Cleveland
It was always perhaps the stupider party, the clumsier party, and the stodgier party. But it was also the sounder party, the more constitutional party, and the more responsible party. Now, Donald Trump’s Republican party is stupider than ever, but it is no longer sound or constitutional or responsible. Quite an achievement.
So it was a depressing first day here at the Republican convention in Cleveland. Not that it was personally unpleasant. The delegates—even ardent Trump supporters—were friendly. I met among the conventiongoers fans of the magazine, of my “Conversations”, of my colleagues, and of my parents. There were interns eager to talk and to take selfies. The arena was festively decked out. It was exciting to stand where LeBron so recently stood.
What’s more, the Washington Post reporter who ran into Mike Warren and me as we approached Quicken Loans Arena in the morning wrote a perfectly fair account of the next 15 minutes he spent in our company. And when I encountered people like Reince Preibus and Mitch McConnell just off the floor of the convention, they were civil, even though I’d written some harsh things about them.
Meanwhile the residents of our host city were amazingly hospitable. And when Warren and I stopped by the Cleveland Public Library, near the convention site, in the afternoon in order to take a brief break from politics and to see a Shakespeare First Folio, we stumbled on an exhibit on the history of modern conservatism, featuring in part…THE WEEKLY STANDARD! That was gratifying. And when we stopped at a random establishment for coffee and to use its WiFi, we discovered a fine artisanal bakery, with the nicest staff imaginable—and good sandwiches.
So today wasn’t an unpleasant day. It was just a depressing day. It was the day when it became incontrovertibly clear that a distinguished political party has fallen into the grip of a vulgar demagogue with a thuggish retinue. They will maintain that grip at least through November 8. And even if they lose, the after-effects will be substantial, and recovery and renaissance won’t be easy.
But if the Cavaliers can come back from 3-1 down to win the first sports championship for Cleveland in over a half-century, we can endure the Trump captivity of the GOP. And we can prevail.
