More Republicans are endorsing Joe Biden. What about NC’s most popular GOP governor?
Jim Martin has long been comfortable with the wind against his face. He was a conservative governor three decades ago in the then-Democratic state of North Carolina. He’s now a moderate in a very different Republican Party. Such centrists are a thinning breed in the GOP these days, but they’ve had a suddenly prominent voice in recent weeks. Some might call it a final shout into that wind.
Last week, dozens of Republicans announced they would vote for Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden — or at least not vote for Donald Trump — in the 2020 presidential election. Those rebels included former GOP governors Rick Snyder of Michigan and Christine Todd Whitman of New Jersey.
What about North Carolina? How will Jim Martin, our most popular former Republican governor, vote in November?
He’s not saying. But he is saying a lot. He wrote an op-ed about the election, which you can find in our digital edition. He also talked with me after writing it, and if you read between all the lines you can learn what he thinks of the election and even which way his vote maybe, perhaps, probably will go.
First off, he’s not a big fan of Donald Trump.
Martin does give the president credit for “energizing” economic growth — at least until COVID-19 came along. He likes that Trump has attempted to secure the border and provided two constitutionally grounded Supreme Court justices. But Martin is troubled by Trump’s “personal vendettas.” And that he is “uncontrollably belligerent at the slightest provocation.” And his disdain for women and minorities. And his bullying and stirring of hatred.
“These are not attributes of honorable leadership,” Martin says.
As for Biden, Martin wonders if the Democrat aligns himself with “all the free stuff” progressives propose. Martin was impressed that Biden disassociated himself from calls to defund the police, but he’s uncertain how moderate Biden will be in office.
That’s important to Martin, whose leadership worked in North Carolina because he was able to get people to come together on big and small things. That may seem quaint these days, but he believes it’s crucial in a leader. It goes without saying that’s lacking today.
If all that seems like the governor won’t vote for Trump (Martin chose a write-in candidate in 2016, by the way) well, he’s not quite going there. When I told him that people will read his words and conclude he’s not supporting the president, Martin said, “I understand that.”
So why not take the next step, the one that other governors took?
A quick story: One of Martin’s proudest accomplishments was Operation Switch, a 1988 effort to get prominent Democrats to publicly support his second term for governor. But Operation Switch wasn’t just about winning an election. It also was about building a new coalition that could compete in a state that was dominated by Democrats. That, too, was successful.
It’s also why Martin won’t declare he’s supporting Biden or not supporting Trump. Because if the president loses, Republicans in North Carolina will be left with a fractured party and angry Trump supporters. “I am thinking I would be in a better position to rebuild my party if I don’t throw away my credibility (with Trump supporters),” he says. He’s right.
No, that’s not the headline progressives might be hoping for today from Martin. But maybe there’s this: Martin says that he and other former governors are weighing the long-term interests of their party vs. the short-term benefit of speaking up about this election. But choosing the latter is necessary only if you believe Trump has a strong chance to be elected.
Says Martin: “I don’t think he will be.”
This story was originally published September 13, 2020 at 12:00 AM.