Minnesota delegates at Republican National Convention react to Vance, prepare for Trump speech

CATHY WURZER: The Republican National Convention concludes tonight with a nomination acceptance speech from Donald Trump. The former president says he'll stress national unity less than a week after he was wounded in an assassination attempt. Republicans have used their convention to draw contrasts with Democratic President Joe Biden and are remarkably unified and energized as they wrap up their gathering.

Mark Zdechlik has been covering the Minnesota delegation in Milwaukee this week. He's with us to recap the convention so far and look ahead to tonight's Trump remarks. Thanks for taking the time, Mark.

MARK ZDECHLIK: Good afternoon, Cathy.

CATHY WURZER: Good afternoon. You've been to many national conventions. How has this one gone down compared to the others?

MARK ZDECHLIK: It's been very well organized, Cathy, as it should be. A lot of people work a long time and spend a lot of money to put these huge events together. Security has been tight, but that's always the case at these national political convention. It feels even tighter here in Milwaukee, though, following last weekend's failed assassination attempt of former President Trump.

What really stands out, Cathy, is what you were talking about getting into this segment, and that is the unity among the delegates. Everyone here is behind Donald Trump and GOP messaging that Trump could do a better job managing the nation's affairs than Democratic President Joe Biden. Everybody's on board here with that message.

CATHY WURZER: When you've talked to the Minnesota delegation here, Mark, what do they want to hear from Donald Trump tonight?

MARK ZDECHLIK: Delegates have been telling me that they want former President Trump to appeal to the nation for unity, just like they have the unity in their convention arena, that it's time to reach out from the base and talk to general election voters. Travis Ekbom is an alternate delegate from Zimmerman in Central Minnesota.

TRAVIS EKBOM: What I would hope is that it'll be a tone much more serious than we've seen out of him in the past. I love Donald Trump. I've had the opportunity to hear him speak in person, and it's always a delight. But I hope that he's able to really seize the moment here and create the kind of unifying speech that America needs right now.

MARK ZDECHLIK: Cathy, other delegates told us that they think the nation needs to come together to [INAUDIBLE] go on GOP terms.

CATHY WURZER: So I've been watching, of course, the proceedings on television, Mark, and I'm wondering, how has the assassination attempt, which was just, what, five days ago in Pennsylvania, how has it been coming up during the convention?

MARK ZDECHLIK: Well, it's been coming up a lot. Speaker after speaker hailed Trump's fortitude after being hit in the ear with a bullet on Saturday. Following that shooting, Trump rose to his feet, pumped his fist, and chanted, fight, fight, fight. That, Cathy, has been a refrain from the convention stage many times throughout the week.

Some speakers have framed Trump's survival as divine intervention, a sign that God wants Trump to return to the White House. That's a powerful theme at a convention where evangelicals are heavily represented. JD Vance, the vice presidential nominee, opened his speech last night by describing the harrowing incident last Saturday.

JD VANCE: And what did he call us to do for our country? To fight, to fight for America. Even in his most perilous moment, we were on his mind. His instinct was for us, for our country, to call us to something higher, to something greater, to once again be citizens who ask what our country needs of us.

CATHY WURZER: So, Mark, as the delegates prepared to head home tomorrow, any sense what are they thinking, how this ticket with Trump and now his new running mate, JD Vance, how that will fare in Minnesota?

MARK ZDECHLIK: Well, they're really expressing huge confidence that they're in better shape than they've been in decades in terms of possibly delivering Minnesota for Republicans. But we always hear confidence at conventions, Cathy. These are, after all, gatherings of the most active partisans. But this week, it feels like even more than that. There was harmony, and the arena was just brimming with energy. The party avoided controversial topics that have been staples of past Republican conventions, including abortion.

But Minnesota has been tough for Republicans. Republicans haven't won a statewide race in Minnesota in 20 years, and the state hasn't backed a Republican presidential candidate since Richard Nixon in 1972. But Republicans are absolutely convinced that this time they can get over the top in Minnesota.

CATHY WURZER: So do we know might we see Trump and Vance in Minnesota in the coming months?

