White House wades into Virginia governor's race
The White House has waded into Virginia's closely-watched governor's race, as Republican nominee Ed Gillespie seeks to energize conservatives by leaning heavily into President Trump's culture wars playbook.
Vice President Pence is set to campaign with Gillespie on Saturday, roughly one week after Trump accused Democratic opponent Lt. Gov. Ralph Northam of "fighting for" the MS-13 gang. Former White House chief strategist Stephen Bannon is also reportedly urging Gillespie's former rival to endorse him months after an unexpectedly close primary.
The White House's foray into the race presents a challenge for Gillespie. He needs to rally the conservative base for what’s expected to be a lower-turnout election. But at the same time, he has to keep some distance from Trump, who remains highly unpopular in Virginia and lost the state by 5 points in 2016.
With turnout historically lower in off-year elections compared to presidential cycles, some Republicans believe having Trump come stump for Gillespie could be worth the risk if that means exciting the base to show up on Nov. 7 in the race to replace Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D).
“The enthusiasm gap between Democrats and Republicans is significant enough that they need to get all Republicans out there to close this race,” said Tom Davis, a former GOP congressman who serves as a government affairs director at Deloitte. “I don’t think [Gillespie] has a choice but to try to get Trump in to maximize the base."
http://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/355407-gillespie-courts-trump-voters-in-gop-gov
Sure. Trump should show up and immediately put his foot in his mouth.
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