Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump did not immediately respond to harsh words from Mitt Romney on Thursday, but his political allies were quick to come to his defence.

Romney, who lost two elections as the GOP candidate, delivered a harsh condemnation of Trump at the University of Utah on Thursday morning.

Trump's family, his employees and his political backers issued a series of tweets and Facebook posts Thursday afternoon, following Romney's accusations that Trump is a "phoney" and a "fraud."

Trump's son, Donald Trump Jr., was among the first to take aim at Romney.

Former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin tweeted her support for Trump too, calling Romney's speech a "nonsensical attack" from the "machine" of the "Permanent Political Class."

 

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Trump's director of social media also attacked Romney, calling him a "loser."

However, many of Trump's opponents were quick to voice their agreement with Romney's speech. GOP candidate John Kasich, for instance, suggested the Republican party would be ashamed to see Trump running the White House.