Wisconsin conservative activists fired up for President Donald Trump's 2020 campaign

WEST ALLIS - Impeachment hearings may be on the front burner in Washington, D.C., but on Saturday conservative activists in Wisconsin showed that they were already girding for another battle: reelecting President Donald Trump in 2020.

"The focus of the entire western world is going to be on this state next November," former state Rep. Joe Handrick told around 200 activists gathered for the Conservative Political Education Conference.

Combining policy with politics, while also focusing on the state's electoral map, the group heard from top state Republicans and analysts as they sought to prepare for the upcoming campaign.

Handrick and Bill McCoshen, formerly a top aide to Tommy Thompson, predicted increased turnout from 2016 when Trump narrowly won in Wisconsin over Democrat Hillary Clinton.

To win again, they said, Republicans will have to keep rural northern Wisconsin red, get Republicans who didn't vote for Trump in 2016 to cast their ballots for the president in 2020 and cut into Democratic voting margins in Milwaukee and Dane counties.

U.S. Rep. Bryan Steil of Janesville gave a fiery speech, lauding the president, especially for his work on the economy.

"We're moving the ball forward with President Donald Trump," he said.

Steil said Democrats have been talking about impeachment long before the probe over the president's interactions with Ukraine.

"In Washington, D.C, you see the left coming back with a political answer trying to impeach President Trump," he said. "And we ultimately are going to have to stand up to this."

U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, chairman of the Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs Committee, spoke on border protection and immigration and urged reform of the nation's asylum laws.

During an interview, Johnson chided Democrats for pursuing impeachment.

"There's no evidence of any kind of impeachable offense there," he said. "I don't know where the Democrats are going with this. I don't know why they're putting the country through this."

Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald, who is running to succeed outgoing U.S. Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner, said in two months of campaigning he has found that "people love Donald Trump in the 5th Congressional District."

U.S. Rep. Glenn Grothman said: "I think we've got to act like it comes down to what we do right here in Wisconsin."

He indicated that just because the economy is doing well, no one should take victory for granted. He recalled 2018 when Scott Walker's bid for a third gubernatorial term was upended by Democrat Tony Evers.

Like Johnson, Grothman focused on border security. While declaring that "unlimited immigration will essentially lead to the end of America," Grothman quickly added, "you should point out we are not anti-immigrant."

Grothman said "only Donald Trump is standing up to the mess" of illegal immigration on the border.

Grothman said Trump is "probably the most pro-life president of my lifetime."

"You talk to them, you explain what Donald Trump has really done," Grothman told the activists.

Bob Dohnal, a longtime Republican activist from Wauwatosa organized the event and was delighted by the turnout.

"This is to activate the grassroots," he said.

Dohnal said Republicans need to match Democrats volunteer for volunteer, knocking on doors, making calls, working on social media and putting up yard signs.

Among the activists attending was Samantha Binnie of Mount Horeb, who was there with her husband, Chase.

"We've been closet conservatives for a few years," she said, adding they're now getting involved in politics.

Matt Sama of Milwaukee said he wasn't with Trump in 2016. But he's now on board with the president and his policies.

"As I’ve seen the left go utterly insane over this guy, I've seen myself go through a transformation over Trump," he said. "I can't help myself but defend him."