Dallas made history last week.
For the first time, the Republican Party held a national midterm convention, bringing Republicans from across the country together for two days at the American Airlines Center. I was there, and the energy in the room was unmistakable. But what happened in Dallas was about more than a convention. With Election Day less than 50 days away, it was about the issues that will shape the decisions Americans make this November.
The economy. Affordability. Immigration. Public safety. Education. American leadership.
These aren’t just political talking points. They are issues people are talking about around kitchen tables, at work, and in communities across the country. Can families afford to live comfortably? Do people feel safe in their neighborhoods? Is our immigration system working? Are our children getting the education they need?
Those questions will matter far more to voters than the political noise surrounding them.
Throughout the event, President Trump and his administration leaned directly into these core concerns. Rather than focusing on generic promises, they made the case that the administration has delivered significant progress over the last 20 months.
On the economic front, they pointed to the stock market and tax changes affecting tips and overtime. On public safety, they emphasized the administration’s actions on border security and illegal immigration. The message from the stage was clear: Republicans want to build on the progress of the past 20 months, continue that momentum, and finish the work they started.
But some of the convention’s most powerful moments came when the focus turned from policies to people.
The Gorman family shared the story of their late 18-year-old daughter, Sheridan. They were joined by other grieving families who stood before the crowd and advocated for public safety, secure borders, and the protection of American communities.
Elections are about policies and campaigns, but ultimately, they are about people and the consequences government decisions can have on their lives.
Then, on Day Two, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. took the stage, and boy, was that powerful.
A Kennedy, from one of the most famous Democratic political families in American history, stood before a Republican convention and spoke about how dramatically he believes American politics has changed.
“I mourn the fact that neither my father nor my uncle would recognize the Democratic Party of today,” Kennedy said.
The symbolism of the moment was impossible to miss. American politics is changing, and old political loyalties can no longer be taken for granted.
Then the politics gave way to something bigger.
Ahead of the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks, the arena fell silent as first responders, families, and loved ones of victims walked onto the stage. Tenor Christopher Macchio performed “Ave Maria,” and I found myself thinking about how much has changed in 25 years and how much remains the same.
The next morning, I attended a separate 25th-anniversary remembrance at the George W. Bush Presidential Center.
Nearly 3,000 people were murdered on September 11, 2001. Families were changed forever. First responders ran toward danger while others ran for their lives.
Let me say this loud and clear: Twenty-five years later, we should all be able to agree on one simple truth. Americans did not deserve 9/11.
That should not be a Republican position. It should not be a Democratic position. It must be an American position.
The Republican Party made its case in Dallas. Now the debate moves beyond the convention floor to communities across America, including right here on the Eastern Shore. Secretary Kennedy described his own view of the stakes of the election as a divide between “sane and insane” and between “common sense and communism.”
The speeches are over. The convention is over. Now comes November.
Show up. Make your voice heard. Vote.
Jim Jaramillo is a longtime Oxford resident and former president of the Oxford Town Commissioners. He also represented Oxford on the Talbot County Economic Development Commission
16 Responses
Excellent and true ! Thank you Jimmy for your insight and heart.
Gee, and I was wondering who watched the peculiar Mid-term Republican Convention in Dallas. Now I can confirm that at least one person did. Thanks.
Why Talbot Republicans would want to strap the albatross that is Trump around their neck is beyond me, but they have.
In doing so, they’ve done two things: (1) underscored that the MAGA-5, as the conservative-owned and -operated Baltimore Sun labeled the Callahan, Stepp, Strickland, Gunsallus, and MacKendrick slate, is far too radical for Talbot. My question: why do these ideologues tie them selves to the mast of Trump’s sinking ship? It ain’t what somebody looking after Talbot would do. (2) they’ve made crystal clear the direction the pirates Republican Party in Talbot party wants to go and drawn a sharp contrast with the alternative ticket.
All food for thought. Chew carefully.
Gee , I was wondering what the voters are going to do , when they discover that you are just an empty vessel, who makes noise while erasing your ethnic PUTDOWN posts of your critics online . While the Trump administration is trying to clean up your mess , in the Middle East , while you were in the Obama administration, , State dept , shrink wrapping pallets of cash from Switzerland, our friends saw on the Tarmac in Baghdad airport , bound for the Ayatollah. As part of your appeasement deal .. You have absolutely nothing to offer the Eastern Shore , except the typical democrat, lies and character assassination attempts , your socialist party does so well . The voters can tell the difference between real public servants , and honest candidates who actually produce services for their community, using the skills God Gave them ; and blow hard socialist ideologue like you who never built anything, but your own pathetic ego .
Mr Naranjo, if you want to be a successful candidate in Talbot County you have to do more than hurl insults, or what you perceive as insults, at Republicans. As a relative newcomer to this county, I have found the majority of prople here to be practical and informed. Excoriating Republicans for being Trump supporters is a cheap ploy. Our candidates for County Council, whom you named, are not going around spouting MAGA platitudes. They are talking to citizens, asking questions, and listening to the concerns of working people. Voters who run businesses, have children in public schools, struggle to pay bills, and are worried about the future of Talbot as being a safe place to live and work. Our County Council candidates are researching the issues and looking for solutions. They are familiar with what matters to families. So are our school board candidates and judge of Orphans Court candidates. They are all working hard to earn every vote and plan on working harder if chosen by Talbot citizens.
Which Convention did you attend?! Not the fiasco in Dallas last week! Nothing you stated came out of that event. Just sayin’…
Mr. Kennedy spoke of insanity. I guess he was referring to his ability to bring measles back from the brink of extinction to many active cases and deaths across the country.
Great job. He should resign.
“The economy. Affordability. Immigration. Public safety. Education. American leadership.” WHAT??
The Trump administration has failed miserably on all these. Economy: gas is $4+!
Immigration: an army of masked thugs terrorizing us! Public Safety: don’t know what you are referring to. Education: posting 10 commandments in public schools; banning books! American leadership: US soldiers dying in Iran; oil shipments blocked; praise for Putin; world leaders shunning the US; killing civilians off the coast of South America!
One could go on. The Trump administration is a colossal failure and he seems to be intent on dragging down the rest of the world with him.
We have heard.
We have seen.
We understand the trajectory.
We stand untied.
We will exercise our 15th amendment.
Take Care.
$25,000 was the amount many Republican House members and candidates were asked to pay to attend the 2026 Republican midterm convention in Dallas.
Not exactly a convention for middle-class people.
Thank you for illustrating all the reasons not to vote republican in the upcoming elections. Yes history was made in Dallas but that was back 63 years ago not last week. Plus I suspect JFK would be similarly disappointed in his nephew.
I found this dissertation more disturbing given that it appears to suggest that only the republicans mourn the 9/11 victims and somehow connect this supremacy to the republican convention. How arrogant. I should note here that your leader did not want to attend commemorations in New York where all other past presidents were present, because he was not allowed to speak, beyond selfish.
I see nothing that has occurred in this administration other than the destruction of constitutional democracy. It is possible that there are ideas out there that we all can agree on, but I thought this was a country of laws and god knows there are enough lawyers. I fully intend to vote thanks for reminding us but my vote is clearly different than yours.
Wait…I had to check the calendar. I thought at first that this post was an April Fools joke. But no- the author and his fellow MAGA followers really believe this nonsense. It’s a sad commentary on the state of our public discourse, but, looking on the bright side, there are only 47 Days left until the November election. Then, if sanity prevails, the republican majorities in both houses of Congress will be dismantled and the Congress will once again assume its constitutionally-mandated responsibilities including, but not limited to, getting the US out of this ridiculous war of choice in the Middle East. Started by your hero (who if I remember correctly, promised never again to involve our country in endless wars), it has resulted in needless loss of life and suffering at a cost of $38.1 Billion and counting at a rate of $2-3 Billion per month. All in service of ever-changing objectives and failed strategies. He has accomplished one thing: it looks more likely than ever that Iran will develop a nuclear weapon. Voters may not care about murdering schoolchildren, but they sure as heck get reminded every time they go to the gas station or the grocery store what a failure this administration is.
Obviously you were asleep when Iran and its proxies fired over 1000 drones at Israel , while forgetting who actually financed the Ayatollah.
