Lewallen: GOP attempt to force unity will fracture party

Unity. It is an ideal enshrined in America’s founding documents, and the mantra that held our country together through foreign wars and civil unrest. This election cycle, the Republican Party of Washington has taken the familiar theme of unity to new extremes.

The party is attempting, in the spirit of “unity,” to use the state convention to whittle down the field of candidates before voters ever have a chance to cast a ballot.