RNC convention pushes party unity following the assassination attempt on their nominee

Caption

Republicans rally for unity at the party's national convention following the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump.

Credit: Republican National Committee Convention

As the Republican National Committee convention wraps up in Milwaukee, Wisc., the tone has been split between calls for party unity and intense rhetoric against the Democratic Party. In the wake of an assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, the convention's official programming has projected an image of solidarity. The assassination attempt has also intensified the convention's rhetoric, with many attributing the act to leftist incitement.

Kiera Butler, a senior reporter and editor for Mother Jones, has been on the ground all week, providing in-depth coverage of the event's atmosphere and significant moments. She spoke with GPB's Pamela Kirkland about some of the themes coming out of the convention.

TRANSCRIPT

Pamela Kirkland: This is Morning Edition on GPB. I'm Pamela Kirkland. The Republican National Committee convention has been going on all week in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Kara Butler is in Atlanta based senior reporter and editor for Mother Jones. She's been reporting from the convention all week. Kara, thanks for speaking with me.

Kiera Butler: Thanks so much for having me.

Pamela Kirkland: First off, I want to ask what's been the tone of the convention this year, especially after Saturday's assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump?

Kiera Butler: What I have been noticing here is sort of two different threads, right? So on the one hand on, you know, on the official programing, you're hearing calls for unity. You know, they, brought Nikki Haley up and, you know, of course, she had been a staunch opponent of Trump's. And as she took the stage, there were boos. But then, you know, she reassured the crowd that she was 100% behind Trump now and, that he had asked her to speak to kind of create more unity. On the other hand, you know, you hear a lot of rhetoric about the left. And in light of the assassination attempt on Trump on Saturday, you hear people saying that this violent act, this heinous act was the result of — of vitriol on the left, of incitement on the left. And there's been particular ire directed at the press.

Pamela Kirkland: There's been a lot of talk about lowering the temperature of political rhetoric among the Georgia delegation. We heard from congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene earlier this week. How have the speakers been doing when it comes to all being on this same message?

Kiera Butler: Yesterday, I watched a bunch of the speeches, during the evening program. The official program. So the theme yesterday was Make America Safe Again. And so, you had just sort of speaker after speaker, some of them politicians and some of them what they call ordinary Americans, talking about how unsafe America has become under Biden. And you heard a lot of, you know, anger directed at the left. For, you know, what they say are extremely violent cities that are overrun with, you know, folks that have come over the border to commit these crimes. Then, you know, talking about the fentanyl crisis. So, you know, I don't mean to suggest that you haven't heard any — any anger or any taking the temperature up a notch here. It's certainly been, present in some of those — those speeches.

Pamela Kirkland: J.D. Vance spoke last night as he officially accepted the nomination. Earlier in the week, what was the reaction to the announcement? Because this is the first time in a very long time that a convention saw a vice presidential nominee announced during the convention.

Kiera Butler: I have asked a few people about their thoughts on Vance, and there seems to be a lot of — a lot of support for him. You know, it's interesting. I have a colleague here who's been reporting on abortion, and, Vance is a — is a real absolutist on abortion. And this has become a very unpopular part of what Republicans stand for. You know, poll after poll shows that most people in America support access to abortion. And so it's actually not even part of the official GOP platform. And the religious folks that I've talked to here have been particularly effusive in their praise for Vance, because they think that he might be able to nudge the party, farther toward abortion abolition.

Pamela Kirkland: Keira Butler is a senior reporter and editor for Mother Jones. Thank you so much for speaking with me from Milwaukee.

Kiera Butler: Thank you so much for having me.