Joe Battenfeld: Weld’s presidential designs draw GOP fire

Feb. 16--Former Massachusetts Gov. William F. Weld is drawing flak from his home state party after launching an exploratory bid for president designed to damage President Trump's re-election hopes.

The new chairman of the state GOP took quick aim at Weld for running as a Republican against Trump, comparing him to traitor Benedict Arnold and calling on voters to "reject" his candidacy.

"Weld is the same ex-Republican who deserted Massachusetts for New York, who endorsed President Barack Obama over Sen. John McCain, who renounced the GOP for the Libertarian Party, who ran against the Trump-Pence Republican ticket in 2016 while cozying up to Democrat Hillary Clinton," MassGOP Chairman Jim Lyons said. "After abandoning Republicans, Democrats and Libertarians, Weld demands that faithful Republicans consider him as their standard-bearer. Even Benedict Arnold switched allegiances less often!"

Lyons' harsh assessment of Weld's exploratory effort puts on full display the rightward tilt of the state party since Lyons took over last month.

But it also puts Gov. Charlie Baker in an awkward position, because Baker is a close ally and friend of Weld's and worked for him as budget chief in the 1990s.

Baker is vacationing in Florida this week but his top political adviser issued a statement calling Weld a close "friend and mentor." But he also stopped well short of endorsing him.

"Governor Baker considers Governor Weld a friend and mentor, but his focus remains on his ambitious agenda, including increasing education funding, creating more housing options, improving transportation and making our communities more resilient to climate change -- not presidential politics."

Baker, like Weld, has also been harshly critical of Trump and conceivably could give a big lift to Weld by helping him. But Baker also raises a lot of money for the party and has promised to try and work with the new chairman.

The intraparty drama erupted hours after Weld announced his exploratory bid in New Hampshire, lambasting Trump as "unstable" and saying he has put the country in "grave peril."

The 73-year-old former governor compared Trump to a "schoolyard bully" and accused Republicans who support the president as suffering from "Stockholm syndrome."

Weld faces steep odds against Trump, and knows it. Polls show eight in 10 Republican voters back Trump in New Hampshire, the first-in-the-nation primary state where Weld has to do well to compete in the race.

Weld is no stranger to taking on his own party. He has challenged the GOP platform on abortion rights and endorsed President Obama in 2008.

Going after Trump is a much tougher proposition, as evidenced by the harsh reaction he got from his own party in Massachusetts.

The next steps for Weld will be raising enough money and getting enough attention to make his campaign credible, with the ultimate goal of facing Trump on the debate stage.

Weld needs to be seen as a serious candidate or his exploratory effort will be a waste of time.

If Weld does mount a credible challenge, history is not on Trump's side. The last incumbent presidents who faced primary challenges, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter and George H. W. Bush, all lost the general election.

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