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A4 U.S. NEWS
Monday 9 SepteMber 2019
Nevada, SC, Kansas GOP drop presidential nomination votes

By MEG KINNARD Nevada, but also to elect
Associated Press more Republicans down
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — the ballot,” state party
Republican leaders in Ne- Chairman Michael J. Mc-
vada, South Carolina and Donald said. “It would be
Kansas have voted to scrap malpractice on my part to
their presidential nominat- waste money on a caucus
ing contests in 2020, erect- to come to the inevitable
ing more hurdles for the conclusion that President
long-shot candidates chal- Trump will be getting all our
lenging President Donald delegates in Charlotte. I
Trump. am excited that our central
“What is Donald Trump committee has agreed with
afraid of?” asked one of this proposal and voted to
those rivals, former Massa- give us a way to bypass the
chusetts Gov. Bill Weld. caucus process.”Since last
Canceling primaries, cau- year, Trump’s campaign
cuses and other voting is has worked to monitor and
not unusual for the party of at times control the process
the White House incumbent by which delegates to next
seeking a second term. Do- year’s Republican National
ing so allows Trump to try to Convention in Charlotte,
consolidate his support as North Carolina, are select-
Democrats work to winnow In a Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016 file photo, then-Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump ed. His campaign wants
their large field of candi- speaks in Charlotte, N.C. the convention to be a
dates. Associated Press four-night “infomercial”
A spokesman for the South has passed. We will vote to planned to approve rules and Joe Walsh , a former for Trump by sidelining the
Carolina Republican Party, endorse and bind the del- for an “internal party pro- Illinois congressman. Others president’s detractors with-
Joe Jackson, confirmed egates to the President at cess” for selecting conven- may join them. in the party.
that the state party voted a later date.” tion delegates, according Weld, in a statement, said The effort is an acknowl-
Saturday against holding In Kansas, the state GOP to Kelly Arnold, the party’s voting is “the ultimate right edgment that Trump hasn’t
a presidential primary next tweeted on Friday that it former state chairman, and of speech in America, and completely cemented his
year. A similar move fol- will not organize a caucus Helen Van Etten, a mem- Trump’s machine in South grip on the GOP and might
lowed in Nevada, where “because President Trump ber of the Republican Na- Carolina has just told the not coast to the nomina-
party spokesman Keith is an elected incumbent tional Committee. people of South Carolina tion without some opposi-
Schipper said, “The vote from the Republican Par- Challengers have emerged that they don’t need to tion. To that end, the cam-
to opt out of the caucus ty.” Its state committee to Trump, including Weld be heard. Donald Trump paign has worked over the
wants to be treated as a past year to scuttle any
monarch, but we rejected attempts at a Trump chal-
that idea 200 years ago.” lenge by party dissidents,
Walsh told CNN after the mindful that a serious pri-
South Carolina vote that mary opponent could
his campaign would “fight weaken Trump heading
South Carolina and any into the general election.
other state that considers In January, the Republican
doing this.” He also noted National Committee voted
that Trump complained to express its “undivided
during the 2016 election support” for Trump and his
“about how the Demo- “effective presidency.”
crats were rigging the sys- In years past, both Republi-
tem to get Hillary (Clinton) cans and Democrats have
elected. Well, look what cut state nominating con-
he’s doing now. You talk tests when an incumbent
about rigging a system.” president from their party
Primary challenges to in- ran for a second term. In
cumbents are rarely suc- 1984, South Carolina GOP
cessful, and Trump’s poll leaders opted to call off
numbers among Repub- their primary as President
lican voters have proved Ronald Reagan sought a
resilient. Nonetheless, second term. In 2004, the
Trump aides are looking GOP again canceled the
to prevent a repeat of the state’s primary with lead-
convention discord that ers deciding instead to en-
highlighted the electoral dorse President George W.
weaknesses of Presidents Bush’s reelection bid.
George H.W. Bush and Jim- The South Carolina Demo-
my Carter in their failed re- cratic Party didn’t hold
election campaigns. presidential primaries in
“As the chairman of the 1996 or in 2012, when
Nevada Republican Party, Presidents Bill Clinton and
my job is to ensure not only Barack Obama were their
President Trump’s victory in incumbents.q