Former DNC head Perez 'taking a look at' Maryland governor bid

[brooklynite]

Politico

Former Democratic National Committee chair Tom Perez is considering a run for Maryland governor in 2022.

“I live here in Maryland,” he told liberal podcaster Bill Press in an episode of Press’ show, "The Bill Press Pod," set to air on Tuesday morning. “Our current incumbent [governor] is term-limited. [I’m] taking a look at that; we’ll see what happens.”

Perez opted not to seek another term as head of the DNC after guiding the party through now-President Joe Biden’s successful election campaign and an overstuffed primary process that saw more than two dozen candidates vying for the nomination. Former South Carolina state party chair Jaime Harrison, who ran unsuccessfully for Senate last year, was recently confirmed as his replacement at the national party.

Perez was the secretary of labor for much of former President Barack Obama’s second term. He helmed the Maryland labor department under then-Gov. Martin O'Malley during the late 2000s and was previously elected to serve on the Montgomery County council, just outside Washington.

Heard about this from a DNC friend.

[hlthe2b]

1. Obviously, I'd support the Democrat (Perez) if I had a vote, but as R's go, Hogan hasn't been

that bad (from what I've seen/heard). I guess he must be term-limited?

[brooklynite]

2. Correct. Also Hogan is thinking about running for President.

[Tarc]

3. Hogan is exactly the type of R I hope steps up in 2024

The alt-right QIdiot Brigade despises him with a passion..."RINO!", "UNIPARTY!", "Deep State!", etc...

So while Hogan's pretty okay as far as R's go, he's going to go up against the Gaetz, Jordan, and darlings of the other side, and they will rip each other apart.

[MontanaFarmer]

4. Agree.

I wouldn't vote for Larry Hogan but I would not fear for the country itself, for the safety of our people, or for the survival of our democracy if he was president. Imagine that; a presidential campaign with 2 competing visions for the country, where either outcome is at least acceptable. What a strange phenomenon that would feel like!

[FSogol]

5. You are misinformed if you think Hogan isn't that bad.

He's the typical "say the right thing" and then go along with every corrupt and morally bankrupt scheme the GOP comes up with. Him and his brother are profiting off the state.

I don't have time to provide evidence, but will start a thread later.

[hlthe2b]

6. My reference is to COVID response and his telling the truth re: Trump and Nat. Guard on 1/06

in particular.

If you want to inform those on this thread, feel free. I never said I'd vote for him, but discussed his RELATIVE performance compared to other R's. And yes, to the extent he has gotten national coverage, his performance appears favorable in that comparison. If you don't think so, I'd likewise suggest you consider the records of the likes of Governors DeSantos of Florida, Kristi Noem of South Dakota, Kim Reynolds of Iowa, Mike Parson of Missouri, Kevin Stitt of Oklahoma, Greg Abbott of Texas, Doug Ducey of Arizona, Brian Kemp of GA (refusal to bend to 2020 Trump illegal election demands notwithstanding), and others as a start.

[FSogol]

7. Covid Response? Haw!

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) spent $9.46 million in state funding to import 500,000 coronavirus tests from

South Korea that turned out to be flawed and weren’t used, emails, documents and interviews show.

As it became clear that the much-touted tests could not help detect which Maryland residents had contracted the novel coronavirus, the Hogan administration quietly paid the same South Korean company $2.5 million for 500,000 replacement tests.

The state offered the tests free to two private labs, one of which declined because the tests took much longer to process than U.S. versions, records and interviews show.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/md-politics/hogan-korea-coronavirus-tests/2020/11/20/f048c1c8-251b-11eb-a688-5298ad5d580a_story.html

Keep in mind the deal with the S. Korean company was made via his wife's relatives. Wonder what the kickback was? The article goes on to state that Hogan hid the info from the State legislature. It also points out that US companies offered him testing which he rejected for his boondoggle.

If Maryland did well during the pandemic, it was because there are an educated workforce of govt contractors, federal workers, and tech companies. The citizenry wore masks and followed health guidance. Hogan was a hindrance to testing.

Sure, he might be slightly better than the shithead governors in your post, but he is still a ineffective, corrupt republican governor and he should not see one ounce of support from DU.

Here's a good New Republic article on him:

The Most Popular Crook in America
The ominous approval ratings of Larry Hogan, the corrupt Republican governor of Maryland

https://newrepublic.com/article/156183/popular-crook-america

and
Maryland Governor Accused of Rerouting State Funds to Benefit His Business
https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/01/hogan-accused-of-mixing-family-business-with-road-projects.html

Josh Binderman from UMD's paper sums it up best:

Hogan is a classic example of the “fiscal conservative yet social liberal” that centrists fawn over. Coupled with the fact that he’s emerged as one of the most prominent Republicans critiquing the cartoonishly corrupt figures within the White House, Hogan has turned into a centrist’s darling in recent years.

Well, moderates, be warned. Larry Hogan is as amoral as any of the ghouls in the White House — the scary thing is that he has us convinced otherwise.

https://dbknews.com/2020/10/27/hogan-trump-corruption-mcgrath-scandal/