MILWAUKEE, WI- It’s day two of the Republican National Convention. Monday night, former President Donald Trump made his first public appearance since Saturday’s assassination attempt at a rally in Pennsylvania.
Some of the delegates, visitors even congressional members we’ve come across said seeing the former President during the convention’s first night was very moving especially after the assassination attempt on his life just a couple of days ago. We spoke with one Michigan delegate about seeing Trump and attending the RNC, she described it as an exciting and emotional time.
“It’s very exciting to be with the Michigan- there’s 36 delegates from Michigan, so you get to know them, you get to make friends,” said Patrice Johnson, MI delegate. “It’s very exciting to speak for the people of Michigan who are conservatives who want the rule of law and want us to honor our constitution.”
People here are also talking about toning down the rhetoric. This is something we’ve heard from both sides of the aisle following the assassination attempt. We’ve heard from party leaders and congressional members say they do not condone political violence. We asked Rep. Glenn Thompson (R- PA) at the convention what exactly does he think toning down the rhetoric look like. Thompson said he’s never been a fan of the rhetoric and would rather focus on the policy.
“If you’re using rhetoric you’re not using a solid position when it comes to issues,” said Rep. Thompson. “If you resort to name calling and escalating words- it’s not just the presidential campaigns, it’s the House, it’s the Senate, it’s everyday citizens. Who should be engaged in politics. It’s important to be engaged and make your choices for parties and candidates but let’s focus on the issues. That’s always worked for me so hopefully we will see a cultural change.”
Day two of the RNC’s theme: Make America Safe Again. We expect to hear from Congressional Republican leaders during the evening session to focus on issues like crime, immigration, national security and international security.