Let's talk about the Republican National Convention.

You invited the Rock, the World Wrestling Federation champion, to speak at the Republican National Convention?

In order to understand the way the Republican Party works today, it's important to understand

how the RNC worked historically and how that has changed.

That story is a story of the devolution of power from elites inside the Republican Party

to broader swaths of the Republican

primary electorate. That has come with some upsides and with some downsides.

The Republican National Committee was established in 1856 just two years after the formation

of the Republican Party itself. The primary motivation

behind its creation was to establish a formal organizational structure that could support

the new party's electoral ambitions. Like all other party conventions, the RNC was designed to

create a selection process for presidential candidates. The first RNC meeting took place in Pittsburgh,

Pennsylvania, followed by a national convention in Philadelphia, where John C. Fremont was nominated as the first Republican presidential candidate.

The vice presidential nominee was former New Jersey Senator William Dayton.

The second-place finisher was a somewhat obscure former representative from Illinois named Abraham Lincoln.

From the beginning, the RNC was tasked with several key responsibilities,

developing and promoting the party's platform, coordinating fundraising efforts, strategizing for elections,

organizing the National Convention every four years.

Initially, the RNC served as a critical decision-making body where party leaders and delegates

from across the country would gather to debate and decide on key issues, including the

nomination of presidential and vice-presidential candidates. The 1860 convention in Chicago stands as a seminal moment in American

history. Abraham Lincoln's nomination as the Republican candidate for president was not just a

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