BYKOWICZ, Associated Press

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The Gayly - 6/11/2016 @ 11:40 a.m. CDT