By Jeffrey A. Rendall
Republican Midterm Convention showed Trump is ready to push the base to the maximum
How does Trump do it?
Speaking of President Donald J. Trump and his performance(s) at the just-concluded Republican National – midterm – Convention. The president introduced it as the “first of its kind” when expounding on the event’s first evening.
Will the Democrats follow suit in four years? I bet they will. Democrats never saw a good political idea they didn’t seek to steal and present as their own.
After the program wrapped up on Thursday night, many Americans wondered how the octogenarian chief executive summonsed the energy to speak at length for two evenings consecutively, though the second iteration was considerably briefer than the first (under a half hour – it must be a record!).
A different question could be — “Why” would Trump do it? The answer is open to debate.
For the time being, we’ll focus on the future, and whether all of the energy and hoopla will pay off for Republicans. In a newsletter piece titled, “Are midterm results already baked in the cake?”, Byron York wrote last week (prior to the Republican midterm convention):
“Trump’s intention seemed clear; he was trying to spark higher, presidential-level turnout in a lower-turnout midterm election. But the effect of Trump’s words was also clear; he was putting himself in the middle of the midterms. And given his job approval ratings, that is, to say the least, a risky strategy. Trump’s approval currently stands at 39.7%, with 57% disapproval, in the RealClearPolitics average of polls.
“Looking at the most recent dozen polls in the average, which include pollsters whose results have been both more and less favorable to Trump, the president has been underwater in every single one. In the best poll for Trump, he was six points underwater; in the worst, he was 30 points underwater. In this term, Trump has been underwater since early March 2025, just weeks into his presidency…
“The convention in Dallas is intended to refocus voters on Trump’s accomplishments, like his extraordinary success in stopping the Biden-era incursion of illegal border crossers. It’s also intended to focus on the Democrats’ weaknesses, most specifically the party’s deeply worrisome lurch into socialism. Both are compelling reasons to vote for a Republican or against a Democrat. But there are a lot of voters out there — about 107 million Americans voted in the 2022 midterm elections — and it could be that an overwhelming number of them have already made up their minds.”
Oddly enough, I think, after having seen a representative sample of the Convention that Trump is banking on voters having already made up their minds – and to vote Republican. The program itself certainly wasn’t geared towards convincing “new” voters to choose him – but rather on getting the ones who once backed him to participate, participate, participate.
They’ve called it GOTV – Get Out The Vote, something Republicans have never been great at doing.
While the idea to hold a first-of-its-kind midterm convention is a good one, and having President Donald Trump serve as its star and focal point is a huge selling point, the benefits Republicans derive from the effort are less than guaranteed to include seeing more party candidates elected in November.
I’m not trying to be a buzzkill or to rain on the Republicans’ parade before the confetti is even completely cleaned up in Texas, but reality – and history – suggests that the “high” derived from a few days of self-congratulatory praise won’t have staying power with the “average” people, particularly the thin slice of persuadable voters still left “out there” in the hinterlands.
The production value of the Convention itself was every bit as impressive as you’d presume from a drawing card Donald Trump attaches his name to. And Trump’s speeches would rate an “A” for entertainment value, as they always do. Face it, the man knows how to play to an audience, both in the arena and at home.
There’s a reason why millions of country-loving Americans have turned out multiple times to see and hear Trump “perform” on the largest and most prestigious stages in politics. When you attend a Trump event, you know in advance that you can skip a pre-show meal because you’ll feast off the energy and adrenaline alone.
The problem with the Texas convention – and the quadrennial party conventions as well – is the feeling doesn’t sustain itself. Here’s thinking when the attendees at last week’s convention returned to their normal lives after a couple solid days of hoopla and partying that they came back to the same mindset they’d hoped would disappear in the first place.
What was solved or resolved? Nothing?
Or not much that will carry through to November. If the purpose for the convention was to motivate “base” Trump turnout, then the effort was perhaps worth it. Trump draws the zealous whenever he speaks on this type of platform, so getting the faithful animated and engaged was probably achieved from the impressive exhibition in the Lone Star State.
