Baker needs to be on board with Trump train movement
Donald Trump’s anti-establishment movement has rallied disgruntled Bay State conservatives and could mean trouble for Gov. Charlie Baker and other moderate Republicans in 2018 — even if the brash real estate mogul loses his presidential bid.
“Win or lose, we’re going to see that the Trump supporters are going to have a voice about what kind of candidate they want,” said state Rep. Geoff Diehl (R-Whitman), co-chairman of Trump’s presidential campaign in Massachusetts. “Trump has clearly changed the Republican Party. If he wins, it gets even stronger. If he loses, you still will see a lot of new people in the GOP engaged and supporting candidates who reflect their values.”
Trump won the Massachusetts primary with 49 percent of the vote, taking nearly half of the 631,395 voters who pulled a Republican ballot in a crowded race. Although his general election bid has taken a hit after a tape of the candidate making lewd remarks surfaced, ongoing outrage about media bias and rigged elections could trigger new candidates looking to capitalize on a newly motivated base of voters.
“He speaks to a group that’s against politics as usual and the establishment and they feel like party politics is not working, and that’s something we can take and build on,” said Kirsten Hughes, head of the Massachusetts Republican Party. “Hopefully they will stay energized.”
But many of those voters and candidates energized by Trump may be at odds with Gov. Baker’s moderate stance, including former Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling.
Schilling, who’s indicated he’ll run against U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren in 2018, has made it clear he doesn’t support a recent law that lets transgender people to use publicly accessible facilities that match their gender identity. Baker opposes a 2018 ballot initiative repealing the law.
Other Republicans are privately suggesting that Baker is focusing too much on winning over Democrats and ignoring conservative interest groups who helped elect him, drawing a parallel to U.S. Sen. Scott Brown’s failed 2012 re-election bid.
“He’s making the same mistake that Scott Brown made. He thinks appeasing Democrats is the only task for re-election,” said one GOP official. “A lot of lobby groups who helped Scott Brown get elected felt jilted and sat on their hands in 2012. Baker’s in danger of alienating his base.”
Hughes said it’s unlikely that Baker will be hurt by energized Trump supporters in Massachusetts. She hasn’t spoken to Schilling about a potential Senate run.
“There’s always a lot of healthy disagreement in the party, whether it be ballot questions or candidates, but in the end people will come together to make sure Charlie Baker is re-elected in 2018,” Hughes said.