Despite Trump tape, it’s business as usual for candidate’s Pa. volunteers

The Donald Trump coalition has seen several national-level shakeups following the release of tape documenting Trump making sexually aggressive comments.

A handful of top Republicans have jumped ship and retracted endorsements; others have refused to campaign with him.

But on the local level in Pennsylvania, support for the candidate is still more or less chugging along.

At a Trump campaign outpost in an indoor ice rink in Mechanicsburg, a small group of men and women handed out yard signs and checked voter registrations all day Monday. They were enthusiastic supporters — some have been volunteering at the office since it opened in April.

Lisa Vranicar, who manages the office and owns the ice rink, said it would have taken much more than a tape of Trump’s lewd comments to shake her support.

“Well, that was a long time ago,” she said. “And, honestly, if you would close that gate after hours and hear what we as women talk about in here, we would make Mr. Trump blush.”

Kate Krusko, who’s been volunteering for Trump in Mechanicsburg for several months, said she was initially taken aback by the tapes. At the end of the day, though, she said she is more concerned about GOP leaders who have denounced Trump publicly, including U.S. Sen. John McCain.

“I think they’re really insane,” she said. “It just proves that the Republican Party is not coherent like the Democratic Party is. I’m disappointed in them. They should stand behind their person — the person who was nominated.”

The Trump volunteers are in the midst of a door-knocking campaign. Vranicar said they’re targeting “soft Democrats and independents.”

She said she was afraid of some backlash after this weekend, but so far, so good.

“We did not have one door slammed in our face,” she said. “People engaged us about that topic. Women in particular, they were like, you know, that’s just BS.”

Clinton has surged into a double-digit lead in a few national polls taken since the tapes were released.