A faction of Republicans is pinning a last-ditch effort to stop Donald Trump on a long-shot rules change at the national convention.
Sunday night, GOP operatives trying to drum up an anti-Trump coalition held their second conference call in five days. Roughly 1,000 interested people were on the call, according to organizer Steve Lonegan — up sharply from the roughly three dozen who were on a similar call last week.
The goal is passing a rule at the Republican National Convention in July that would free delegates to vote their “conscience,” negating any binding put in place by states’ primaries.
But it remained unclear how many of the people supporting the effort were actual delegates. Lonegan, a former New Jersey gubernatorial and U.S. Senate candidate, said his “conservative” estimate was about 250.
The group has the backing of Courageous Conservatives PAC, a group which Lonegan serves as spokesman for and originally backed Texas Sen. Ted Cruz. The PAC will serve as a fundraising vehicle, Lonegan said. As of its last filing, the group had just over $4,000 cash on hand and had raised a total of about $360,000 in the primary.
Next steps for the effort include a round of television and radio appearances, and encouraging supporters to make their own outreach through the press and social media.
The biggest focus will be whipping votes on the convention Rules Committee. If the conscience clause proposed by Rules Committee delegate and group organizer Kendal Unruh, of Colorado, can win the backing of 57 Rules Committee members (half plus one), it could go to the floor for a simple majority vote of delegates to govern the convention.
Trump and his supporters have decried the effort as contrary to the will of voters and “illegal.” But Lonegan said it’s Trump who doesn’t understand the primary.
“What planet is this guy from? Who thinks it’s illegal not to nominate him — who says it’s a coronation?” Lonegan said.
