Republican presidential hopeful Asa Hutchinson recently received negative reaction at the Turning Point Action Conference (TPUSA) from the conservative attendees with chants of former President Donald Trump‘s name.
Hutchinson tried pitching himself to voters attending the conservative conference in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Sunday but was met with resistance from the crowd.
The former Arkansas governor has made a name for himself at the national level as a moderate, vetoing bills while in office that limited gender-affirming care for transgender youth, and openly criticizing Trump on the campaign trail.
However, the conservative base that was in attendance at the Turning Point conference did not seem to have much patience for Hutchinson as he touted the policy decision he made as governor during the pandemic.
Clips of the booing quickly spread on Twitter:
Asa Hutchinson got booed 🤣 pic.twitter.com/Cp1wEf0ENM
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) July 16, 2023
“TRUMP” chants break out during 2024 candidate and former Gov. Asa Hutchinson’s speech at Turning Point Action Conference pic.twitter.com/9EbUYxKQ4J
— RSBN 🇺🇸 (@RSBNetwork) July 16, 2023
Hutchinson is currently polling near the bottom of the crowded Republican presidential field with an average national support of less than one percent, according to Real Clear Politics.
It was on Saturday, Trump spoke in the ballroom and was met with cheers while he levied insults at President Joe Biden and his other GOP rivals. Young conservatives WPEC spoke with already have their minds made up about who they are going to throw their support behind.
“I would vote for Trump,” he said. “And if he wasn’t even the top candidate nominated, I would still vote for him as a write-in candidate.”
“Right now I am leaning towards Trump,” said Lindsey Graham, who traveled from Arizona for the conference. “I am a very avid Trump supporter. He has my vote for now.”
Other young conservatives are still undecided about who should be the Republican nominee and they are willing to hear from all the candidates.
“For me, I am going to keep an open mind,” said California business owner Pamela Jean Noble.
Some top-of-mind issues for young conservative voters are where candidates stand on abortion, gender-affirming care and the nuclear family.
“I am very concerned about the candidates that aren’t speaking about the transgender movement, and what it looks like for doctors, parents, and responsible caretakers to allow children that can’t consent to these things, to do permanent damage to their bodies,” Graham said. “I think that is a huge, huge concern in America.”
“Another moral issue that’s on the ballot, is just some of the transgender stuff and gay marriage,” said Gabriel, who traveled from Colorado. “Marriage is defined in the Bible between a man and a woman, that’s something God has instituted. So we don’t get to redefine that.”
“We want to save babies obviously. We are very pro-life,” said Noble. “But I also feel like once the baby is born, we need to protect them as well.”
