RNC CHAIRWOMAN RONNA MCDANIEL
  SUMMER MEETING GENERAL SESSION
July 20, 2018
Austin, TX
[REMARKS AS PREPARED FOR DELIVERY]

Hello everyone and welcome to our Summer Meeting! I am thrilled to be with you here in the great state of Texas, my birth state and birth city. A big thank ya’ll to the entire Texas delegation for hosting us this week.
 
Thanks to the RNC staff, including our Chief of Staff Richard Walters, our Member Services team, Emily Threadgill, Mariana Herrera, Callie Estes, and Anna Dorsey, our Co-Chair, fellow officers, and each of our Members. There are two members who are attending their last meeting today: Virginia State Chairman John Whitbeck and Pennsylvania National Committeewoman Christine Toretti. Thank you for all of your work on behalf of the Party. Another big thank you to my husband Patrick and our two children, Abigail and Nash, for their strong support.
 
As RNC Chair, I travel the country. A lot. I see and hear from Americans across this great nation who are all thriving under the leadership of our President, Donald J. Trump, and Vice President Mike Pence. This Administration is fighting for the American people every single day and getting results.
 
Just look at everything that has been accomplished! Our country has more than 3 million new jobs, we have more jobs than people to fill them. Unemployment is at a record low. African American and Hispanic unemployment are at near record lows. Tax cuts have led to bonuses and raises for millions of Americans from companies like Costco, Boeing, and AT&T. The historic summit with North Korea was an unprecedented step toward peace in the region. Our NATO Allies are finally stepping up to pay their fair share of defense costs. And the President is fighting for fair trade deals and standing up for American workers.
 
If we listed these accomplishments on a resume without putting President Trump’s name on it, even the most obstructionist Democrats would cheer! We are in a remarkable season of growth, and President Trump keeps delivering.
 
Last week, the man who gave us Justice Neil Gorsuch kept yet another promise by nominating Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court. President Trump could not have picked a more qualified person for the bench. Judge Kavanaugh is a strong voice for our constitutional rights and an ardent defender of the rule of law. Many voters considered President Trump’s Supreme Court nominations their most important issue in 2016. Those same voters will be at the polls in November - grateful for President Trump’s impeccable nominees.
 
The Republican Party is on its way to victory in November. We are laser focused on defeating those 10 Red State Democrat Senators up for election in states President Trump won in 2016. We have to defend at least 39 retiring House districts and our 23 House seat majority. In several recent primaries, we saw Republican turnout increase in almost all of those races.
 
In North Dakota, Republican turnout increased by 30 percent compared to 2014. In South Carolina, 120,000 more Republicans voted than Democrats. In Ohio, Republicans outpaced Democrats with 25 percent higher turnout. In California, Democrats targeted seven seats held by Hillary Clinton two years ago in Republican-held districts. In six of those seven districts, Republican turnout exceeded Democrat turnout by over 10 percent.
 
The Democrats are more divided than ever. Their party keeps moving farther and farther to the left. They continue to push out-of-touch policies that will not only hurt their chances this year, but also hurt the American people. They have no vision for the future of this country. They have no platform for a better nation. They have no desire to come to the table and work with Republicans on important issues. All they have is resistance, obstruction, and their elitist, out-of-touch Hollywood friends.
 
Republicans have the right candidates, the right message, proven results, the passion to keep this comeback alive, and we have you!
 
At the RNC, we are doing everything to make sure we win in November. We have over 500 staff on the ground across the country. They stay engaged with voters to assure them the Republican Party is fighting for them. They have made more than 22 million voter contacts – that includes door knocks, phone calls, and house meetings. This is how we keep a finger on the pulse of every community in America. We recruit and mobilize volunteers on today’s most important issues.
 
During the passage of the Tax Cuts & Jobs Act, our field teams built support for the legislation in targeted states through nearly 600,000 voter contacts. With Judge Kavanaugh’s nomination, those same teams will recruit and activate volunteers across the country. Just this month alone, they will make over 3 million voter contacts in states with targeted Senate races. We will release digital ads, publish op-eds, conduct email campaigns, and maintain pressure on every red state Democrat ahead of Judge Kavanaugh’s confirmation vote.
 
That is not all. We have trained more than 17,000 Republican Leadership Initiative fellows nationwide this cycle. That’s triple the amount we trained in 2016. Every single targeted Senate race this cycle is using RNC Data to help them win. The RNC is engaged with campaigns in all 50 states to help them use our data. Our digital, communications and research teams are taking our message directly to the American people and holding Democrats accountable. Thanks to our wonderful finance team, the RNC has raised over $213 million this cycle. Every single RNC staffer is working tirelessly to bring us one step closer to victory. Will you all join me in thanking the RNC staff for all of their hard work this cycle?
 
We have broken fundraising records, we have the strongest ground and data organization, we have the best Senate map that we’ve ever had, and we are ready to defy history!
 
The prosperity of the American people is at stake. The America First agenda is at stake. We have made far too much progress to slow down now. As leaders of our Party, this is our time to step up and lead. No historical trends can stand in our way, as long as we work together. As we gear up for the months ahead, I cannot stress enough how important each door knock, each conversation, each phone call is to our success in November.
 
I will say it again, we can sleep after the election. History is no match for our dedication to creating a brighter future. And I am ready to cross the finish line to victory. Together, we will defy history.
 
Thank you, God bless you, and God bless the United States of America.