What Republicans Think About Trump
Last August, the Harvard Republican Club made a surprising move. The oldest College Republican chapter in the country issued a statement saying it would not endorse the Republican party's presidential candidate for the first time in its 128-year history.
And they weren't alone. Throughout the election cycle, various Republican students publicly disavowed now-President Donald Trump. College Republicans at Penn State, Princeton, and American University decided not to endorse Trump, while Alexandra Smith, the national chairwoman of the College Republicans, tweeted in response to Trump's infamous leaked Access Hollywood tape, saying she was "Definitely not with her, but not with him":
The Party of Lincoln is not a locker room, and there is no place for people who think it is. Definitely not with her, but not with him.
- Alex Smith (@AlexandraCSmith) October 8, 2016
Now two months after Trump’s inauguration, five female College Republican leaders open up about the president and what it's been like for young conservatives since the polarizing election.
Morgan Murphy, 22, state chair for Oregon Federation for College Republicans
How have things changed at school for the College Republicans since the election?
On my local campus, we’ve had a lot more people getting involved. I think a huge reason is the backlash on college campus against conservatives. We’ve had a lot more people coming to our meetings who are really looking for a space to be open about their beliefs because in a lot of classrooms, these students are being silenced, are not really allowed to say how they feel because as soon as they raise their hand, there are five or six other hands that come up and tell that person why they’re wrong.
Do you personally support the president? How did you feel about the election?
I don’t talk a lot about what my personal reactions are to elections. I will say, as far as the House and Senate have gone, it’s been really great to see Republicans come in and start working on some of the actions they have promised.
What are you hearing from members about Trump now?
I think now it’s actually more positive than what I had heard. Especially after the address that Trump gave [to Congress]. He really struck a conciliatory tone that hadn’t been as pronounced yet. He’s also offered a budget proposal that looks really strong. The Trump proposal, while not perfect, makes cuts, and while budget cuts are a difficult thing, it is impossible to lower the debt without making some cuts to budgets for certain offices. And I think a lot of Republicans have really united around the fact that it has been so unusually difficult to get Cabinet picks through.
Kavya Maddali, 21, Bay Area Deputy Regional Vice Chair for California College Republicans
How do you feel about the president and what the administration has been doing in the past two months?
I was beyond shocked on Nov. 8. I was very excited to have such a big Republican win, but I was never a full-on Trump supporter from the beginning. I want the best for this nation, and if he won and that’s what people think, I was willing for him to prove me wrong and do good. I don’t know if he’s doing so great at the moment though; his approval ratings are pretty horrible. The way he’s been acting is very concerning for me, so I’m not too happy. I didn’t expect him to continue using Twitter. I really think he needs to get off Twitter. The election is over; put aside people’s outrage and actually work for the people now.
You were born in India and are an immigrant to this country. What do you think of the immigration ban?
It’s great being an immigrant, let’s start off with that. I don’t feel like immigrants don’t have a place here, they definitely do. But it is a privilege. You have to go through a lot of legal processes. I don’t think it is, per se, a ban on the Islamic community, because the members from those states might be highly Islamic nations but I don’t think it’s ostracizing one sort of person. But our resources, in a sense, should be for Americans right now. We have to protect Americans and we have to take care of them. And if [we’re] using our resources to help other people where we can’t even help our own people, that to me makes no sense.
I can’t say much about the legality of the immigration ban. I have to look into that more. But I know for sure when the initial ban included green card citizens, permanent residents, that’s definitely not right. They have deserved their right to stay in America. I was definitely against that.
Trump said some misogynistic comments throughout the election. How do you reconcile that while being a female leader in the party?
I’ve never been a huge supporter of Trump and I don’t think he’s a good man, to be honest. And you chose an interesting word, "reconcile." I’m not OK at all with what he says. I’m not OK with what he’s done. His misogynistic statements are absolutely not OK. And I’m not willing to overlook them. I choose not to overlook them, but I have to come to terms that he is our president, so I actively do not overlook it. Rather I hope that he will change his ways, and that’s tough. That’s kind of very optimistic of me and that’s probably not going to happen. It’s just unfortunate that he’s the person that’s in power right now. I wish it was someone else, but I have to hold him accountable for those things, and that’s our job as [citizens]. We have to hold him accountable for that.
Alexandra Smith, 27, national chairwoman of the College Republicans
What issues do you think young people are especially interested in right now?
I think Obamacare is going to be a big topic. In terms of looking at the number of health insurers who are pulling out of the plans and looking at the skyrocketing premiums, something needs to be done about it. I think it’s a law that’s pretty unfair to young people. Young people pay for the older people who use the law through our contributions to the health-care system. I’m really hoping that President Trump and Republicans in Congress can find a solution to fix the law that’s just not working for us anymore.
