Trump backs Sen. Hatch for 8th term in bid to block Romney

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — As a candidate, Donald Trump called for congressional term limits. As president, he is encouraging 83-year-old Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch to extend his streak as the longest-serving Republican in Senate history.

Trump praised Hatch today as "a true fighter" during a joint appearance in Utah, where the president signed proclamations scaling back two sprawling national monuments.

"We hope you will continue to serve your state and your country in the Senate for a very long time to come," the Republican president told Hatch, who is contemplating retirement as the end of his seventh term approaches.

Trump's support may have less to do with Hatch, however, than with a secret desire to block Mitt Romney from serving in the Senate.

The president declined to publicly attack the 2012 GOP presidential nominee, saying only that "Mitt's a good man." But privately, Trump has signaled support for an effort to submarine Romney, who is considering running for Hatch's seat – but only if Hatch retires.

Trump has vowed to try to block Romney, whom he views as a potential thorn in his side in the Senate, according to a White House official and an outside adviser who have discussed the possible bid with the president.