His admirers hope his speech will invigorate the GOP base and lure Trump supporters outside of the party into its fold. Brulte and other state party leaders said Bannon’s invitation was an easy call — he was Trump’s top political strategist until August. “I think it contributes to the destruction of the California GOP. The state Republican Party is also ramping up security at the convention in anticipation of protests. Celeste H. Greig, former president of the California Republican Assembly, a conservative group once deemed the “conscience” of the state GOP by Ronald Reagan, said she couldn’t be happier with Bannon’s push to clean up the GOP.

Source: Los Angeles Times October 20, 2017 07:07 UTC