Back in the serene days of fall 2019 some in the Massachusetts political class were discussing whether Governor Charlie Baker should remain a Republican, go Independent, or even start a new party. The coronavirus crisis has exposed an even knottier conundrum for Baker.
That has to do with the state’s need for federal aid. In November I wrote that that President Donald Trump “is racist, sexist, a serial liar, ignorant, lazy, incompetent, and corrupt. Baker is thoroughly decent, hardworking, good at his job, and honest.” A lot of people (okay, many are Democrats, but Baker is more popular with Democrats than Republicans) have long wanted Baker to denounce Trump. The nation is at stake and every patriotic American should be doing what they can to rid the nation of Trump. It’s a moral imperative.
But . . .
As Baker has said over and over again he was elected to serve the interests of the people of Massachusetts and not to get entangled in national party politics. Even back in those tranquil days the governor had to keep in mind that someday Massachusetts might suffer a natural disaster and need a heavy dollop of federal help.
Consider the plight of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. As the Washington Post’s Aaron Blake wrote, early this week Cuomo was carefully navigating Trump’s many psychological imbalances and the two were getting along reasonably well. But then on Tuesday Cuomo criticized the federal government’s inability to supply the ventilators needed in his state and also “more gently pleaded with Trump to begin using the Defense Production Act.” He did not mention Trump by name but if he intended to go easy the president did not see it that way. At a televised town hall on Fox later Tuesday Trump complained of Cuomo “I’m not blaming him or anything else, but he shouldn’t be talking about us. He’s supposed to be buying his own ventilators.” He also warned the governors that “It’s a two-way street. They have to treat us well, too.”
Baker criticizing Trump might be a sign of a Republican adult standing up for the nation. But it would invite retribution from the petulant president. Even leaving the Republican Party would be interpreted as a disloyal insult. Sorry, no ventilators for you, Charlie. Remember last week when Baker queried the president about his advice that the states go into the market to buy emergency supplies, as Massachusetts was being undermined by the federal government outbidding it? “The question drew a chuckle from Trump.”
Baker has criticized Trump at times, including very sharply when Trump made racist comments about four Democratic congresswomen of color.
Being a governor in the age of Trump is hard enough and being a reasonable Republican governor offers distinct challenges. Governor Baker has managed them skillfully.