It was bound to happen. After 20 months in office, the honeymoon is over for Gov. Charlie Baker as he has dropped from the position as the nation’s most popular governor – to third, with a mere 70 percent approval rating among voters.

Baker, right now, seems to be able to do little wrong. As the childhood taunt goes, he’s rubber, you’re glue; what bounces off him, sticks to you. And that may explain why few Democrats in the Democratic-dominated state are stepping up to take him on, either on policy or in politics. The lack of enmity towards Baker among Democrats is so pronounced, state Sen. Thomas McGee is stepping down as head of the state party, ostensibly because of the party’s lukewarm rebukes to Baker.

Baker’s chief nemesis, it seems, is the once-reliably supportive Boston Herald, which has undertaken to expose Baker’s perceived hackery. Howie Carr has little use for the governor, whom he has labeled “Tall Deval.” That, though, has mostly to do with Baker’s rejection of Donald Trump, whose bandwagon Carr jumped on early and is riding to the end.

But the Herald has also put a spotlight on Baker’s appointments of friends and supporters, chiefly to posts at the Department of Conservation and Recreation, nee the MDC, a longtime patronage dumping ground. The latest piece revealed Baker appointed his one-time driver to a plum $130,000-a-year position as head of the Environmental Police at DCR.

There are contradictory aspects to Baker’s support that seem puzzling to observers. Though the state’s highest profile Republican, many of his supporters are openly working for Trump’s election in the state. He questioned Attorney General Maura Healey’s enhanced enforcement of the state’s assault weapons ban but gun advocates, who overwhelmingly supported him over Martha Coakley in 2014, say he was well aware of the order before it was announced and did nothing to stop it. He’s pushing to privatize some services at the MBTA but still retains strong support among blue collar workers and union rank and file, if not their leaders. He’s behind the ballot question to lift the cap on charter schools, which has drawn the ire of teachers but garnered support from many Democratic officials, who are the educators’ traditional allies.

The longer view of Baker’s popularity may be in who has the courage to take him on. Or, more precisely, who wants to be a sacrificial lamb. Healey, arguably the Democrats’ most prominent elected official this side of Sen. Elizabeth Warren, has already thrown cold water on the speculation of a match-up against Baker.

You have to look much farther down the rolls to find another plausible candidate, with some speculation centering on retiring state Sen. Dan Wolf. But Wolf, who had mounted a gubernatorial campaign in 2014, still owns Cape Air, which is the reason he had to abandon his candidacy because of a State Ethics ruling, and that could be a barrier again. After that, who you got?

Whoever chooses to accept the mantle will not have the breadth of institutional backing most Democratic candidates enjoy. Baker has formed a tight bond with House Speaker Robert DeLeo and, though not quite as close, a respectful relationship with Senate President Stan Rosenberg. His bromance with Boston Mayor Marty Walsh is the stuff of legend and likely to thwart anyone from tapping the mayor’s machine for GOTV assistance.

Baker’s not going anywhere, as he has repeatedly brushed off talk of the national stage. Unlike his mentor Bill Weld, who also enjoyed a 70 percent approval rating that he tried to parlay into a challenge to then-Sen. John Kerry and, later, a post as ambassador to Mexico, Baker is placing his political capital all-in on the Bay State table. His stack of chips, it seems, is much higher than Democrats. And they know it.

JACK SULLIVAN

 

 BEACON HILL

Associated Industries of Massachusetts, the state’s biggest business lobbying organization, has enjoyed a new level of clout under House Speaker Robert DeLeo and Gov. Charlie Baker. (Boston Globe)

MUNICIPAL MATTERS 

Wakefield attorney Thomas Mullen will head up the audit of Gloucester Police Chief Leonard Campanello’s “professional conduct,” whatever that means. There will also be audits of the entire police department and Det. Sgt. Sean Conners. (Gloucester Times)

Vandals stole two bronze Stars of David at a Milton cemetery that were made by a Waltham artist in memory of his sister who was killed as a young girl killed in the Holocaust. (Boston Globe)

The Southbridge Police Department gets approval to put a security fence around the parking lot behind the station. “We’re sitting ducks,” said the chief. (Telegram & Gazette)

A Berkshire Eagle editorial says Pittsfield doesn’t need a residency rule for city employees.

