One of the dominant messages during the first night of the Republican National Convention was that American cities, particularly those governed by Democrats, are under persistent attack by their own policies, alongside the mobs, drugs, and violent criminals.
The night was largely a reprise of “American carnage,” a notable subtheme of President Trump’s 2016 inaugural address, in which he decried the “rusted-out factories scattered like tombstones across the landscape of our nation” and “the crime and gangs and drugs that have stolen too many lives and robbed our country of so much unrealized potential.”
Monday’s speakers used similar language of violence, crime, and decay.
Charlie Kirk, founder of the student advocacy organization Turning Point USA, opened the night and warned of “the vengeful mob that wishes to destroy our way of life, our neighborhoods, schools, church, and values.” He also said that the country is under attack “by a group of bitter, deceitful, vengeful, arrogant activists who wish to tear down this gift we have been given.”
Rebecca Friedrichs, founder of the education nonprofit group For Kids & Country, said of teachers unions, “Their lenient discipline policies morphed our schools into war zones.”
Kim Klacik, who is running as a Republican for late Democratic Rep. Elijah Cummings’s old Maryland House seat, described the Baltimore district with grim words. “Abandoned buildings, liquor stores on every corner, drug addicts, guns on the street, that’s now the norm in many neighborhoods,” she said in a prerecorded speech.
Republican Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio said, “Look at what’s happening in America’s cities — all run by Democrats,” continuing, “crime, violence, mob rule. Democrats refuse to denounce the mob.”
Mark and Patricia McCloskey, who have become noteworthy for brandishing firearms as protesters gathered in front of their St. Louis home, had similar words. “Make no mistake: No matter where you live, your family will not be safe in the radical Democrats’ America,” Patricia said.
Kimberly Guilfoyle, a senior adviser to the Trump campaign and the girlfriend of Donald Trump Jr., said, “Rioters must not be allowed to destroy our cities. Human sex drug traffickers [sic] should not be allowed to cross our border.” Guilfoyle later said that Democrats have turned California “into a land of discarded heroin needles in parks, riots in streets, and blackouts in homes.”
Former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley said, “The black cops who’ve been shot in the line of duty — they matter. The black small-business owners who’ve watched their life’s work go up in flames — they matter.” Haley continued, “The black kids who’ve been gunned down on the playground — their lives matter too. And their lives are being ruined and stolen by the violence on our streets.”
Donald Trump Jr. said, “Anarchists have been flooding our streets, and Democrat mayors are ordering the police to stand down,” continuing, “small businesses across America, many of them minority-owned, are being torched by mobs.”
The message of continuing carnage was presented over and over. Increased violent crime, along with the ongoing criminal escapades in Portland, have provided Republicans with plenty of fodder for the campaign. Whether focusing on carnage is an effective strategy remains to be seen.
