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Park City • If Mitt Romney has a role to play in the 2016 election, it's more likely to involve Senate and House candidates rather than interjecting himself into the presidential race, and don't be surprised if many of his wealthy backers follow suit.

That's the take of Spencer Zwick, a Romney confidant, who helped organize the fourth annual "Experts and Enthusiasts" Summit this week. The mostly closed-door event focused heavily on disruptive technologies and their impact on businesses, transportation and media, but looming over the three-day confab was the disruptive candidacy of Republican Donald Trump.

In his own interview with CNN, Romney said he may vote for Libertarian Gary Johnson or, perhaps, write in a name.

Most of the 300 business leaders and politicians at the E2 Summit view Trump with skepticism if not outright contempt. Romney, who will address the gathering Saturday morning, has said he won't vote for Trump and his attempts to attract a conservative independent candidate have ceased.

"Mitt Romney's role as the head of the party has come and gone. He's not a candidate. He's not going to be a candidate. He's not going to Cleveland to disrupt the convention," Zwick said of the 2012 Republican presidential nominee. "But what you will not see Mitt Romney do is cave on his morals and his values."

House Speaker Paul Ryan, who was Romney's 2012 running mate, was among the presenters Friday. The Wisconsin Republican discussed his plan to keep a GOP majority in Congress and fielded a few questions about Trump, whom he has both criticized and endorsed. He was expected to join donors at a skeet-shooting range as well.

Zwick, who raised money for Romney and now raises money for Ryan, said that the relationship between the two GOP leaders remains tight and if Ryan asked Romney to help a candidate in need, "Mitt Romney will be on the first plane."

That kind of loyalty has been lost when it comes to the presidential race, and Republican pollster Frank Luntz said he doesn't know if it is possible to recapture it in the months to come.

Instead, he believes the race between Trump, the billionaire real-estate mogul, and Democratic presumptive nominee Hillary Clinton will become a fight to convince voters the other candidate is the most dishonest.

"We are going to have the most negative, vicious election in modern times," Luntz predicted. "It is highly upsetting to anyone who cares about the country and about democracy."

Stuart Stevens, who was Romney's chief strategist in 2012, said he finds Trump's candidacy "incredibly depressing" and hopes it is an "aberration." He argued that Trump, a reality-TV star, played to people's fears, not hopes.

"I don't think Donald Trump is qualified to be president," he said. "That seems to be so blatantly obvious."

Even more troubling, he said, is that he doesn't know what can be done about it. Asked if there's a role for Romney to play in the general election, Stevens said: "If there is a moment he feels he needs to speak up, he will, but there's no grand campaign or anything."

Romney gave his own interview Friday to CNN, in which he said he would consider a vote for Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson, though he disagrees with Johnson's call to legalize marijuana, or he may write in a name. He criticized Trump for making controversial remarks.

"I don't want to see a president of the United States saying things which change the character of the generations of Americans that are following," Romney told CNN's Wolf Blitzer. "Presidents have an impact on the nature of our nation, and trickle-down racism, trickle-down bigotry, trickle-down misogyny, all these things are extraordinarily dangerous to the heart and character of America."

Blitzer is expected to lead a conversation with Romney at the E2 Summit on Saturday.

The conference is sponsored by Solamere Capital, the venture capital firm created by Tagg Romney, the governor's son, and Zwick. Mitt Romney, serves as Solamere's executive partner, and he sat in the front row with his wife, Ann, guiding the event from speaker to speaker.

Among political leaders attending were Republican Sens. Bob Corker of Tennessee, Tom Cotton of Arkansas and Ben Sasse of Nebraska, along with Republican Govs. Scott Walker of Wisconsin and Matt Bevin of Kentucky.

Reporters were allowed to observe two sessions Friday, one led by BuzzFeed's Ben Smith and the other by Republican pollster Kristen Soltis Anderson.

Smith argued each presidential election is marked by a new media entity, such as CNN in 1992 or, he offered, his company in 2012. He said this cycle it may actually be the GOP candidate.

"He is a media product and media character, who lives almost exclusively through television," Smith said. "He really uses social media to program TV."

Soltis Anderson discussed the millennial generation and why it wants more customizable politics. With time for one question, an attendee asked her about Trump, whether he could win over supporters from Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders and pick up some states that went for Democrats in recent elections.

She said she was no longer "in the business of betting against Donald Trump," since he has repeatedly defied expectations. She noted he faces major demographic challenges that made her skeptical, especially about his chances of winning over millennials, who she said prize fairness and caring for others above other attributes.

"Donald Trump represents many things that would make young voters hostile to the Republican Party," she said.

The E2 Summit wraps up Saturday, and some in attendance will then join Romney at a three-fight boxing event to support CharityVision, which provides eye care for impoverished people. Josh Romney, another of Mitt Romney's sons, is on CharityVision's board. Last year, Mitt Romney playfully sparred with former heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield. This time, Oscar De La Hoya, a 10-time world champ, will mix it up with celebrity Mario Lopez.

Twitter: @mattcanham