GOP holds midterm national convention focused on fundraising and Trump's personal brand

Photo: Max Felix/Bloomberg/Getty Images

For the first time since Democrats attempted it twice with poor results in the 1970s, a major U.S. political party is holding a "midterm national convention." Republicans are convening in Dallas on Wednesday and Thursday this week.

One would normally expect such an event to focus relentlessly on poll-tested messaging, particularly with early voting beginning in some states in just ten days. However, that does not appear to be the case. Everything reported about the midterm convention suggests two overriding purposes: to raise money and to glorify President Trump.

Fundraising at World-Class Levels

The moneygrubbing at this event is extraordinary, as Punchbowl News reports:

• Trump will appear at an RNC roundtable Wednesday. The entry price is $250,000; a photo with the president costs $88,600.
• Vance has his RNC fundraiser Thursday. The roundtable for the VP is $75,000 per person; a photo costs $35,000.
• Senate Leadership Fund, the Senate GOP super PAC, has multiple events in Texas, the cycle's surprise battleground state.
• House Majority Leader Steve Scalise has a major event benefiting Defend Our Majority, a joint fundraising committee. Entry is $10,000, with tickets at $25,000, $50,000, and $100,000 levels.

Additionally, Puck reports that the National Republican Campaign Committee is asking House members to pay $25,000 for themselves and a guest to attend the two-day convention — with the highest tier demanding $100,000 from lawmakers.

Attendance Problems Emerge

The relentless effort to shake down attendees has created an attendance problem for the hastily planned event, notes The Independent:

Two days before Donald Trump's midterm convention opens in Dallas, Texas, the party that promised the largest such gathering in a decade has been running a public lottery for free tickets, dangling front-row seats and VIP treatment to whoever enters.

Trump Takes Center Stage

Organizers are counting on their biggest draw to attract both donors and regular MAGA supporters. Trump will deliver a second evening speech on Wednesday in addition to his climactic address on Thursday evening. The president likely needed little encouragement to dominate the event even more than originally planned.

The entire convention was Trump's idea, based on his belief that the singular risk to Republican prospects in November is the reluctance of MAGA voters to show up when their hero is not on the ballot. He has decided to remain ubiquitous in Dallas and in all pre-midterm campaign events.

RNC chairman Joe Gruters has called the midterm convention "Trumpapalooza," and the president himself is predicting "THE GREATEST RALLY OF THEM ALL," focused on the "TREMENDOUS AND TOTALLY UNPRECEDENTED SUCCESS" of his administration.

A Counterintuitive Strategy

This approach is, to put it mildly, counterintuitive. While political campaigns can never have too much money, cash is the least of the GOP's problems. The party already holds a significant cash advantage over Democrats. If more money is necessary, Trump can cover most of the party's needs himself.