The Donald Problem
The friend's advice: "Flattery goes a long way with Mr. Trump."
And so, in September 2011, the candidate himself paid a visit to Trump Towers in New York City. Other GOP contenders had already made the journey to kiss The Donald's ring including Herman Cain, Michele Bachmann, and Rick Perry but Romney was considered the most serious candidate at that point. Rather than hold a big press conference outside the building like others did, Romney slipped in and out of a back door, dodging the photographers lurking nearby.
No one knows what was said behind those closed doors only Romney and Trump were present but whatever it was, the candidate had "charmed" him, according to a source who spoke to Trump afterward. The source added that Trump had seriously considered backing Perry, but Romney's meeting put him over the edge.
"I think it's a rich-guy thing," Trump's friend told BuzzFeed.
By the time the deal was finally sealed, several of the campaign staffers in Boston had grown so sick of Trump's demands that they refused to deal with him anymore.
The task of keeping him happy, then, fell mainly to campaign press secretary Andrea Saul, a natural schmoozer with a disarming Georgia accent and an inordinate tolerance for BS. Trump's entourage called campaign headquarters constantly, eagerly passing along strategy ideas from their boss, and the calls were always patched through to Saul's office. Her desk became littered with Trump aides' business cards, and post-it notes reminding her to call them back. (Saul did not respond to BuzzFeed's request for comment.)
The day of Trump's official endorsement came February 2, just after Romney beat back another conservative primary rival this time, Newt Gingrich by carpet-bombing Florida with attack ads. The campaign was riding high, hoping against hope that the Trump endorsement would help them rally Republicans behind his candidacy so he could begin focusing on the general election.
As part of their negotiations, the Romney campaign had agreed to announce the endorsement with a press conference held at Trump's Las Vegas hotel. The Donald was having the time of his life, roaming around the lobby and holding not one, but three separate press gaggles. He bragged about the lengths to which the campaign had gone to court him, and he made a point of plugging his hotel.
"You can see why it's number one in Nevada!" he declared.
Campaign aides could be seen rolling their eyes, but they were under strict orders to keep him happy, a campaign official said. At one point, Trump looked out over the press section comprised mostly of a few local reporters, and the campaign's typical traveling press and squinted at Saul as he fished for compliments.
"Andrea, have you ever had this many reporters at an endorsement?" he asked.
"Never," she responded, dutifully.
He then turned to a campaign advance staffer, and asked the same question. He hesitated at first, but then offered, "It's more than normal." Trump nodded, satisfied.
But for all the campaign's herculean efforts to appease Trump and his outsize ego in pursuit of conservative approval, Romney hardly looked comfortable on stage as his newest supporter delivered a grandiose and vaguely self-serving address. When it was time for the photo op, Romney angled, ever so slightly, away from the camera. And when he had to come to the microphone, he looked as though he couldn't believe what he was doing.
"There are some things you just can't imagine happening," Romney said. "This is one of them."
The friend's advice: "Flattery goes a long way with Mr. Trump."
And so, in September 2011, the candidate himself paid a visit to Trump Towers in New York City. Other GOP contenders had already made the journey to kiss The Donald's ring including Herman Cain, Michele Bachmann, and Rick Perry but Romney was considered the most serious candidate at that point. Rather than hold a big press conference outside the building like others did, Romney slipped in and out of a back door, dodging the photographers lurking nearby.
No one knows what was said behind those closed doors only Romney and Trump were present but whatever it was, the candidate had "charmed" him, according to a source who spoke to Trump afterward. The source added that Trump had seriously considered backing Perry, but Romney's meeting put him over the edge.
"I think it's a rich-guy thing," Trump's friend told BuzzFeed.
By the time the deal was finally sealed, several of the campaign staffers in Boston had grown so sick of Trump's demands that they refused to deal with him anymore.
The task of keeping him happy, then, fell mainly to campaign press secretary Andrea Saul, a natural schmoozer with a disarming Georgia accent and an inordinate tolerance for BS. Trump's entourage called campaign headquarters constantly, eagerly passing along strategy ideas from their boss, and the calls were always patched through to Saul's office. Her desk became littered with Trump aides' business cards, and post-it notes reminding her to call them back. (Saul did not respond to BuzzFeed's request for comment.)
The day of Trump's official endorsement came February 2, just after Romney beat back another conservative primary rival this time, Newt Gingrich by carpet-bombing Florida with attack ads. The campaign was riding high, hoping against hope that the Trump endorsement would help them rally Republicans behind his candidacy so he could begin focusing on the general election.
As part of their negotiations, the Romney campaign had agreed to announce the endorsement with a press conference held at Trump's Las Vegas hotel. The Donald was having the time of his life, roaming around the lobby and holding not one, but three separate press gaggles. He bragged about the lengths to which the campaign had gone to court him, and he made a point of plugging his hotel.
"You can see why it's number one in Nevada!" he declared.
Campaign aides could be seen rolling their eyes, but they were under strict orders to keep him happy, a campaign official said. At one point, Trump looked out over the press section comprised mostly of a few local reporters, and the campaign's typical traveling press and squinted at Saul as he fished for compliments.
"Andrea, have you ever had this many reporters at an endorsement?" he asked.
"Never," she responded, dutifully.
He then turned to a campaign advance staffer, and asked the same question. He hesitated at first, but then offered, "It's more than normal." Trump nodded, satisfied.
But for all the campaign's herculean efforts to appease Trump and his outsize ego in pursuit of conservative approval, Romney hardly looked comfortable on stage as his newest supporter delivered a grandiose and vaguely self-serving address. When it was time for the photo op, Romney angled, ever so slightly, away from the camera. And when he had to come to the microphone, he looked as though he couldn't believe what he was doing.
"There are some things you just can't imagine happening," Romney said. "This is one of them."
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