Los Angeles Times:
By Kurtis Lee
July 12, 2015
For
Mark Ulatowski, the opportunity to see Donald Trump — brash, fiery and
unapologetic as ever — was well worth the three-hour drive north from
his home near the U.S.-Mexico
border.
"He
speaks to me. He speaks to a lot of us, because he speaks the truth,"
said Ulatowski, a U.S. Army veteran who made the trek Saturday to see
the real estate mogul turned
reality television star, and now GOP presidential hopeful, denounce
illegal immigration and castigate Democrats and fellow Republicans
alike.
"It's
not just about him actually standing up and fighting against illegal
immigration," said Ulatowski as he stood in 100-degree heat alongside
thousands waiting to enter
the sprawling downtown convention center. "He says what politicians
would never say, and that's refreshing."
A
blunt-spoken hero to fans like Ulatowski, an exasperating blowhard to
his many critics, Trump seized the spotlight in the Republican
presidential campaign with his inflammatory
comments about Mexican immigrants, and for more than two weeks has
refused to relinquish center stage despite increasingly frantic pleas
from GOP officials.
His
denunciations of illegal immigrants and foreign competitors, from China
to Mexico, have struck a chord with millions of voters — particularly
older, white conservatives,
polls indicate — who feel that most politicians have ignored their
concerns. Their backing has propelled Trump to the front rank of the
splintered GOP field.
At
the same time, Trump's words have harmed the party's already tenuous
efforts to attract minority voters, particularly Latinos, whom a
Republican presidential nominee
would need to win key states in the 2016 election. And the cautious and
tentative comments that most of the other GOP candidates have made in
response have highlighted how narrow a path the party must tread if it
hopes to win the presidency — trying to reach
out to minority voters while fearing to alienate the conservative
whites who have formed the GOP's base of support in recent elections.
In
an appearance here that coupled fiery rhetoric with over-the-top
displays of self-love — "I went to the Wharton School of Finance; I'm,
like, a really smart person,"
he declared at one point — Trump reinforced both parts of his image. He
served up the sort of blunt talk that his supporters praise along with
lines that critics cite when they label him an overweening narcissist.
His
supporters, he said, were a "silent majority" who would be able to tilt
the Republican presidential primaries, which will begin seven months
from now, in his favor.
Appearing
with Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, a fierce foe of illegal
immigration, Trump did not limit himself to immigration issues. At
various points, he took on
President Obama ("You know I don't use teleprompters like the president
— I speak from the heart"), Caroline Kennedy, Hillary Rodham Clinton,
Jeb Bush, NBC and Univision.
He
offered few specifics for a campaign, other than to insist he'd do a
better job than either Clinton or Bush — two candidates on opposite
sides of the aisle who come
from political dynasties that many of his backers see as symbols of an
unresponsive political establishment.
That's
been enough to push Trump forward. In a Reuters-Ipsos poll released
Saturday, Bush and Trump were tied at 15% for the lead nationwide in the
Republican field.
The
Reuters survey was the second national poll in recent days showing
Trump with about 15% of the GOP vote and in the top tier of the crowded
field. An Economist/YouGov
survey showed Trump was one of the Republican front-runners and
simultaneously its most widely disliked candidate.
Almost
half of voters surveyed had a "very unfavorable" view of Trump, the
survey found, including almost 1 in 3 registered Republicans — far more
than for any other GOP
candidate.
The
poll also indicated that many of his backers didn't necessarily expect
Trump to win. Only 7% of those surveyed called Trump the "most likely"
to gain the nomination.
At
one point in his speech, protesters began to shout at Trump as they
held signs, assailing him as a racist. "I wonder if the Mexican
government sent them over here,"
Trump said as the protesters, many of them Latino, were escorted from
the convention hall by security.
"Don't worry, we'll take our country back," he said as the crowd cheered.
That
was one of several times the crowd responded with cheers, sometimes of
"U-S-A!" — sometimes with "Build the wall!" when he pledged to erect a
wall along the entire
length of the southern border.
Trump
frequently criticized the Mexican government, although he insisted he
had no conflict with the country or the Mexican people. "I respect
Mexico, but their leaders
are too smart for our leaders, because we have stupid leaders, OK?"
Trump said, to more cheers and chants of "U-S-A!"
Supporters here said they admired what they saw as Trump's honesty.
"He
calls a spade a spade and is the only one willing to say it like it
is," said Jim Wines, a registered Republican from Surprise, Ariz. "I'd
vote for him to be president
today."
Diane
Sapiro stood few feet behind Wines in a line that snaked several city
blocks before Trump's arrival. She wore a button that read "Make America
great again," adorned
with a picture of a scowling Trump. Sapiro said she was an unaffiliated
voter, disenchanted by both Democrats and Republicans.
"He's
arrogant and a little cocky, but when he talks, he's saying stuff I
agree with," said the Chandler, Ariz., resident. "Illegals coming across
the border are an issue
here."
By contrast, top Republicans in Arizona, including Sens. John McCain and Jeff Flake and Gov. Doug Ducey, did not attend.
Both
McCain and Flake supported a bipartisan comprehensive immigration
proposal that passed the Senate in 2013 but ultimately stalled in the
Republican-controlled House.
In interviews last week, McCain, the GOP's 2008 presidential nominee,
lambasted Trump's remarks as "offensive," saying that a majority of
Arizonans would disagree with his views.
Trump shot back, telling reporters that McCain was "very weak on immigration."
Stan
Barnes, a Republican strategist based in Phoenix, said there was "a
large and important segment of the electorate not just here in Arizona,
but nationally, who view
illegal immigration as the top problem facing the federal government."
"Trump's willingness to approach this issue directly has electrified that voter, and we're seeing it play a role in the race."
Angel McConnell, who traveled from her ranch in a rural development outside of Scottsdale, Ariz., agreed.
"He
has the momentum," she said. "If we stay with him, the sky is the
limit. We don't need any more career politicians; we need someone who
will speak bluntly — whether
you like it or not."
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