THE CHAIR of the Massachusetts Republican Party said on Tuesday that the state GOP is in “dire straits” heading into the 2020 election season.
“We’re facing an uphill battle to elect principled conservatives across the state, and we need emergency funds to reach voters and get them to the polls in 2020,” said Jim Lyons in an email to potential donors.
The email came after conservative Republican candidates for the state Senate lost two races last week, which will reduce the party’s numbers in the Senate to four.
Lyons signaled no shift in his pro-Trump political strategy, which has been criticized as being out of step with the Massachusetts electorate. Lyons is trying to get President Trump re-elected and send conservatives to Congress and Beacon Hill to support him.
Gov. Charlie Baker, the state’s most prominent and popular Republican, is estranged from the party and is raising money to support his own more moderate slate of state and local candidates.
In his email, Lyons said Democratic candidates were outspending Republicans “and we’re in danger of losing to the Beacon Hill radicals.”
But rather than attack Democrats on Beacon Hill, Lyons instead went after US Rep. Ayanna Pressley and her “socialist agenda.” He also managed to take a swipe at Baker for moving cautiously on reopening the state’s economy.
“She has been criticizing Governor Charlie Baker’s extremely cautious plan to reopen the economy after enduring the coronavirus shutdown,” Lyons wrote. “If she had her way, every single Bay Stater would be on the government dole.”