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By James Bickerton
News Reporter
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Former Vice President Mike Pence reshared a post on X criticizing how the first day of the Republican National Convention (RNC) was handled in Milwaukee on Monday, with a particular focus on the issues of abortion, Ukraine and labor unions.
Tim Chapman, president of the conservative advocacy group Advancing American Freedom, which was founded by Pence, made the post on Tuesday. The former vice president's decision to repost it could be interpreted as a subtle dig at the current Republican Party leadership.
On Monday, Donald Trump announced that Ohio Senator JD Vance would be his 2024 running mate. Vance was a prominent critic of U.S. military aid to Ukraine following Russia's invasion. During a 2022 podcast appearance, he said: "I don't really care what happens to Ukraine one way or the other."
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In his X post, which Pence reshared, Chapman said the first day of the RNC had "revealed the challenges ahead for conservatives."
Chapman went on to list his objections commenting: "The Teamsters Union President who has opposed tax cuts, regulatory relief for American workers and attacked Right to Work spoke from the main stage - yes, we want to be the pro-worker party. No, not by adopting the policies of the left.
"Amber Rose, an openly pro-abortion celebrity whose claims to fame are things I'd rather not type - yes, we want to appeal to younger voters, but let's do it by appealing to their better angels.
"David Sacks openly blaming NATO for Putin's bloody war - fine if you want to have a policy discussion about NATO tactics, but don't do it by extolling a bloodthirsty KGB murderer with imperial ambitions. The boos in the crowd were a reminder that rank and file Republicans don't buy this crap."
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Chapman said that Republicans had "intentionally gutted" their pro-life plank, "added support for tariffs and sidestepped any talk of fiscal reforms as the main drivers of soaring national debt."
He concluded: "If this foreshadows the next four years conservatives have a lot of work to do."
Newsweek reached out to the Republican National Committee via online inquiry form and Mike Pence via email for comment.
The appearance of Amber Rose, formerly a Trump critic who was involved with the Los Angeles "SlutWalk" feminist movement, was initially controversial with conservatives. However, she won praise from MAGA accounts on social media for her speech.
During her address, Rose said: "I realized Donald Trump and his supporters don't care if you're Black, white, gay or straight. It's all love. And that's when it hit me: These are my people. This is where I belong."
Venture capitalist and Vance backer David Sacks also addressed the RNC on Monday and claimed that President Joe Biden had "provoked, yes provoked, the Russians to invade Ukraine with talk of NATO expansion." The remark received a muted response from the convention audience.
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