out. reporter: the few republicans doing that now from jeff flake to bob corker are retiring. is that one of the reasons you re going to washington? i recognize that if you re in washington and you re elected as a leader of our country, even though you re only one of 100 in the senate you need to speak out on things you care deeply about. reporter: at 71, this two-time gop presidential candidate thought his campaign days were behind him. senator orrin hatch decided to retire and urged romney to run for his seat. i did not expect to do this. reporter: wife ann pushed him to do it. you can get more done for utah and for our country than the average junior senator from utah. reporter: romney first ran for senate a quarter century ago in massachusetts challenging ted kennedy and losing by 17 points. he later ran for governor there and won but key for utah,
two-time gop presidential candidate thought his campaign days were behind him. then utah senator orrin hatch decided to retire and urged romney to run for his seat. i did not expect to do this after i lost to barack obama, did you know i lost? yeah. reporter: wife ann pushed him to do it. she said, well you can get more done for utah and our country than the average junior senator from utah. reporter: romney first ran for senate a quarter century ago in massachusetts, challenging ted kennedy and losing by 17 points. he later ran for governor there and won. but key for utah, stepping in to lead the 2002 salt lake olympic committee in the wake of a priory scandal. his gop opponent calls michigan born romney a carpetbagger but his ancestors were early leaders in utah s large mormon population. i joke i m a five generation
romney. this is less about anything other than not happy with mitt romney s rhetoric on immigration. he still isn t. does this start haley barber or mitch daniels. i helped you swallow that. immigration isn t like you know, when romney first he is married to a mexican-american. when romney first ran for president, there were a lot of bush people in florida who admitted that jeb was fired up about mitt romney. and liked the idea after hands-on governor. he watched him go through the campaign, go to the right on ma immigration. use it as a wedge against mccain. he didn t like it. didn t like it again. he has even been critical of the tone and rhetoric used on the issue of immigration. i think this endorsement is bowing to reality of the situation. when you know all of that backdrop, and you read the statement, i think it is kind ever telling. it is interesting he married
i helped you swallow that. immigration isn t like you know, when romney first he is married to a mexican-american. when romney first ran for president, there were a lot of bush people in florida who admitted that jeb was fired up about mitt romney. and liked the idea after hands-on governor. he watched him go through the campaign, go to the right on immigration. use it as a wedge against mccain. he didn t like it. didn t like it again. he has even been critical of the tone and rhetoric used on the issue of immigration. i think this endorsement is bowing to reality of the situation. when you know all of that backdrop, and you read the statement, i think it is kind ever telling. it is interesting he married a woman from mexico. who is hispanic. then his own record on issues involving hispanics is strong. a lot of appeal with hispanics and an example of the kind of republican who figures out how