Charlotte OKs bid for GOP convention
Roby seeks redemption in Alabama runoff
CHARLOTTE, North Carolina, July 17, (AP): A divided North Carolina city council narrowly approved a bid Monday to host the 2020 Republican National Convention, a decision that followed nearly two hours of comments pro and con from local residents and council members.
After a public discussion period with more than 100 speakers and nearly one hour of debate among themselves, the Charlotte City Council voted 6-5 in favor of hosting the event.
Charlotte, North Carolina’s largest city, has been considered a front-runner for the convention. Published reports showed a number of cities thought to be up for the event didn’t actually submit bids.
Mayor Vi Lyles, Charlotte’s first black female mayor, had led efforts to secure the convention, despite critics who decried the attempt because of President Donald Trump’s statements denigrating minorities, Muslims, women and the LGBTQ population.
“I think that this is probably one of the most difficult decisions and the most tested for us as a council,” Lyles said. “But I welcome that test, because if we’re not tested, we’re not doing the right things.”
Lyles emphasized the vote to approve the bid isn’t an endorsement of Trump.
Opportunities
“I believe that hosting the Republican convention is about what opportunities we can make of it after this very, very difficult time of deliberation,” she said.
City councilman Braxton Winston, who debated fellow councilman Tariq Bokhari over the issue, said the outcome wasn’t unexpected, but he added that the city now must make sure “the people of Charlotte are centered in this.”
“That the priorities that we have collectively come up with, around economic inequities, upward mobility, housing and transportation infrastructure don’t get lost in this process,” Winston said.
Some opponents of the bid carried green-and-white signs that read “No RNC In CLT. #defendcharlotte”. Among those with a sign was Mandy Deese, 39, a Charlotte paralegal.
“I consider the 6-5 vote a win because that lets Donald Trump know that this city does not want him here,” Deese said. “We didn’t vote for him. We protest against him every time we have a chance. And that just shows that these people that care about their communities have said, ‘Nope, we agree with the public.’”
Supporters carried white sheets of paper with “2020 RNC Supporter” printed on black letters One man stood outside the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Government Center holding a big white flag with the red, white and blue GOP logo on it.
Rhetoric
Many pro-convention speakers represented hotels and the service industry, among them Dan Hooks, who said the council should look past political rhetoric and see what’s good for the city.
Meanwhile, Rep Martha Roby was seeking Republican redemption in an Alabama runoff election that hinges on her loyalty to President Donald Trump.
Roby is facing Democrat-turned-Trump Republican Bobby Bright on Tuesday, trying not to become the third congressional Republican to lose her job this primary season.
From the outside, the race shouldn’t be close. Roby is a four-term incumbent in deep-red Alabama. Trump and Vice-President Mike Pence have endorsed her. And her Republican opponent supported Nancy Pelosi when he served as a Democrat in Congress.
But as is often the case in the Trump era, the conventional rules of politics do not apply.
Roby’s political survival depends on whether Alabama voters are sufficiently convinced that she’s made amends for turning her back on Trump in 2016 after he was caught bragging about sexually predatory behavior in the infamous “Access Hollywood” tape.