Republican activists gathered in Worcester Saturday for the Mass. GOP’s state convention, where their deliberations yielded an irksome Republican primary challenge for Gov. Charlie Baker and a three-person primary field in the U.S. Senate race, with State Representative Geoff Diehl winning the party’s official endorsement.
Before the delegate vote for the governor’s race took place, Scott Lively, a conservative pastor and anti-gay activist, used his convention speech to mount a bracing attack on Baker, who he claimed has unfairly taken credit for economic gains generated by President Donald Trump.
"You didn't do that, Charlie Baker," Lively said. "That's stolen valor!"
Lively wasted no time attacking Baker for opposing the idea of Massachusetts being a so-called "sanctuary state," but supporting individual cities and towns choosing whether or not to enforce federal immigration laws. Lively also chastised Baker for working with Democrats in government.
"You can't have it both ways, Charlie. You can't pretend to be a conservative by opposing sanctuary state when you're hanging out with [Boston Mayor] Marty Walsh and [Lawrence Mayor] Dan Rivera and the rest of the leftists who are pushing their agenda in this state," Lively said.
In addition, Lively ripped Baker for not meeting with Vice President Mike Pence during his recent visit to Massachusetts; for accepting the endorsement of Rivera, which is a sanctuary city; and for being part of a Massachusetts Republican establishment whose members Lively characterized as "pro-aborts."
Before he wrapped up, Lively spoke warmly of witnessing the Brexit vote in England and Hungarian President Viktor Orban's "stand against the European Union" — saying those developments, along with the Trump Presidency, highlight a rightward shift worldwide than can occur here in Massachusetts, too.
In contrast, Baker offered a list of first-term achievements that included closing a billion-dollar deficit without raising taxes, vetoing a proposed legislative pay raise, reining in the state’s Medicaid program and reducing overdose deaths from opioid use.
Baker also highlighted differences with his would-be Democratic opponents, Jay Gonzalez and Bob Massie, saying they’d like to make Massachusetts a sanctuary state and oppose the death penalty for people who kill police officers.
“We need a strong and united Republican Party to serve as a check on those Democrat majorities,” Baker told the delegates gathered in the DCU Center.
Lively needed to win 15 percent of delegate votes to make the primary ballot. He received approximately 27 percent.
Speaking to the media afterward, Baker said he did not listen to Lively's speech and declined to answer several direct questions about whether he's willing to debate Lively.
Asked how he would take on an opponent with controversial views like Lively's, Baker replied: "There's no place and no point in public life, in any life, for a lot of the things Scott Lively says and believes. Okay? And that's why I'm pleased that seven of ten delegates in that convention chose us as their nominees to represent them in the fall."
GOP delegates also gave their blessing to Diehl, a conservative Republican from Whitman who topped the vote count in the U.S. Senate race.
After two rounds of balloting, Diehl received 55 percent of the delegates' votes, ahead of former Mitt Romney aide Beth Lindstrom (29 percent) and businessman and GOP contributor John Kingston (20 percent). All three will face off at the primary election Tuesday, September 4th, with the winner of that race going on to challenge Warren in November.
Diehl painted Warren as a liberal crusader focused on running for president and not on her constituents.
"From the moment she got elected, Warren put Massachusetts in her rearview mirror and she never looked back. That's not me," Diehl said.
Diehl also asked the Worcester crowd where Warren's been during her six years in office.
"It's clear where she hasn't been. She hasn't been stopping illegal immigration, she hasn't been securing our borders, she hasn't been fighting for taxpayers or cutting spending in Washington and she certainly hasn't been doing anything to grow jobs back home," Diehl said.
The Mass. GOP also endorsed Jay McMahon for attorney general over Dan Shores, after both candidates gave speeches casting Democratic AG Maura Healey as a threat to the rights of gun owners, with McMahon receiving 55 percent of the delegates’ votes and Shores getting 44. Both will appear on the party’s primary ballot.
Delegates also endorsed Lieutenant Governor Karen Polito for re-election, Anthony Amore for secretary of the commonwealth, Helen Brady for state auditor, and State Representative Keiko Orrall for state treasurer.
Correction: This article has been edited to clarify that Jay McMahon won the convention's endorsement for attorney general with 55 percent of the vote.