MARK ZDECHLIK: It's likely, Cathy, bordering on certain. The Trump campaign has begun building out in Minnesota, hiring people and preparing to open offices. That's a sign that they're at least making a play at putting Minnesota, the state with the longest stretch of supporting Democratic nominees, into the Republican column.

JD Vance could very well show up in small and mid-sized towns in Minnesota, given what will clearly be a focus of his role on the ticket. We heard a little bit last night in Vance's vice presidential acceptance speech. He noted his rocky upbringing in southern Ohio and connected that to struggles seen in other blue-collar places.

JD VANCE: It was also a place that had been cast aside and forgotten by America's ruling class in Washington. When I was in the fourth grade, a career politician by the name of Joe Biden supported NAFTA, a bad trade deal that sent countless good jobs to Mexico.

[CROWD BOOING]

When I was a sophomore in high school, that same career politician named Joe Biden gave China a sweetheart trade deal that destroyed even more good, American, middle-class manufacturing jobs.

MARK ZDECHLIK: Cathy, Vance also referred often to the states of Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin, top-tier battlegrounds. But Minnesota is not far down the rung for the Trump campaign.

CATHY WURZER: Mmm. Right. OK. So we've been talking about the Republican National Convention. And by the way, you've done a really great job in Milwaukee, Mark. I want to talk about the Democrats right now. They're going to hold their convention in Chicago in about a month. There's a lot going on. Can you run it down for us here on the Democratic side?

MARK ZDECHLIK: Well, a lot is an understatement. As you know, at this point, the talk of replacing Joe Biden on the ticket has not quieted down. If anything, it's only grown louder as Republicans and Trump pulled off this successful convention and projected strength after the assassination attempt and had a string of court victories outside of the political arena.

Biden's every word is being analyzed by Democrats who worry he'll have trouble finishing the campaign strong, let alone doing the job for another four years. Now Biden has COVID and is off the campaign trail. If Biden would step aside, Cathy, it would throw the party into uncharted territory of having to pick a new nominee with less than four months to go before Election Day.

CATHY WURZER: So what have Minnesota Democratic leaders been saying here about all the turmoil?

MARK ZDECHLIK: One Minnesota Democrat, Second District Representative Angie Craig, has called on Biden to withdraw from the race. Craig is in a tough re-election race of her own. No other members from the Minnesota delegation have made that call. Governor Tim Walz was here in Milwaukee this week as a surrogate for the Biden campaign.

Attorney General Keith Ellison and DFL party chair Ken Martin held an event today where they tried to put the focus on Trump's record and policy stances. Our colleague Dana Ferguson was there. While they acknowledged a tightening race in Minnesota, they claim they feel confident they can deliver the state for Democrats. Here is Ken Martin.

KEN MARTIN: So even though he lies about this now, Donald Trump has lost Minnesota twice in a row, both in 2016 and '20. I don't think the third time is going to be a charm, especially with the recent selection of JD Vance as his running mate.

MARK ZDECHLIK: But Cathy, Martin also had to field questions about whether Biden will even remain in the race.

KEN MARTIN: Lots of speculation swirling around. As you guys have heard me say, I'm riding with Biden until Biden's not riding. He's our president.

CATHY WURZER: Well, I know I'm going to ask you a tough question here in Milwaukee, but what are you hearing? And any sense as to how this situation with the Democrats could unfold here in the next week or so?

MARK ZDECHLIK: We just don't know. Something sure feels imminent, but we don't know. Biden has been insistent he'll press ahead even though many Democrats are telling him he can't win. They're worried about the drag on the rest of the ballot. If Biden changes his mind, the timing would matter. There's a virtual roll call that's due to begin in early August, weeks before the Democratic convention that will take place in Chicago.

It's unclear if there would be an anointed successor, perhaps Vice President Kamala Harris, or a wide open race. Either way, the trajectory of the race and the dwindling time is worrisome for Democrats. While Republicans are riding high and feeling good now, they also know they have a long way to go in an election that could still be close in Minnesota and beyond.

CATHY WURZER: All right. Mark Zdechlik, thank you so much.

MARK ZDECHLIK: You're welcome.

CATHY WURZER: That's MPR politics reporter Mark Zdechlik reporting live from Milwaukee.