Tamara Keith: Few Candidates In Competitive Races Will Attend The Republican Midterm Convention
PBS NEWSHOUR: NPR’s Tamara Keith and Amy Walter of the Cook Political Report with Amy Walter join Geoff Bennett to discuss the latest political news, including Gov. Gavin Newsom’s apparent efforts to get a jump on the 2028 presidential race.
GEOFF BENNETT, PBS NEWSHOUR: And, Tam, Republicans are doing something unusual this week. They’re holding a national midterm convention in Dallas. You have been reporting on it. You will be there. What should we know? TAMARA KEITH, NPR: Yes, so this is something that Republicans have never done before. Midterm conventions are not a thing, just to be clear. And the chairman of the Republican National Committee, Joe Gruters, has said repeatedly that this is going to be a Trumpapalooza. Not my word, his word. And the president will be headlining the convention both nights of the convention. It is only two nights. I have gone through the list of announced speakers and found that fewer than half of the candidates in competitive races are actually speaking at this convention. Some share of them won’t even be there. They won’t be with — they want as much distance from this as possible. But the theory of the case as expressed by President Trump is that he thinks that his voters aren’t going to turn out unless he’s on the ballot, so they have to make it like he’s on the ballot. And so, please, please, please vote as if Donald Trump is on the ballot is the message that he has had and that we expect him to continue to have.
