This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Sen. Orrin Hatch cheered Donald Trump's initial moves as president-elect, using a Utah speech Friday to praise him for reaching out to opponents and softening some extreme stances but still shaking up Washington.
Hatch lauded Trump specifically for reaching out to Mitt Romney, who loudly criticized him as unfit during the campaign, and the Utah senator hoped aloud that the 2012 GOP presidential nominee will join Trump's Cabinet. Hatch also defended Trump's controversial selection of Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., as attorney general.
"It's good that we've had a shake-up in Washington like I haven't seen in my 40 years in the U.S. Senate," Hatch told a luncheon of the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition at the Grand America Hotel.
"Don't sell Donald Trump short," he told the group. "He didn't become a visionary by luck."
Hatch also defended Sessions, a longtime Republican colleague in the Senate, against quick opposition by Latino groups for his past anti-immigration stances and by some civil-rights groups for his attacks on them in the past.
"Give me a break. Jeff's a fine fellow," Hatch said. "Naturally being from the South, the far left constantly tries to make all of them less than what they are. But he's a very intelligent attorney. He's been a mainstay on the Judiciary Committee. ... I hope the Democrats don't make a fuss about it."
He told the Global Leadership Coalition — which supports trade and strategic investment to build diplomacy — that his conversations with Trump lead him to believe he may soften campaign stances against some trade agreements, contending they would hurt U.S. workers.
"I've had chats with the president-elect. I think he's softening a bit on some of the things he did say," Hatch said. "Our economic and security interests are closely tied to our ability to open markets and expand opportunities. ... We have some work to do to make that case, including it seems with some in the incoming administration."
Hatch added that many in Washington are nervous because Trump owes nothing to the longtime establishment, and they worry about whom he may appoint to his administration.
"It'll be very interesting to see who he picks," he said. "It's going to be an interesting time."
Hatch added he is sure Trump will pick good judges, as shown by a list he released of people he said he will consider for the U.S. Supreme Court (which included Utah Sen. Mike Lee and his brother, Utah Supreme Court Associate Chief Justice Thomas Lee).
"I can guarantee you that Trump is going to appoint people who believe in the Constitution," he said.
For those who still may be worried, Hatch quipped, "Our country can survive anything, and it will survive whoever is president." He added he "would be saying that about Hillary [Clinton] as well" had she won.