Most of the party planning this week took place in secret, with meetings closed to reporters. The only session open to the media included McDaniel’s unanimous reelection.
In her speech, McDaniel condemned the attack on the Capitol, saying “the violence does not represent acts of patriotism.” While she did not mention Trump in connection with the riots, she praised him for growing the Republican Party.
Trump “has redrawn the political map for our party,” McDaniel said.
There was a little Trump-related drama at the session. Three RNC members challenged Tommy Hicks – a friend of Donald Trump, Jr. – for the role of party co-chair. But Hicks prevailed with a majority of the votes, underscoring Trump’s continuing control of party leadership.
The trick moving forward, some RNC members said, is to keep the millions of working class voters Trump brought with him, while distancing the party from Trump’s grievances and the extremism of some of his backers.
Many RNC members spoke privately, some noting that party leadership didn’t want them discussing the party’s problems with reporters.
While expressing different levels of support of Trump, they generally agreed that the best way to move on is by steady work, day-by-day, issue-by-issue, voter-by-voter.
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