Rep. Richard Hanna (R-NY) on Tuesday lamented the prominence of “extreme” members of the Republican party, noting that favoring those candidates in the primary will keep a Republican from winning the White House.
“The Republican Party is not capable of nominating anyone who is electable nationally,” he told New York newspaper The Daily Star.
Hanna added that Donald Trump and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) emerged as the presidential frontrunners due to “the discontent of the electorate.”
“I think the orthodoxy of the Republican Party is really hurting the party and pushing it to the extreme,” he said. “These are people I never imagined would gain national prominence, and yet here they are.”
Hanna has a tendency to buck his party — he supports same-sex marriage and has opposed certain measures restricting abortion.
He told The Daily Star on Tuesday that he “can’t support a candidate who doesn’t support women’s health care.” He said that he did not vote for any of the three remaining Republican presidential candidates in the New York primary election.
However, he said that he respects Ohio Gov. John Kasich’s demeanor.
“Kasich has carried himself like a gentleman,” Hanna said. “He has stayed out of the name-calling and the juvenile comments. I don’t think anyone else has tried to be a gentleman at all.”
