Trump endorsement leads to rift among Yale Republicans

Donald Trump’s controversial tactics and leadership style have led to a split among the Yale College Republicans.

Last week, several discontented leaders and members of the Yale College Republicans announced their decision to split from the group and form a new organization, the Yale New Republicans.

[RELATED: Yale College Republicans: we’re unimportant, also endorsing Trump]

The Yale CRs endorsed Donald Trump last week, making them among the first CR chapters in the country to do so. The group released a statement at the time saying that “while not every member of our organization supported Trump in the primary, as an organization and branch of the GOP we support Republicans up and down the ballot. And yes, that includes supporting Donald Trump for president.”

The co-presidents of the Yale CRs, Emily Reinwald and Michaela Cloutier, also penned an article in The Tab elaborating further on their decision.

“Our post was to show that on an organizational level, the chapter will continue to show support for the GOP nominee who was chosen at the Republican National Convention,” they explain. “To us, it’s not news that a College Republican chapter would support the GOP presidential nominee. We pretty much thought that our support was assumed…”

Following the Yale CRs’ endorsement of Trump, the Yale New Republicans garnered attention for their decision to split from the group, according to The Yale Daily News, releasing a statement three days after the endorsement of Trump by the CRs outlining their decision.

“Many among the Yale College Republicans’ ranks did not see this endorsement as the best decision,” the new group states. “These members have since regrouped and set out to form the Yale New Republicans, a more active Republican organization on campus that will always put national interests above partisan ones.”

The Yale New Republicans’ website, which is adorned with pictures of past Yale Republicans, provides additional detail about the new organization’s purpose, asserting that “the Yale New Republicans aim to unify a broad base of politically minded, right-leaning individuals, mobilizing this group to work towards an improved political climate on our campus and throughout the nation by promoting forward-thinking Republican values.”

The page also has a breakdown of the leadership of the group and a tab for volunteers to sign up.

In an interview with Campus Reform, co-presidents Michael Fitzgerald and Benjamin Rasmussen explained their motivation for going through with the divorce.

“We split from the YCR as we did not see the endorsement of Trump as appropriate,” Fitzgerald said. “We believe Trump is not a true conservative and that he fails to represent the true, wholesome nature of the Republican Party.”

“In forming YNR, we hoped to offer the Yale community a new way to get involved in conservative—and often Republican—causes without being tied to a party label,” Rasmussen added. “Looking forward, we hope to greatly expand the conservative presence on Yale's campus.”

Follow the author of this article on Twitter: @ChrisNuelle