California GOPer distances himself from Trump as he makes a bid for statewide office

In an interview with the New York Times, former Mitt Romney policy advisor and Hoover Institution Fellow Lanhee Chen attempted to make the case why he, as a Republican, has a chance of being elected to statewide office in deep-blue California where Democrats outnumber Republicans by a two-to-one margin.

While he was willing to talk about his vision if he become the state's top fiscal officer as the controller, Chen was repeatedly questioned about former president Donald Trump, who he has frequently criticized.

With Politico reporting, "For the foreseeable future, Republicans likely won’t be winning top-of-the-ticket statewide races in California — or even seriously competing in them. Even party stalwarts here acknowledged it," the Times' Jonathan Martin noted "California has not elected a Republican to statewide office since 2006."

In the interview, Chen -- who would be taking on incumbent Betty Yee, a Democrat -- was asked how he would handle voters wanting to talk about the former president while he is out campaigning.

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"Let’s say you’re campaigning at a farmer’s market in, say, Santa Barbara or Monterey, and a voter approaches you and seems to like you. But they’re apprehensive about voting for the Trump Party. What do you tell them?" Martin asked.

"I think it’s really important to understand where I’m coming from and why I think it’s important to have somebody who’s got a different partisan alignment from the rest of people in state government," Chen replied. "So start with the notion that checks and balances are important. But then I do move to talk about the Republican Party that I know and the kind of Republican Party I believe we can have again, centered around ideas like responsibility and accountability. At some point we’re going to have to move past individual personalities, and I don’t know when that point will be."

Asked why he doesn't run as independent to avoid the fate of so many Republican candidates in California, he replied that he doesn't have the financial wherewithal to finance a campaign without party support, adding, "I think authenticity counts for a lot in politics, and I’ve been a Republican my whole life. I’ve never been registered as anything else, and I think it’s important to be yourself."

Asked about his relationship with his former boss Romney and if he would like help from Trump, he replied that "I would just say that I’m doing my own thing. Now I have to say this: Obviously I have great respect and admiration for Mitt Romney. There are very few things I wouldn’t do for him."

You can read the whole interview here.