The last time Republicans gathered for a full convention in 2016, they were plagued by internal division. Morale was near rock bottom. And the party's presidential nominee showed little desire, or capacity, to add new voters to his political coalition.
What a difference eight years make.
The Republican officials, strategists and activists who packed Milwaukee for the Republican National Convention this week expressed a collective confidence at levels not seen in decades. Boos and infighting marred Donald Trump's first convention, but this one was defined by overwhelming displays of unity as GOP leaders — Trump skeptics among them — reveled in what most in their ranks view as an all-but-certain victory come November.
Utah delegate Carolina Herrin was at the 2016 convention and felt the difference this year.
“It has more of a unity feel. It has more of a togetherness feel. I feel like we're tighter as a party. It definitely feels better than 2016,” she said. “I mean, obviously 2016, there was some fighting there.”
Trump's survival after nearly being assassinated at a Pennsylvania rally over the weekend, conventiongoers said, was the last piece to bring everyone together in spite of the former president's extraordinary personal and political baggage.
“Pretty inspiring and motivating to watch our president stand up from an attack and motion to the world that, you know, they didn't get me,” said Kim Coleman, vice chair of the Utah GOP. “They’re not gonna stop this.”
For those conservative voters long turned off by former President Donald Trump's rhetoric, his somewhat softened tone in accepting the Republican nomination was a welcome relief.
Trump has a long history of divisive commentary, but he spoke in a quieter, more relaxed tone for at least the first part of the speech. He described his experience of the shooting and called for an end to discord, division and demonization in national politics.
“I had a lot of doubts about Donald Trump,” said Don Guymon, a Davis County delegate. “And I think a lot of Republicans had doubts about Donald Trump, including his own vice president, J.D. Vance, but were won over because we saw someone who is truly committed to America and making America great again.”
Trump’s delivery might have been more muted at the outset but many of his talking points remained familiar and his rhetoric grew more acerbic as the 93-minute speech wore on. He claimed that Democrats are destroying America, derided the prosecutions against him as a partisan witch hunt, warned of an “invasion” at the U.S.-Mexico border and insisted, without evidence, that murder rates in Central and South American countries were down because they were sending their killers to the U.S.
Guymon liked the strong message, especially in comparison to Utah’s outgoing junior senator.
“Mitt Romney represents a wing of the party that always seems to want to surrender to the left. We need to be strong. And I think when you compare Donald Trump to Mitt Romney, it’s strength versus weakness. And Republicans, thank heavens, are choosing strength.”
The convention showcased a party reshaped by Trump since he shocked the GOP establishment and won over the grassroots on his way to the party’s 2016 nomination. Rivals Trump has vanquished — including Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas and Marco Rubio of Florida, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis — put aside their past criticisms and gave him their unqualified support during the convention.
That so many came together to get behind Trump wasn’t lost on Herrin.
“I think we just realized that, you know, the number one goal is to take the White House back,” she said. “And for that to happen, we really need to be together as a party.”
Read more from NPR: The RNC is over. Here are 5 things you need to know
Freelancer Matt Laslo, KUER’s Jim Hill and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
