CLEVELAND — Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has been light on specifics about how he would run the government if he’s elected president, and delegates want the vagueness to end with tonight’s acceptance speech.
“Probably the biggest thing I’d like to hear is not just what he’s saying, but how he’s going to do it,” Utah delegate Bill Lee told the Washington Examiner. “Where is the plan? Where is the concrete plan? I hear a lot of rhetoric and sound bites, but I’d like to see some detail.”
Trump on Thursday will deliver his first major address since securing the nomination this week at the Quicken Loans Arena.
It’s a high-stakes speech. Not only does Trump need to impress his television audience, he must win over a significant faction of delegates who are still unwilling to commit to his candidacy.
“I’m still going through a process,” Lee said. “Hopefully if I hear some good stuff it will send me in that direction.”
Sue Sharkey, a Colorado delegate, said Trump “has a ways to go,” before he earns her vote. Many of Colorado delegates say they felt burned by Trump after his criticism of their April caucus. Trump criticized the contest as “rigged” after Sen. Ted Cruz was declared the winner.
Sharkey said she wants Trump to reach out to Colorado delegates and to stop insulting people in his bombastic campaign speeches and tweets, which he has used to attack those who have criticized him.
“I keep waiting and every time he speaks it’s like, well, you still haven’t won me over,” she said. She also wants specifics.
“I hope that he can add some substance to his message and that he can really show he has the very in-depth knowledge of policy that we need from our president,” Sharkey said. “Then he can give us the confidence that he understands the issues and he actually has real-life solutions and not just a lot of rhetoric and bombastic speech.”
Trump must add some substance to his speech tonight or face a barrage of criticism from Democrats, delegate Beau Correll, of Winchester, Va., told the Examiner.
“It’s my hope that he will show substance in a meaningful way perhaps not seen yet,” Correll said.
Delegates may be setting their sights too high for the speech, Rep. Raul Labrador, an Idaho delegate, told the Examiner. Trump shouldn’t delve into detail in his acceptance speech, he said.
“I don’t think you do that here,” Labrador said. “I disagree with that. He needs to prosecute the case for the next few months but for tonight, he needs to make his opening statement. He needs to really just say here is why I’m excited to be your nominee and here is how together we can win in November.”
Oregon delegate Tom Stewart believes Trump has a unique obligation to add more substance to his acceptance speech because of the millions of new voters he has attracted to the Republican Party by making many promises, including his main pledge to make America great again.
“I would love to hear what he’s going to do for the average American, for our troops, for our loggers, our ranchers, our laborers and our pipe-fitters,” Stewart, of Eugene, said. “I see a lot of them driving around town now in their pickups with Trump stickers. And it’s something I haven’t noticed in 20 years. So, he’s caught their imagination. Now what is he going to do for all of these great Americans?”
