- The Washington Times - Thursday, April 30, 2020

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican, on Thursday declined to say whom he will support for president in the 2020 election.

In a Washington Post Live interview, the governor was asked if he was considering supporting President Trump, the incumbent of his own party, Democratic challenger Joe Biden or U.S. Rep. Justin Amash, a Michigan independent and former Republican who is exploring a third-party run.

“In the middle of the pandemic, I haven’t, quite frankly, Bob, spent a lot of time thinking about politics … I’ll pass on that question and we’ll figure that out in November,” Mr. Hogan said.

Mr. Hogan did not endorse nor vote for Mr. Trump in 2016, saying he wrote in the name of his father, Lawrence Hogan Sr. The elder Hogan, a former U.S. congressman, has since passed away.

The governor also briefly entertained calls to mount a primary challenge against Mr. Trump this cycle, but he opted against it and announced last June he would not be a candidate in 2020.

Mr. Hogan and Mr. Trump recently had some disagreements regarding the federal response to the coronavirus pandemic, with the president saying the governor shouldn’t have turned to South Korea to acquire 500,000 testing kits because he could have “saved money” by speaking with Vice President Pence and getting them from a provider in the U.S.

On “The Daily Show with Trevor Noah” Wednesday, Mr. Hogan said he wasn’t going out of his way to be critical of Mr. Trump or his administration, but he felt it was his job to voice concerns as the chair of the nonpartisan National Governors Association.

“We’ve expressed our frustration on the lack of availability of testing and personal protective equipment and a number of other issues,” he said. “I think they’re making some strides and they have been doing a good job of communicating with the governors and trying to address our needs. We’ve butted heads a few times, but I haven’t tried to go out and — I’m not one of those folks that’s just out criticizing the president for no reason. I’m just pushing to try to get the help we need in our states.”

• Adam Zielonka can be reached at azielonka@washingtontimes.com.

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