On the 16 floor of a century-old skyscraper, a handful of staff for Delegates Unbound sit at laptops, making phone calls and sending emails to the 2,472 GOP delegates. Nearly all were volunteers, with the group offering about $900 per whip to cover the cost of transportation to the convention in many cases. “Total chaos isn’t an attractive alternative to Trump”.
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Ask Trump about nearly any issue, and he’s likely to respond with a sentiment that boils down to, “That reminds me of me”.
The Trump campaign and the Republican party obviously don’t want it to pass, since that would unbind delegates who are otherwise obligated to vote for Trump.
Next week, the Republican convention kicks off in Cleveland and the week after, the Democrats will take over Philadelphia to vote for their presidential nominee.
In the immediate aftermath of the Orlando shooting, Trump reached out to LGBT Americans, saying his tough-on-immigration policies would keep them safe. Said Bradly Barker, a GOP alternate for Cruz.
“I am on the Trump train, period”, Feaman said Tuesday. “These are all reasons why I can not support his candidacy”, Bush wrote.
Mr Trump, who claims strong support from the gay community, has said that North Carolina’s so-called “bathroom law”, which directs transgender people to use the toilet that matches the gender on their birth certificates, has caused unnecessary strife.
Feaman, who is the GOP state committeeman for Palm Beach County in addition to being Florida’s Republican national committeeman, said he’ll also vote against any effort to release delegates.
Ryder went further to say, “However, the rules of the republican Party both prevent and require the binding of delegates. Nominee”, said RNC Rules Committee Chairman Bruce Ash Tuesday. Therefore, an attempt to free bound delegates to vote their personal preferences, instead of following what the voters in primaries and caucuses in their states wanted, will fail. The group must win over 28 members of the powerful, 112-member convention rules committee to support the cause.
“Basically, who cares?” said one top RNC member on condition of anonymity. That, of course, runs contrary to Ryder’s position.
He noted, “I raised the point of order 3 separate times”.
Trump has said his children, sons Eric and Donald Jr., daughter Ivanka and wife Melania, will speak as well. One delegate who’s on disability is planning to put the whole trip on his credit card – and figures he’ll be in debt for years. “There’s a huge softness with Trump delegates”, said Gordon Humphrey, a former New Hampshire senator who is working with Waters in Cleveland this week. That’s in addition to the four Rules Committee members that make up Trump’s “study committee”.
“In a normal year, with a normal candidate, that would be a simple process”.
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Even Sen. Rob Portman of OH, a vulnerable senator whose state is playing host to the convention, said he will only be dropping into the convention hall from time to time, but not delivering a speech or staying to watch speeches from others. We do not have a normal candidate.
