Increasingly desperate New York Republicans, seeking the political equivalent of a Hail Mary pass, are trying to get Donald Trump to run against Gov. Cuomo next year, The Post has learned.
They’re seeking to make the case that while Trump is only an apprentice politician, he’s the only Republican on the horizon who has the name recognition, guts and money to tell Cuomo, “You’re fired!”
They’re also arguing that Trump could launch a 2016 presidential run — which he has clearly been eyeing with his criticisms of President Obama and Washington — by first winning the election for governor.
So far, Trump, who only recently learned of the effort, which is backed by state GOP Chairman Ed Cox and other party leaders, hasn’t said a flat “no.’’
Asked for comment by The Post, Trump left open the possibility of entering the race and blasted Cuomo, and even Cuomo’s dad, ex-Gov. Mario Cuomo, for their records in office.
He initially said he was “very flattered’’ that top Republicans were promoting his potential candidacy for governor but noted that running for the office was “not something that I’ve ever even thought about.’’
A few hours later, however, Trump followed up with a scathing attack on Gov. Cuomo — for high taxes and his failure to approve fracking for natural gas — as well as on three-term Gov. Mario Cuomo.
Under the current Gov. Cuomo, “taxes are way too high, and people are fleeing New York. We should become the energy capital of the East, and we’re not,’’ Trump said.
“He has the dumbest attorney general [Eric Schneiderman, who has filed a fraud suit against his Trump University] in the United States, who is driving business out of New York and his father, Mario, was one of the worst governors in the history of the state.
“Otherwise, I like him very much,” said Trump, who is expected to comment further on the GOP’s offer in the coming days.
With Cox’s knowledge, Rochester-area Assemblyman Bill Nojay has begun circulating to other party leaders a three-page memo on how Trump could defeat Cuomo next year.
It contends that Trump’s celebrity status and popularity with disaffected Republican and Democratic voters, along with Cuomo’s unpopularity upstate, could produce a Trump victory.
The memo concedes the state GOP’s desperation.
“There is only one prospective candidate who could run on the GOP line and win against Cuomo in 2014 — Donald Trump,’’ it declares.
“In many respects, Trump is not considered a Republican — he is his own brand, an almost iconic figure of Rockefellerian proportions.
“This will benefit him because many people who could never bring themselves to vote for a Republican would vote for Trump as Trump.”
Nojay told The Post a run for governor is the “Apprentice” host’s best chance to become a political figure.
“If Donald Trump wants to be remembered as a successor to FDR and not Alex Trebek, he should run,” he said. “If he wants to save New York from the fiscal ruin to be brought by Bill de Blasio, he should run.”