Even if Maryland Governor Larry Hogan(R) decides he will not challenge President Donald Trump for the Republican nomination in 2020, he has stepped onto the stage as one of the few voices in the Republican Party willing to criticize the president. He is willing to proclaim Trump's behavior and demeanor in office are disturbing enough to consider a challenge or to consider withholding support.
In other words, even without a decision to step into the race, just thinking about it out loud drives home the point: Not everyone in the party supports the president. And some are thinking about what the party stands for once Trump leaves the White House - however that happens.
This is the message Hogan delivered during a recent trip to the first primary state of New Hampshire. It is one of more than a dozen states he plans to visit in the weeks ahead as he makes up his mind. In remarks to reporters made after an April speech at St. Anselm College, Hogan made very clear he is "disgusted" that others in the Republican Party are not speaking out. He is also disappointed the Republican National Committee is making efforts to freeze out Trump challengers.
It is just the kind of decision, by party leadership, that goads a potential challenger to get in the race anyway. The heart of a challenger loves being told "no" or it "can't be done."
(Above: Hogan meets and greets with political and business leaders).
Like many candidates in the early stages of a campaign, Hogan claims to be "hearing from people who are encouraging him to run." He acknowledges many feel restrained from speaking out publicly, because to do so would put at risk their long-term investment in Republican Party politics. The absence of political courage in others is another motivating factor for politicians like Hogan who believes in his own power to persuade and connect.
If he were to enter the race he would join former Massachusetts Governor William Weld who recently announced he can no longer stand by and allow Trump to represent the political party he has long been a member of (in 2016 Weld ran as an for vice president with Gary Johnson, the former governor of New Mexico, as libertarians. It was one branch of the "never-Trump" movement).
Hogan's visit to New Hampshire came just a week after the release of the Mueller report.
Although the Republican Party line has been "no collusion with the Russians and no obstruction of justice," Hogan does not see it that way. He told reporters the president clearly is guilty of obstruction of justice based on the report's findings and someone needs to speak the truth about that. It is hard to say whether anyone is willing to listen. The White House has very effectively used its platform to convince the nation that the Mueller investigation found nothing. Even Democrats are confused about how far to push an opposing storyline.
If Hogan runs he will need to sharpen his message and provide a reason for Republicans to toss aside an incumbent president. His speech in New Hampshire was unimpressive and sounded like a poorly written State of the State address.
On the other hand, both he and Weld have succeeded as Republican governors in Democratic states by playing to the middle and finding common ground with legislatures controlled by the other party. This middle of the road approach may be something voters crave in the current political environment, but the first test would come within the Republican Party itself where Trump has a head start by virtue of his hold on the most powerful office in the world.
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