MILWAUKEE—Days after former President Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt in Pennsylvania, his Republican Party seems more unified than it has in a long time.
“We’re going to have some differences, but we’re on the same team,” Rep. Rich McCormick (R-Ga.) told The Epoch Times in an interview at the ongoing Republican National Convention (RNC), the site of a great rapprochement in the Grand Old Party.
The former president’s chief rivals for the Republican nomination, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, also spoke on the evening of Day 2, one after the other.
While both politicians lauded former President Trump, it was Ms. Haley’s unequivocal endorsement that stood out.
She had previously released her delegates to him and said he had her vote in the general election. But on July 16, she made her strongest statement of support so far.
“President Trump asked me to speak to this convention in the name of unity,” the former U.N. ambassador said shortly before saying he has her “strong endorsement, period.”
“You don’t have to agree with Trump 100 percent of the time to vote for him,” she said.
Sens. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and Ted Cruz (R-Texas) also took the stage on July 16. The two men lost to former President Trump during the 2016 primaries—and Mr. Rubio lost out to Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) in the final stages of the selection process for former President Trump’s running mate.
Another vice-presidential finalist, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, emphasized the unity theme as well in comments to reporters while walking through the Fiserv Forum on July 16, saying the former president had suggested that he would have a Cabinet role without offering additional specifics.
The talk of unity comes toward the end of a congressional term marked by discord among some Republicans, who hold a narrow majority in the House.
One speaker of the House, former Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), was ousted. His successor, Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.), has navigated a caucus often riven with conflict.
“All of a sudden, people are talking with each other. We’re at peace in our party; we’re moving forward,” Mr. McCormick said.
Former President Trump’s nomination came months after the last competitive primary. Yet throughout 2023, Mr. DeSantis, Ms. Haley, Mr. Burgum, and a variety of other candidates sought to set themselves apart from the former president.
Meanwhile, after years of maintaining a fairly united front in opposition to Trump-dominated Republicans, Democrats are now fracturing over the question of President Biden’s candidacy.
A growing number of lawmakers and influential voices in the party have called for the 81-year-old commander-in-chief to drop out of the race. On July 17, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) joined their ranks.
But many other Democrats have stood firm behind their president.
Even as the RNC presents a picture of Republican harmony, some speaker choices didn’t sit well with all conservative commentators, such as that of model and rapper Amber Rose, who spoke on July 15.
Ms. Rose, previously a high-profile opponent of former President Trump, described how she had changed her mind about the MAGA movement.
“I realized Donald Trump and his supporters don’t care if you’re black, white, gay, or straight. It’s all love. And that’s when it hit me. These are my people. This is where I belong,” she said.
RNC Chair Lara Trump, daughter-in-law of the former president, hit similar notes on July 17, saying that everyone, “even Democrats,” can find a place in former President Trump’s GOP.
Some Republicans criticized the party’s new platform after it passed through the platform committee last week.
“I actually think it’s a good thing; when you see somebody, you were wrong about them, you ought to admit the mistake and admit that you were wrong,” the lawmaker said.
Quentin Fulks, a manager of the Biden–Harris campaign, suggested that Mr. Vance would be a “rubber stamp” for his executive.
Senate hopeful Kari Lake went further than calling for party unity in an interview with The Epoch Times on July 17.
“I actually think we’re more unified than people realize,” she said.
