Abbreviated Pundit Roundup: Trump stinks up the stage at the Libertarian convention
Abbreviated Pundit Roundup is a long-running series published every morning that collects essential political discussion and analysis around the internet.
David Weigel/Semafor:
Trump promises Libertarians a cabinet slot — and to free a notorious drug kingpin
Trump walked into a fairly hostile room on Saturday, with plenty of advance warning, and uncertain benefits for a candidate currently leading most swing state polls...
At the convention itself, the reception for Trump wavered between skepticism and contempt. Candidates for the party’s nomination got instant applause when they denounced Trump; some delegates denounced party chair Angela McArdle for inviting Trump and Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
“We are the party of principle and we reject you outright,” says Lars Mapstead, a Libertarian presidential candidate whose campaign placed signs promoting his plan to deny either Trump or Biden an electoral college majority in the hotel’s lobby, until the Trump campaign got them taken down. “Great for coming. Thanks so much. But now, be gone.”
It could have been worse. Dozens of pro-Trump Republicans, not attending the convention, grabbed seats for the candidate’s speech. In the hours-long run-up, some accepted signs reading “FREE ROSS,” and chatted with Libertarians whose shirts read “TRUMP/FAUCI 2024: Give Us Another Shot.”
But when a critical mass of delegates arrived, McArdle asked Trump’s supporters to move out of the front rows. Later, three party activists delivered short speeches about where the two sides might agree, but why Libertarians didn’t automatically trust Trump — “a great source of comedy,” said LP presidential contender Michael Rectenwald — after creating Operation Warp Speed to fight COVID and adding trillions of dollars to the national debt.