Donald Trump will likely bring Geoff Diehl back against Charlie Baker in the governor’s race

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Politics “He likes Geoff Diehl very much. He likes what he stands for.”

MassGOP Chairman Jim Lyons said former President Donald Trump is likely to bring back the former Rep. Geoff Diehl, a longtime Trump supporter, is in the race for governor because of incumbent Charlie Baker, if the primary year should come down to the two politicians.

“I believe President Trump was traveling to Massachusetts to help someone running for governor who represented the things we’re talking about, and Geoff Diehl’s name came out. The president brought it up,” he said. Lyons on Thursday on “The Howie Carr Show.”

Lyons called from Westchester, New York, shortly after meeting Trump at the former commander’s golf club.

“He really likes Geoff Diehl,” he said of Trump. “He likes what he stands for.”

Diehl was the first Massachusetts Republican lawmaker to support Trump in 2016 and served as co-chair of Trump’s Bay State campaign in that election. In 2018, Diehl was the Republican nominee for the U.S. Senate against Sen. Elizabeth Warren.

Last month, Diehl announced that he would seek the Republican nomination to the gubernatorial race next year. Baker has not yet said whether he will seek a third term.

However, Diehl’s walk in the race is more evidence of a fracture within the state party, which, under Lyon’s tenure, beat the head to Baker, a moderate public who criticized Trump while the latter was in office, including voicing support for his second impeachment earlier this year

Amid party clashes in recent months, Baker said last month that he and other elected Republican officials “do not believe many of the recent decisions and statements made by the state party leadership is consistent with what we believe most Republicans have in common. “

But Lyons indicated on Thursday he had the support of Trump, who invited him to the club, for his vision for the state party.

“I met the president and talked about, you know, exactly what we’re trying to do here in Massachusetts, and he’s 100 percent supportive of the fact that we stand up for issues that matter to the people of Massachusetts,” Lyons said. to host Howie Carr. ”I think that’s something we all know about President Trump: He’s fearless. And I asked him to help us, and he told me he would definitely help it. “

Carr asked if Baker had come into the conversation. Lyons confirmed he did.

“It’s clear to me that President Trump and Charlie Baker don’t look at the world the same way, and he made it very clear to me that he believes the direction we’re moving this party is the direction it’s supposed to move in. – developing it from indigenous peoples, who stand for issues that matter to the people, ”Lyons said. “And I don’t think President Trump is a fan of Gov. Baker.”

Lyons could not endorse the candidates, but said that “my feeling from the president is that he wants to see an exciting career here.”

In a statement to the Boston Herald, Diehl said he was “proud of the accomplishments (Trump) achieved while he was in office.”

“To have support in my campaign for Governor shows that the former President cares about the future of Massachusetts and sees me as a key part of the future,” Diehl said.

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