Former President Donald Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis have been battling over who can be the most authoritarian candidate for the Republican Party presidential nomination.
Others are expected to jump in the Republican race, hoping to appeal to MAGA Republicans. These candidates are being as Trump-like, but without the Trump baggage. The MAGA portion of the Republican electorate are a conglomeration of authoritarians, reactionaries, conspiracy theorists, seditionists, cultural warriors, the religious right, and bigots. MAGA Republicans want to impose their extreme values on others.
New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu consistently breaks away from MAGA extremism. Sununu has carved out a position as the Republican libertarian candidate. Libertarians believe in having the least amount of government possible, leaving most decisions to individual citizens. Governor Sununu consistently rates high in ‘most popular governor’ rankings.
“I think there’s leadership that can come that is positive, inspirational, that galvanizes people and says, ‘Look, I’m not saying your social and culture issues aren’t important, but the priorities of the average family are here.’ If you do those priorities, then you can have those harder conversations about the cultural stuff, and people will let you have that conversation with the right attitude.”
Governor Chris Sununu
Breaking from MAGA, Sununu says that there is no doubt that Biden won the 2020 election. Disagreeing with New Hampshire’s 24-week abortion ban that does not include exceptions for rape and incest, he stated, “I’m pro-choice.”
“The court said the federal government should stay out of it, right? So the federal government should stay out of it. I think the federal government should stay out of most everything.”
“The concept of a big government Republican — which I hate — telling a town, ‘Well, you didn’t do it the way I wanted you to do it, so I’m going to pass a state law that takes away your ability to make that choice’ — that’s cancel culture.”
Sununu has rejected Florida Senator Rick Scott’s middle-class tax hike proposal. He opposes marijuana legalization on the grounds that it may contribute to the opioid crisis. During the worst of the pandemic, Sununu issued emergency orders to mitigate COVID-19 and stood up to the MAGA types who opposed those efforts.
Ideology aside, Sununu has an outstanding political pedigree. His father, John T. Sununu, is a former governor of New Hampshire and served as President George H.W. Bush’s first chief of staff. Sununu’s older brother, John Jr., was a U.S. senator from New Hampshire.
While other Republican candidates will try to carve up the MAGA portion of the Republican electorate as Trump Lite, Chris Sununu has the libertarian ‘lane’ all to himself should he choose to run. Sununu offers good, decent Republicans a way out of the MAGA extremism… if they want out. As Sununu has said,
“When crazy comes knocking at the door, you gotta slam it shut.”
The first primary for the Republican presidential nomination will be held in New Hampshire.
Sources:
https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/governor-sununu-is-wrong-about-dobbs/
https://www.brainyquote.com/authors/chris-sununu-quotes
https://www.concordmonitor.com/Granite-State-News-Collaborative-42176207
Thanks and a tip of the hat to https://www.governor.nh.gov/ for the image of Governor Sununu.
