Gov. Baker Backs U.S. Rep. Cheney In House Republican Clash

MASSACHUSETTS — Gov. Charlie Baker is still a Republican.

Or, at least, what he believes it once meant to be a Republican.

Baker said during his Wednesday coronavirus news conference that he has no plans to leave the Grand Old Party, but that he sides with U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyoming) in her ongoing clash with former President Donald Trump and many House of Representative colleagues over the legitimacy of the 2020 presidential election.

"I made very clear that I felt the election process that took place back in November was fair and that President Joe Biden won the election," he said. "On those issues, I believe Liz Cheney is absolutely right."

Baker said he has no plans to join any offshoot of the Republican party consisting of those refusing to back Trump's assertion that President Biden's victory in November was tainted.

"I have been a Republican since I was 20 years old," he said. "I continue to believe in what I consider to be the core values of the party. I've had my differences — as everybody knows — with plenty of folks in the party over the course of the time that I've been in public life.

"But I'm a big believer in what the party fundamentally stands for — based on what I believe it stands for."

On Tuesday, President Biden joined Baker and other Republican governors in a forum on the vaccination rollout.

"The president mentioned during the call that governors tend to be a lot less partisan — that's true," Baker said. "I talk to Republican and Democrat governors on a pretty regular basis ... In many cases, we have many common problems we are both trying to solve.

"It's something I wish there was a lot more of at the federal level."