MILWAUKEE (NBC 26) — In Milwaukee, Republicans say excitement is building on day three of the RNC, especially surrounding Trump’s vice presidential pick Senator JD Vance.
- Delegates say they are not concerned about Vance's previous negative comments about Trump.
- Supporters believe he will help garner support from Midwestern voters and young voters.
- RNC attendees say Trump picking Vance is another show of unity for the party.
Prior to Vance’s expected speech Wednesday night, I spoke with voters about the Republican Senator from Ohio.
"He’s a Buckeye, I’m a Badger myself, but I think he speaks directly to Midwesterners, because he's from the Midwest,” said Wisconsin alternate delegate Kyle Schroeder.
Delegates from Wisconsin said his blue-collar, Midwestern background could appeal to voters here.
"I think [being from a blue collar background in Ohio] is going to appeal to people who work in factories and things like that here in Wisconsin especially,” said Wisconsin delegate and Brown County Supervisor Dixon Wolfe.
Besides being from the Midwest, delegates told me they’re excited about the 39-year-old’s appeal to young voters.
"As the chairman of the Wisconsin Young Republicans, I think having our young Republican on a ticket is great,” Schroeder said.
Vance has come under fire from critics recently for negative comments he’s made in private texts, as well as tweets and opinion columns.
According to the New York Times, Vance compared Trump to Hitler in a private conversation with a former roommate and called him “reprehensible” in a Tweet. Vance also called Trump’s policies “immoral to absurd” in a2016 column for USA Today.
I asked delegates how Vance’s previous comments about Trump affect their view of him as a potential number two to the former president.
"I don't know anything about that,” Wolfe said.
"Yeah, he said those things, but now he's his running mate. There's a reason why this party's coming together, and it's at the end of the day, unity for this country," Schroeder said.
"Those comments were quite some time ago, but at the end of the day, he's President Trump's selection, and so I think all that falls to the wayside,” Fond du Lac County District Attorney and Wisconsin delegate Eric Toney said.
High profile Republicans like Dr. Ben Carson and Vivek Ramaswamy also voiced their support for Vance.
"I think he’s a good choice,” Dr. Carson said.
"He's an old friend, and I also am grateful for the country,” Ramaswamy said.
Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson agreed.
“He’s intelligent,” Johnson said. “He’s a person of integrity.”
These party leaders also said they aren't bothered by Vance’s previous comments about the former president.
"He admits that he was wrong and then he's changed his opinions,” Johnson said. “People are allowed to do that.”
"Like anybody else, you have the ability to change your mind, particularly as period of observation,” Carson said.
Attendees tell me that Trump’s selection of Vance is proof of the Republican Party unifying around Trump despite differences.
"We're Christians; we believe in forgiveness,” delegate Alberto Herrera said.
In another show of Republicans coalescing around Trump, former primary opponent Nikki Haley endorsed the former president.
"I do think she's sincere,” said Becky Bechtel, who says she formerly supported Haley for the nomination.
