A number of women said they had no problem with the various things Trump has said about Carly Fiorina, Megyn Kelly, and others. “He says things whether people like them or not,” said Kim Shambley, of Dallas. “He hasn’t said anything that has upset me.” Downing and Schoenhofer declared themselves “Women for Trump.”
All in all, it was a big, raucous crowd and a big, raucous evening — an event one might assume would make Republican Party officials deliriously happy. But Republicans aren’t used to a candidate who can draw an Obama-sized crowd. Instead of delighting GOP officials, Trump’s emergence and still-growing appeal have instead made them nervous, amid worries his penchant for controversy will eventually blow up in the party’s face.
Or perhaps they are worried that the rise of Trump diminishes the power of GOP officialdom. One person in Trump’s circle suggested as much as he watched the crowd grow Monday night. What does every chairman of the Republican Party say? he asked. They say they want to grow the party, to bring in people who haven’t been part of the GOP. And then, when Trump does it, they get all worried.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member