Quincy officials have dramatically increased the number of rat traps they have baited and Mayor Thomas Koch has announced a plan to require residents to use city-supplied covered trash barrels to deal with the spike in rodent problems. (Patriot Ledger)

Springfield Museums is named a Smithsonian affiliate. (Masslive)

WASHINGTON/NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL

The bombs set off in New York City and New Jersey and the suspect now in custody bear a lot of resemblance to the Boston Marathon bombing case. (Boston Herald) Security experts say the bustling Northeast Corridor Amtrak line between Boston and Washington, DC, is particularly vulnerable to terrorism. (Boston Herald) Greater intelligence and surveillance are key to heading off such attacks, say experts. (Boston Herald) A Globe editorial applauds the fast work of law enforcement in tracking down the suspect and the resolve to get about their lives shown by New Yorkers.

Tulsa police released two videos from a dashboard camera and a police helicopter showing the shooting by a white officer of an unarmed black man who had his hands raised. (New York Times)

ELECTIONS 

Kevin Hill, an assistant professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and the author of Marijuana: The Unbiased Truth about the World’s Most Popular Weed, analyses the arguments pro and con on pot legalization and debunks most of the con arguments. (Boston Globe)

Out-of-state donors are spending big on Massachusetts ballot questions. (Lowell Sun) A Salem News editorial laments the fact that outsiders are playing such a big role on the marijuana legalization question. Both sides on the charter school question turned out in force at a meeting of the Salem School Committee. (Salem News) US Rep. Katherine Clark opposes Question 2 (charter school expansion) , but is still wrestling with Question 4 (marijuana legalization).

President Obama’s efforts to help Hillary Clinton win may prove as fruitless as his exhortations on Martha Coakley’s behalf in her US Senate tilt with Scott Brown, says Joan Vennochi. She says Clinton needs to win on her own.

Donald Trump is standing by Chris Christie as head of his transition team even after prosecutors said in the opening of the Bridgegate trial that the New Jersey governor was fully aware of the shenanigans by his underlings. (New York Times)

Kathleen Kennedy Townsend says George H.W. Bush told her he is going to vote for Clinton for president. (Politico)

The Globe sizes up how business sectors are viewing Clinton and Trump.

 BUSINESS/ECONOMY

In something of a if-you-can’t-beat-’em-join-’em move, Cambridge taxi drivers are aiming to loosen regulations on their operations to compete with ride-hailing companies Uber and Lyft. (Boston Globe)

About a third of the states in the country have less than one full-time employee responsible for regulating and monitoring charities, according to a new study from the Urban Institute. (Nonprofit Quarterly)

 EDUCATION

Enrollment at Quinsigamond Community College continues to fall, while it holds steady at Worcester State University. (Telegram & Gazette)

 HEALTH/HEALTH CARE

Brockton’s medical marijuana dispensary has seen demand eight times greater than expected and is looking to expand in light of proposed new state regulations that would allow nurse practitioners to certify patients and dispensaries to advertise prices online. (The Enterprise)

The Food and Drug Administration approved for the first time a drug treatment for Duchenne muscular dystrophy, delivering hope to patients — and sending the stock of Cambridge-based drug maker Sarepta Pharmaceuticals soaring. (Boston Globe) A family from Windham, New Hampshire, hails the decision. (Eagle-Tribune)

Researchers have discovered a new mosquito-borne illness in the Caribbean called Mayaro. Once confined to the Amazon, the disease can cause joint pain and stomach problems lasting up to a year in people who are bitten and affected. (U.S. News & World Report)

TRANSPORTATION 

MBTA officials offer a plan to dramatically improve service on the Red Line, but it requires replacing the entire fleet of Red Line cars, not just 134 of them. (CommonWealth) The T also signs an ad contract that is expected to bring in $136 million a year and require no capital outlays by the transit authority. (CommonWealth)

Federal regulators issued new safety guidelines for self-driving vehicles but signaled they strongly support the technology and don’t want to encumber the development. (New York Times)

Tenants of the New Bedford Regional Airport say there isn’t enough activity at the facility, especially with a new fast ferry to the islands, to justify a proposal by the airport commission to hire an assistant manager. (Standard-Times)

ENERGY/ENVIRONMENT

After a nearly two-week shutdown from leaks and mechanical issues, Pilgrim nuclear power plant is back online. (Cape Cod Times)