Larry Hogan slammed for endorsing Georgia's Loeffler and Perdue in bid for ‘moderation and compromise’

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan has been praised by many centrist Democrats and Never Trump conservatives as one of the more sensible Republicans — someone who acknowledges how dangerous COVID-19 is, promotes social distancing measures, acknowledges Joe Biden as president-elect and refuses to indulge President Donald Trump's baseless claims of widespread voter fraud. This week, however, Hogan is coming under fire for endorsing two far-right GOP senators in Georgia who most definitely are not moderate: Sen. Kelly Loeffler and Sen. David Perdue.

In an op-ed published by the Washington Examiner on November 30, Hogan makes an argument in favor of "divided government" as well as "moderation and compromise" — writing that because the United States will have a Democratic president and a Democrat-controlled House of Representatives in 2021, it's important for Republicans to maintain their Senate majority. Whether Republicans will or won't be able to hold their Senate majority will be determined by whether or not Loeffler and Perdue prevail in Georgia's Senate runoff elections in January.

"As a Republican governor in a deep-blue state, I know first-hand how one-party monopoly can wreak terrible consequences," Hogan writes. "In 2014, I ran for governor because I was fed up with career politicians in my state who had unchecked power to raise taxes and destroy our economy. But I've also seen how a balanced government can deliver results. Over the past six years, I worked with a Democratic legislature to create the biggest economic turnaround in America by cutting taxes and regulations, reducing the cost of healthcare, and rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure."

Hogan argues, "I believe the choice facing Georgians becomes clear. Do we want a one-party monopoly in Washington, or do we want to send a message to our federal leaders that no one party has all the answers or all the power? Do we want two years of divisive, toxic battles over packing the Supreme Court, abolishing the Senate filibuster, and pushing the Green New Deal — or do we want to take these destructive proposals off the table?…. I urge Georgians to uphold America's mandate for moderation and compromise by voting to keep David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler in the U.S. Senate."

But as many Twitter users have been pointing out, Loeffler and Perdue are far from moderate. Both of them are hardcore Trump supporters who are calling for Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, a Republican, to resign because he is resisting Trump's claims of widespread voter fraud and has said that Biden won Georgia fair and square.

Twitter user @TidePOdz noted that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is hardly the essence of "moderation":

Here are some more responses to Hogan's endorsement of Perdue and Loeffler: