ELKHORN, Wis.—Fallout from a vulgar tape showing comments made by Republican nominee Donald Trump continued Saturday morning, with many Republican lawmakers reneging on their endorsement of the business mogul.
Vice Presidential nominee Mike Pence, scheduled to replace Trump at the 1st Congressional District Fall Festival in Elkhorn, also did not attend the event either. Future Pence events were removed from the Trump campaign website, as many called on Trump to cede the top of the Republican ticket to the Indiana governor.
Arizona Sen. John McCain, Colorado Sen. Cory Gardner, Alaska Sens. Dan Sullivan and Lisa Murkowski, New Hampshire Sen. Kelly Ayotte, West Virginia Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, Idaho Sen. Mike Crapo, South Dakota Sen. John Thune and Utah Rep. Jason Chaffetz are among the Republicans to pull their support of Trump Saturday.
In Elkhorn, the mood was more subdued as dozens of Walworth County Republicans lined up to attend the event Trump was originally supposed to headline. Speakers at the fall festival barely touched the subject, with Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson and Gov. Scott Walker making no mention of the controversy, despite condemning it hours earlier.
House Speaker Paul Ryan discussed the "elephant in the room" very briefly before pivoting to a speech centered on the House GOP agenda and rallying around down ballot candidates.
"It's a troubling situation. I'm serious," Ryan said at the event. "I stand by what I said [in the statement] ... But that's not why we're here."
Ryan proclaimed that Wisconsin "will need to deliver its 10 electoral votes" but made no other mention of the presidential race. Trump supporters didn't appreciate the lack of support, booing Ryan when he took the stage and heckling him throughout the speech.
Johnson targeted his opponent, Democrat Russ Feingold, instead of Trump, despite calling the tape "indefensible" in a statement Friday.
"These elections in Wisconsin will probably be decided by a narrow, razor-thin margin," Johnson said, and also mentioned the need for Wisconsin's 10 electoral votes to be Republican.
Gov. Scott Walker also spoke but focused on state-level reforms. Clad in a Green Bay Packers jacket and jeans, Walker also mentioned the Senate race and mixed in anecdotes from his upbringing in nearby Delavan.
"We need someone with Wisconsin values, not Washington values," Walker said. "And Wisconsin needs Ron Johnson."
Wisconsin Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner did not mention the controversy directly but tangled with a heckler who accused Ryan of being a supporter of Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.
“Listen to me please!” Sensenbrenner said, chastising the heckler. “Be respectful, we need more of that … Clean up your act.”
Attendees voiced very different feelings on the state of the election. Rhonda Ellis of Princeton, Ill. said she “cried” when she learned Trump would not be attending.
“I'm a woman, I'm not offended,” she said.
Dennis Kurbowski of Racine said he liked the tape and that he thought the it made Trump more “personable” and “shame on” Ryan for criticizing him.
“He's a human being,” Kurbowski said. “Tell me you haven't said something like that. Tell me 99.9 percent of people … man or women haven't said something like that.”
State Rep. Steve Weatherston, R-Caledonia, condemned the remarks but said he would take a wait-and-see approach.
“If he said those words that's deplorable,” Weatherston said. “I'd like to see what happens in the debate Sunday.”
The controversy stems from a conversation between Trump and entertainment reporter Billy Bush. Trump bragged about kissing and groping women, saying, “When you’re a star they let you do it,” to justify his actions.
“I just start kissing them. It’s like a magnet. Just kiss. I don’t even wait,” Trump says in the recording. “Grab them by the p---y, you can do anything.”
The Trump campaign brushed aside the remarks, calling it “locker-room banter.”
“Bill Clinton has said far worse to me on the golf course—not even close,” Trump said in a statement. “I apologize if anyone was offended.”
Peter Coutu contributed to this report.
UPDATE Oct. 8 1:52: This story was updated to include an additional response from the chair of College Republicans. An earlier version of this story had the first name incorrect for State Rep. Tom Weatherston, R-Caledonia.