Trump has made some misogynistic remarks and you even tweeted about his “locker room talk” comment. How do you reconcile those things with being a female leader in the party?
Well, first of all, I was speaking on my own behalf, not the behalf of our organization. Second of all, that was during the election. The election is now over and we have a president, and I think that it’s within all of our best interests to try to help that president succeed. I think that if you look at anything from the Women’s March to the March for Life, there’s a big, loud conversation going on in America right now, and it’s my hope that the president and congressional leaders are listening to all those voices. As a female, as a human being, as my own individual self, I might find many of the comments that were made to be objectionable, but I think at this point, we’re looking to make sure that the White House and that Congress are productive, that they’re doing things that will help ordinary Americans to succeed.
How do you feel about whether Trump will stand up for women or will make policies that positively affect women?
If you look at Trump’s priorities, security and the economy seem to be on the docket for right now. In my opinion, if we create an economy that lifts everyone up, that helps females who are earning professional degrees at a higher rate than men, it helps women who at this point are starting more small businesses than men are. But I would also look to see what his daughter Ivanka Trump brings to the table. She wasn’t afraid to push her father in the direction in terms of paid maternity leave and child-care issues that were pretty atypical for a Republican campaign. I thought that was refreshing.
Caitlin Holman, 21, state chair for Nebraska Federation of College Republicans
What was the feeling in your organization when Trump became the presidential candidate?
There were obviously people who were upset. But for the most part, everybody really got on board with Donald Trump and was excited because, even if it wasn’t their candidate, they still believe Donald Trump was the better choice between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton.
How do you feel about some of the misogynistic comments he made throughout the election cycle?
They were wrong, he shouldn’t have said them, he apologized for them. But as a female, I never want to be put in a box and told that I have to believe in a way because I’m a woman or I can’t support something because I’m a woman. For a lot of people, they have this stereotype that the Republican party is full of rich, white, old males. But there’s a lot of diversity. There’s a lot of women. We don’t all think exactly the same, we don’t all look the same, but we are able to find common ground and work together. As a woman, I don’t want to receive special treatment based on my gender. But I will always support and fight for women, and I think it’s really awesome that I've seen so many empowered, young, strong women within my party.
How do you feel about the president and what’s happening in his administration now?
As a state chair, I think it was really important for me to take a backseat approach. But I think at the end of the day, we were all able to rally behind our Republican Party, and I think the president is sticking to what he said. He said he was going to make national security a priority. He said we were going to work to repeal and replace Obamacare. He is doing what he said he set out to do.
Jessica Browning, 20, state chair for Texas Federation of College Republicans
How do you personally feel about the election cycle and President Trump getting elected?
I was excited to see the election cycle come to an end because it was hard on both Republicans and Democrats. It’s definitely going to go down in the history books. I’m happy to have a Republican in the White House because some of the big main points that we need to focus are really limiting the government and cutting our debt, and that’s something I was worried about. Also seeing how the Affordable Care Act, Republicans want to get in and repeal and replace it, which is something that hit home for me, having a father that was retired trying to buy insurance and premiums being incredibly high. I do think [the American Health Care Act], like any piece of new legislative, isn't perfect yet. However, I am glad to see lawmakers making little improvements here and there in response to the people's concerns. I believe that the American Health Care Act will allow Americans to be in control of their health care again, rather than the federal government. [Also] Trump choosing [Neil] Gorsuch to fill Justice Scalia's spot on the Supreme Court - that's an action from the Trump administration that I and other College Republicans have been really excited about.
As a female leader in the party, how do you feel about some of the misogynistic comments he made throughout the election cycle?
I honestly believe some of the comments he made prior back then, the one, the [Access Hollywood] interview, my view is people change, they make mistakes, they say things that aren’t always great. I feel like those comments that were said, they are something that I believe he’s moved on from, and personally, in general, I just try to look at the good in people, and that’s something that I totally understand, that’s in the past. He’s our president now and I think that he will execute the role of president well.
Have things changed on campus since the election?
There’s been a reaction to the election, there have been protests. However, they have been peaceful protests. I think that’s great because it’s people expressing their free speech - they’re just out there saying, "These are our values and this is what we believe in." And at the same time, we’ve been able to really express our speech and our views as the College Republicans by hosting meetings and recruiting, so I think it’s been a good balance since the election. There really hasn’t been an increase or decrease in the recruiting process.
These answers have been condensed and edited for clarity.
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