You also forget who wasted and stole billions of dollars from Blue state Medicare /Medicaid coffers and so called leering centers . You also forget who shut down government and who threw temper tantrums , setting Teslas on fire after the adults in the room found the billions of stolen tax dollars by your party . You have absolutely nothing to offer except “ blame and hate trump” while ignoring MD democrats budget disaster . Republicans may not have put in their A Game , while they were being sabotaged by Rinos and democrats ( not passing the save act) , but the alternative Is Democrats embracing crazy radical leftist gobbledygook and theft of the last vestige of adult representation on
the eastern shore , with your criminal and unconstitutional referendum.
Well Paul, I guess you would rather dodge the failures rather than owning up to the facts. Anyway, that’s always the R playbook: dissemble and pretend. Good job; hopefully we’ll be rid of your hack Andy Harris come November
Jimmy, so glad you were able to go to Dallas and join so many other patriots. I was impressed by the speeches I heard. RFKjr was especially compelling. It is a shame how his own party worked against him, but now he has helped reverse the declining health of American children by encouraging everyone to eat real food. And so many other great speakers as well.
Yeah I watched it. It really is a shame we can’t use all that GOP gaslighting to drive down energy cost….
Thank you Mr. Jaramillo for your high-minded and well-written account of the Dallas convention and the successes of the Administration. I respectfully suggest you are looking at the history of the last two-years through rose-tinted glasses. I disagree with you on the entirety of your assessment.
The President made it clear at the Dallas mid-year convention that “[He] is on the ballot in 2026.” This means Trump is on the ballot – from top-to-bottom – from local councilmatic elections here in Talbot County, to gubernatorial races, to senatorial and congressional contests. Trump declared in Dallas that he is on every one of those ballots.
How’s that going for a Talbot County voter so far?
Consider:
The average price of a gallon of un-leaded gasoline was $3.30 about the time the President took office in 2024. According to AAA the average cost at the pump today is $4.37 thanks entirely to the Presidents impetuous and unnecessary war with Iran. Thanks to the regional conflict he set off . the price of gasoline at the pump will continue to rise. How does $6 a gallon sound?
According to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the average cost of a pound of ground beef was $5.61/lb;
According to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the average cost of that same pound of ground beef was $6.92/lb.
Freddie Mac reported the average 30-year mortgage rate in 2024 was 6.1%
Today Freddie Mac reports the average 30-year mortgage rate at 6.67% and rising. This too is thanks to the President’s decision to attempt Regime Change in Iran . Today 7% mortgages are not unusual and the rate is rising.
On the subject of economic changes, Mr. Jaramillo points to the stock market – which is currently deflating thanks to the Presidents losing war in Iran, rising interest rates, and the bursting of the AI bubble.
Taken as a whole the above metrics clearly describe a K shaped economy: the rich get richer and the middle class gets poorer. I refuse to even engage on the subject of Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. – his own family won’t speak to him.
So ask yourself, “Are you better-off than you were [2] years ago?
There is an extremely important councilmatic election right here in Talbot County. Why is it so important for you to get out and vote?
President Trump is on the Ballot;
The Talbot County Republican Central Committee is taking a page from the Trump playbook – divide and conquer. Did you see what they did to Lynn Mielke, their most moderate candidate, in the primary ? Have you done a deep dive into the backgrounds of their candidates? The party and the current council prefer culture wars to addressing serious issues.
What issues?
Growth and Development: How much growth Talbot County should accommodate, where it should occur, and whether roads, schools, wastewater and other infrastructure can support it. The Comprehensive Plan update is occurring during the election year and will guide land use for years to come.
Lakeside at Trappe: The development ultimately planned for roughly 2,501 homes inevitably countywide questions about schools, Route 50, wastewater, environmental impacts and who pays for infrastructure associated with growth.
Housing affordability
Workforce and senior housing: The County’s Senior Citizens Task Force reported that nearly 30% of Talbot residents are 60 or older and identified housing affordability, aging in place and limited affordable housing as problems. The League of Women Voters made affordable housing a specific candidate question.
Short-term rentals: STRs remain an active land-use issue, particularly the balance among property rights, tourism, neighborhood impacts and enforcement. Short -term rentals are an important part of our County’s hospitality industry. But like hotels, motels, and bed and breakfasts, there are areas and neighborhoods in which they just do not belong .