Maryland Governor Larry Hogan is one of the dependable Never Trumper crew members the legacy media knows it can call upon to be trotted out when needed, as one of the “good” Republicans who will repeat the same Orange Man Bad/MAGA talking points ad nauseum on any given topic.
So it stands to reason that we find him on Sunday sitting down on ABC’s “This Week” with co-anchor Jonathan Karl. In one clip, Hogan wants to sound tough on the DOJ over the raid on former President Donald Trump’s home at Mar-a-Lago on August 8–while peppering in “concern” about Trump:
National security implications unveiled in search warrant for former Pres. Trump’s estate are “a serious concern,” Gov. Hogan tells @jonkarl.
“On the other hand, in the absence of more transparency, people are going to continue to jump to conclusions.” https://t.co/QtNWrBVwpk pic.twitter.com/Mt2Nmo2gEX
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) August 14, 2022
It’s obviously a serious concern. And I think that’s what we have to find out more information about. What – what really – what are the documents and what are the implications from a national security standpoint? I — you know the – on the one side you could say, well, if the Justice Department, the FBI and the federal judge believe that they should do it, then it must be pretty serious. On the other hand, with – in the absence of, you know, more transparency, people are going to continue to jump to conclusions.
And as usual, with Karl’s prompting, he’s prepared to denounce allies of Trump in Congress, like Marjorie Taylor Greene and Paul Gosar, saying “we must destroy the FBI, we must save America.” But Hogan also seems to be tasked here with echoing AG Merrick Garland’s indignation at a Thursday presser over “attacks” on the credibility of the “dedicated, patriotic public servants” who work at the Bureau and DOJ. And in a pretzel-like stretch, he flirts here with blaming Republicans for the Cincinnati FBI shooting incident on August 11.
FBI raid of Mar-a-Lago was “actually a win” for former Pres. Trump, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan tells @jonkarl.
“It seemed to motivate his base and people were rushing to his defense and feeling as if he was being picked upon and martyred.” https://t.co/nblj5G0Exg pic.twitter.com/wsdZJlfjCL
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) August 14, 2022
Here’s that exchange: [emphasis mine]
HOGAN: It’s very concerning to me. It’s outrageous rhetoric.
KARL: Your father was an FBI agent.
HOGAN: Yes, my father, my uncle, two of my cousins were FBI agents. And I work with them on an ongoing basis. State police work with them every single day. These are dedicated law enforcement officers. And, you know, it reminds me of one – first we had the left talking about defunding the police and attacking police officers, and now we have the right saying defund these federal law enforcement officers. And it’s absurd. And, you know, and it’s dangerous because we saw the one incident already, but there are threats all over the place. And losing faith in our, in our federal law enforcement officers and our justice system and our, you know, is a – is a really serious problem for the county.
Talk about dangerous and irresponsible. Of course, no appearance by Hogan would be complete without the host stroking his ego about his rumored, possible run for president in the 2024 cycle. They know he won’t give a direct answer to the question, but it allows Hogan to stump for his handpicked, squish GOP candidates across the country. [starting around 1:09 in the clip]:
Asked if he is running for president, Gov. Hogan tells @jonkarl he is focused on helping Republicans during the midterms.
“I’m going to try to do what I can to get my party back on track because I want to win elections instead of lose elections.” https://t.co/wyMvBEavLe pic.twitter.com/5Lz0NTEu5B
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) August 14, 2022
Well, I definitely am going to be a voice and I’m – I’m going to try to do what I can to get my party back on track because I want to win elections instead of lose elections.
That’s one way to put it, I suppose. Maybe his short-term memory isn’t very good, though; it was only back in July when one of Hogan’s close associates and endorsees lost to Trump-backed Dan Cox in the Maryland Republican gubernatorial primary.
You’ve got to reckon that loss still smarts.
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