Fox News’s interviews with Republican convention activists revealed that Trump himself remains wildly popular with grateful MAGA populists who appreciate the very-busy president devoting every moment to his ultimate goals. There’s no problem there. I think all of them were just about ready to run through solid walls to ensure Trump’s second term success.
How about everyone else, though? Are the results as “baked-in” as York’s opinion piece (written before the Texas Convention) would imply?
First off, who was watching? The speech (first one, anyway) didn’t start until the 9 o’clock hour was well underway, and, in characteristic Trump-ian fashion, lasted almost two hours (okay, an hour and forty-five minutes). This drove it right into the heart of prime time on the west coast but dragged on well past sleepy hour for those early risers in the east.
How much energy was left over to listen to Trump talk about the same things he’d covered during his regular press appearances and the State of the Union address (six months ago – anyone remember what he said then?)? Brevity is not Trump’s thing.
Trump’s list of accomplishments is impressive, and he has a right to be proud of them. But would a “focus group” of undecided voters have responded well to his mocking, often over-the-top tone? We’re ten plus years into the Trump era of politics. Americans know him. They know what he’s like. Their views are reflected in his approval ratings.
No one suggests Trump limit his mostly free earned media time to a Gettysburg Address-like two minutes, but two hours? That’s cutting into the pundits’ post-speech spin, too, including his administration representatives who likely had to take several hits from an energy drink just to keep up with the 80-year-old president.
Would a fence-sitting voter really have the stamina to sit through another two-hour Trump speech?
Pennsylvania Democrat Senator John Fetterman’s brief talk lasted only a little over a minute. Which was more effective in the, pardon the pun, long run?
One entirely positive note for the current majority-holders — Trump did say he was going to go to every state and/or congressional district where the polling margin is close, which was clearly designed to rouse the extra supporters to get off the couch and vote. That was good news. The president said there are 35 in total, and in some cases, he’d be back twice. Trump specifically referenced the key Texas senate race, and the need to help Ken Paxton best leftist freak Democrat James Talarico.
Listening to Trump, it’s clear the Republican brains think they can win the somewhat-lower-turnout midterm elections simply by rousing the voters who pulled the proverbial lever for Trump in 2024 (and before?) and still back him in spite of the polls and the contrary media anti-Trump drumbeat.
If, as York’s report revealed, forty percent of Americans still back Trump strongly, getting a VERY high percentage of those people to actually vote could tip the balance in the close states and districts. The question remains, however, will the convention stir them to participate where otherwise they wouldn’t bother at a moment where his name isn’t on the ballot?
Of course, the tone of Trump’s speeches could also stir his detractors to vote at a greater rate, too. But here’s thinking the rabid Trump-haters are already more than anxious to come out and register their displeasure. Will the lukewarm Trump-dis-likers be motivated as well?
That’s the key.
As an added, unique incentive, Trump offered a $5000 “dividend’ to every American adult if Republicans win the midterms and keep their congressional majorities, once again defying the historic norm and doing something all-but unprecedented. One caveat – the windfall must be spent in the United States of America. He labeled it the “Trump Dividend”. How original!
Some of Trump’s oration(s) was a standard political appeal. Every election, the party in power makes the “we need more time” argument. Trump said gas prices would come down when the Iran War ends, which he, once again, assured us would conclude after the midterms. The president also predicted citizens would see huge benefits from the massive investment he stirred… but it could take years to realize it.
Is there enough time?
Will there be a “bump” in the polls because of this convention? Republicans surely hope so. But more than anything, Trump and his advisors clearly surmise their best play involves attempting to convince marginal regular Trump voters that their lives and economic fortunes depend on keeping GOP congressmen and senators in the seats of power. How well Trump did will come to light soon enough.
Jeff Rendall is editor and publisher of GolfintheUSA.com and has written about golf and politics for over a quarter of a century. A non-practicing attorney from California, he moved to the east coast three decades ago to pursue and combine his interests in all things American history and culture. Jeff has worked as an intern on Capitol Hill and in various capacities in grassroots organizing and conservative organizations and publications, including a nearly two-decade stint at ConservativeHQ.com. Column republishing or other inquiries: Rendall@msn.com .