In Pennsylvania, Republican rift over Trump imperils party's election chances
EXTON, Pa. (Reuters) - C. Arnold McClure chairs the Republican Party in Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania - deep in Trump country - and wants to punish fellow conservatives who have turned against the former president.
McClure is among those pushing the state party to censure Pennsylvania's Republican senator, Pat Toomey, for voting this month to convict Donald Trump, at his second impeachment trial, of inciting the U.S. Capitol riots. McClure will apply the same standard to any Republican candidate in upcoming elections who seeks support in his rural county: Those who have defended Trump will pass "our first litmus test," he said. He has a simple question for any who have not: "What the hell?"
Other Pennsylvania party leaders say that's a great way to keep losing elections - after Republicans ceded the White House and control of both houses of Congress to Democrats under Trump's watch. Shunning Trump's Republican critics "sends a wrong signal to many of those that are independents or leaning Republican," said Sam DeMarco, the party chair in Allegheny County, which includes Pittsburgh.
Those dueling views encapsulate the rift among Republicans in Pennsylvania and nationally that some party leaders, along with opinion polls, suggest could imperil its chances in the 2022 congressional elections. Interviews with two dozen Republican officials, activists and political analysts reveal a deep split over strategy in Pennsylvania - a key battleground that could determine whether Republicans retake the Senate next year.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/in-pennsylvania-republican-rift-over-trump-imperils-party-s-election-chances/ar-BB1e1cF9?li=BB141NW3&ocid=DELLDHP
Please proceed.
= new reply since forum marked as read
Let's hope so!
down the PA Magats.
