Fri, Jun 15, 2018 at 11:19 am CST
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5:30 p.m., Friday — Day 2 Closes with Fireworks
The second day of the Texas GOP convention is wrapping up on a long and drawn out note — though not an uncontentious one. The race for party chair between current chair James Dickey and challenger Cindy Asche, who pushed for a floor fight. She succeeded, leading to a protracted battle on the convention floor that lasted for hours. Both candidates gave final speeches. [1]
Dickey came out to big applause and spoke about the “amazing unity” delegates had shown when overwhelmingly voting for him in the Senate district precinct caucuses this morning. Asche used her speech to throw several firebombs, including accusations that Dickey has been cooking the party’s books, which prompted the party treasurer to quit in protest during the floor fight.
“He is not trustworthy,” Asche said.
Ultimately, Dickey beat Asche on the floor 65-35 percent.
The chair election came after a day full of speeches from Texas Republicans’ statewide leaders, including Governor Greg Abbott, Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick, Senator John Cornyn and Attorney General Ken Paxton. [2]
Some highlights:
In Abbott’s speech, unveiled a impossibly catchy new campaign slogan: “Anything is Possible in Texas.” He bragged his booming economy — the one that’s bigger than Russia, making him “more powerful than Putin” — promised to protect gun rights after the Santa Fe shooting, secure the border, and crack down on MS-13 members.
Patrick came out to Tom Petty’s “I Won’t Back Down” — something I’m sure the late rocker would’ve just loved — and made
