Mitt Romney (right) hugged N.J. Governor Chris Christie at Governor Charlie Baker’s inauguration on Thursday.
WASHINGTON – Mitt Romney Friday told a group of about 30 supporters that he is considering mounting a third presidential campaign, according to two sources who were present, a decision that could dramatically shake up the emerging field in the 2016 nominating contest.
During a meeting in the New York offices of Woody Johnson, the owner of the New York Jets, Romney told a group of high-level financial executives and former campaign contributors that he was troubled by the current state of foreign affairs and long-term issues with the economy.
Romney told people in the room that his decision did not have anything to do with current candidates being good or bad, although other sources close to Romney have said that he is not satisfied with the current Republican primary field, even with the addition of former Florida Governor Jeb Bush.
Some in the room encouraged Romney to mount a run immediately, although Romney said that he had no time frame.
“If he didn’t want to be president, he wouldn’t have run two times,” said Spencer Zwick, who is Romney’s finance director and who was in the room. “This is a guy who has it in his heart and soul that he could save the country. I don’t believe he will be able to sit on the sidelines -- knowing how qualified he is -- and just concede the presidency to Hillary Clinton or someone else.”
Among those in the room were Emil Henry Jr., a former Bush administration assistant treasury secretary; Alexander Navab, from the financial firm KKR; Patrick Durkin, a managing director at Barclays; Clifford Sobel, managing partner of Valor Capital Group; and Edward C. Forst, the President and Chief Executive Officer of Cushman & Wakefield.
Romney’s discussion with his top donors comes after several weeks in which Zwick – a longtime adviser who is so close to Romney that some call him the “sixth son” – has had daily conversations with donors, letting them know that Romney was considering a bid.
His discussions have caused donors to second-guess whether they should get behind other campaigns, or wait for Romney to make a decision.
“There are a lot of Romney supporters who still feel there’s a reasonable chance Romney may run,” said Fred Malek, a veteran Republican fundraiser. “I don’t include myself in that group necessarily…but it’s just a general impression I get that Mitt, having come as close as he did -- that he’s not done.”
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie is widely expected to run, and is planning to release a list of his financial team in the coming weeks.
As Bush and Christie – along with several other establishment Republicans – begin to build their donor lists, they have been in pursuit of Romney’s former financial network, which Zwick built to great success in both 2008 and 2012.
For all the faults of Romney’s campaign – polling that was off the mark, computer systems that failed on Election Day, inferior field operations, and overpaying for TV ads – the financing team was one of the bright spots. Donors were treated well, and they at times outraised an incumbent president.
In conversations with a number of former top Romney donors, several said they were holding out in the hopes that he would mount a third presidential campaign. But others are growing weary of the mixed signals they get from him and his top advisers.
Romney has repeatedly said publicly that he had his shot, and now it’s someone else’s turn.
“I think that Mitt is preserving his options to run. That doesn’t mean he will run. But he is preserving his options,” said Bobbie Kilberg, a technology executive and top Republican donor who has hosted fundraisers for Romney at her home in McLean, Va. “It is my personal opinion that he needs to make a decision sooner rather than later…I don’t think Mitt has the luxury of waiting until the late spring or summer of fall to let his intentions be known.”
Bush has been aggressively building his finance team, tapping networks that his father and brother built during their presidential campaigns, as well as his own Florida-based donors. He’s also reaching out to, and relying upon, former top Romney donors. He was in Boston on Friday afternoon, meeting with Boston business heavyweights at a luncheon hosted by Putnam Investments CEO Robert Reynolds, who donated $200,000 to the efforts to elect Romney.
Bloomberg reported that Bush is trying to raise $100 million by April – a staggering figure. Romney raised about $6.5 million during a similar period in 2011.
Charlie Spies, who formed the Super PAC that raised nearly $154 million in support of Romney, last week was listed as the treasurer for the newly-formed Super PAC supporting Bush.
“Romney is history to me. Been there done that,” said John Moran, retired chairman of a large New York-based private investment company and major Republican fundraiser who raised money for Romney in 2012. “I think the party will look for a new face.”
“I won’t say that Jeb Bush has got it in the bag,” he added. “But almost.”
Mel Sembler, a Florida real estate developer who is among the top Republican fundraisers, has been raising money for Romney since 2007. But this time, he’s signed up with Bush. He’s now helping put together fundraisers for Bush in Florida, and connecting with many former Romney donors.
“I have great affection for Mitt and Ann. I spent a lot of time and money and effort trying to get him elected,” Sembler said. “But I’m not sitting around waiting. And I think that’s the way a lot of people are. He’s said he’s not running.”
Christie has also been aggressively trying to lock in donors. He is expected to release a list of his finance team in the coming weeks, which is likely to include several prominent former Romney donors. He has also been traveling around the country attending gubernatorial inaugurations. Last week, Christie was in Massachusetts on Thursday for the inauguration of Charlie Baker; the next day Bush was in town meeting with business leaderes and potential donors.
One complication for Christie is federal restrictions that prohibit many Wall Street firms and their employees from donating to elected officials if their state does business with the firm. Because New Jersey often does business with large financial firms, it could limit his ability to raise money.
Aides to both Christie and Bush say that some of the former Romney donors they’ve contacted are still waiting, not wanting to commit until there is a more definitive word that Romney is not running. The former donors also want to wait until the field develops into more focus. Several governors – including Scott Walker, of Wisconsin; John Kasich, of Ohio; Mike Pence, of Indiana; and Bobby Jindal, of Louisiana – are weighing potential runs and would also compete for the more establishment-minded donors.
There were several components to Romney’s fundraising operation that, should he not run, could be up for grabs. He had a strong hold on New England Republicans and Wall Street interests, and some longtime supporters who had been backing him since he ran for Massachusetts governor in 2002. He also cultivated Mormon donors, who remain deeply committed to Romney.
His campaign also nurtured professional donors and bundlers, who may have less personal loyalty to Romney and who are now jumping to other candidates.
In one conversation last month, Zwick wasn’t discouraging the former Romney donor from commiting to another candidate. But he did seem to assume that donors would come back to Romney later if he decides to run.
“The longer that goes on with a non decision by Mitt the harder that is to do,” the donor said. “People get involved with candidates, they develop a relationship. It’s hard to pull the rug out from under after a period of time.”
Related coverage:
• A 2014 year in review for Bay Staters in Washington
• Huckabee leaving Fox News ahead of 2016 decision
• Bush resigns from all boards, clears a path to 2016
• Joan Vennochi: Mitt Romney’s 2016 chances look good
Matt Viser can be reached at matt.viser@globe.com.
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