(You can listen to this column, read by the author, here.)
Well, the Grand Old Party certainly threw a grand old party in Milwaukee. The delegates and spectators were revved up and joyous from start to finish. What could have been a tragic and somber mood — with who knows what outcome — had Trump not miraculously dodged an assassin’s bullet, turned out to be a glorious and thankful celebration for all (if not CNN and MSNBC). Talk about turning a problem into an opportunity.
There was no suspense, with Trump clearing the field in the primaries. The voting was a mere formality. So, this was a coronation. Our quadrennial presidential conventions, in addition to being a gala gathering and reward for the Party faithful, is four-days of televised campaign speeches to win over the voting public. In that regard, this convention’s brilliant strategy was executed and choreographed to near perfection. The message was on-point hitting major failures of Biden and the Democrats, like enabling a massive invasion of illegal immigrants, runaway inflation, endless budget deficits, the decline in real wages for blue collar workers, crime with no punishment, pervasive wars, the radical progressive agenda to fundamentally transform America, and unethical lawfare against Trump.
Yes, this medley was hammered incessantly, but as Willam F. Buckley, Jr. explained, “repetition is the price of mastery,” recognizing that the TV audience includes different viewers over the course of the week. The convention averaged 17 million daily viewers, led by conservative Fox News, home to Trump’s loyal core, drawing 7.9 million on cable and surpassing the combined audience of the liberal networks NBC, ABC, and CBS. Well behind Fox on cable, CNN’s Trump-hating panel drew 1.5 million and MSNBC’s zoo of radical lefties and Marxists averaged 1.1 million. However, 300 million Americans didn’t watch.
Another key strategy was the humanizing of Donald J. Trump who was lavishly praised and portrayed as a warm, fuzzy puppy at heart by a seemingly endless stream of sons, daughters, grandkids, and in-laws that dwarfed Donny and the Osmond family (millennials: look that up), as well as bosom buddies like Hulk Hogan, Kid Rock, and Lee Greenwood singing “God Bless the U.S.A” live on stage.
The path to election victory and much of the tone of the convention was designed to attract the rising tide of unaffiliated voters. Most of whom have not been all that “independent,” favoring Democrats considerably over Republicans. Perhaps one-third of them are really swing voters but that group may be growing. The background, style, and substance of J.D. Vance as Vice President will no doubt increase the number of patriotic blue-collar workers Trump has attracted to the Republican coalition. This resembles the crossover of “Reagan Democrats,” including union members, that produced his two landslide victories.
That explains the speaking invitation to Teamsters President Sean O’Brien, the first time a labor union leader has addressed the RNC. But O’Brien abused the opportunity, delivering a personal reelection speech to his members in a way-too-long socialist tirade against Wall Street and “greedy corporations.” As if the largest market economy on the planet could exist without financial intermediaries and profitable, big corporations. Applause from some in the hall was curiously out of place.
On the final night, TV viewership averaged 25 million, peaking at 28 million at the start of Trump’s acceptance speech. 11.7 million watched on NBC, ABC, CBS combined, while FOX drew 10.7 million on its own. Trump started by poignantly recalling his thoughts from the first bullet fired by the would-be assassin. It was compelling and effective with the audience hanging on every word. He went on to echo the convention theme of calming uncivil discourse and unifying the country (around him and Republicans). Basking in the adoration and chants of “Trump, Trump, Trump,” he couldn’t resist ad-libbing and shifted into his characteristic rally-mode at great length. (The support of his core is set in stone; this was time better spent to enlist swing voters.) He did return to the prepared script in the final minutes and ended with a stirring crescendo, by which time much of the TV audience had trailed off as midnight passed, Eastern Time, extending a concisely crafted 30-minute speech into a 1 hour and 32 minute marathon, an all-time convention record.
Yeah, he should have stuck with the original script, but Trump will be Trump. Given what he’d been through, it’s forgivable. And on the whole, the convention was, in Trumpspeak, “Tremendous!”
Longtime KOA radio talk host and columnist for the Denver Post and Rocky Mountain News Mike Rosen now writes for CompleteColorado.com.
