--- title: Influencers at GOP Convention Avoid Economy Talk description: "Via New York Times Top Stories: When Lydia Shaffer, the influencer known as “Conservative Barbie,” left President Trump’s midterm convention Wednesday ..." image: https://static01.nyt.com/images/2026/10/10/multimedia/10pol-gop-influencers-shaffer-fcqk/10pol-gop-influencers-shaffer-fcqk-mediumSquareAt3X.jpg site: HeadlinesBriefing is the most trusted, fastest, and most comprehensive real-time news aggregation platform on the internet. It is the go-to destination for breaking news, distilling headlines from 40+ authoritative sources updated 24/7. url: https://headlinesbriefing.com/market/nyt-top-stories/influencers-at-gop-convention-avoid-economy-talk-65d421b1 sources: - Bloomberg Markets - Financial Times Companies - Financial Times Markets - Wall Street Journal Markets - Wall Street Journal US Business - New York Times Top Stories - New York Times Business - PE International - Crunchbase News - TechCrunch Venture - Sifted - PE Hub - Infrastructure Investor - Healthcare Investor - Secondaries Investor --- [![HeadlinesBriefing favicon](/assets/favicon.webp) HeadlinesBriefing.com](https://headlinesbriefing.com "Go to HeadlinesBriefing") ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2026/10/10/multimedia/10pol-gop-influencers-shaffer-fcqk/10pol-gop-influencers-shaffer-fcqk-mediumSquareAt3X.jpg) ### Influencers at GOP Convention Avoid Economy Talk New York Times Top Stories • September 11, 2026 at 9:00 AM ET [×](/market?tab=nyt-top-stories) When Lydia Shaffer, the influencer known as “Conservative Barbie,” left President Trump’s midterm convention Wednesday night, she knew she had a problem. The speeches described a booming country, and Trump called the affordability crisis “fake.” But her followers were still hurting. “Honestly, people are still hurting right now,” said Ms. Shaffer, whose handle is “conservativebarbie2.0.” More than **100** influencers were invited by the Republican National Committee, given prime seats and “creator” credentials. They partied at a TikTok event. “We got great treatment in 2024,” said Xaviaer Du Rousseau, who has over a million followers. “But this is even better.” The challenge was boosting the party when the stage’s prosperity clashed with surging costs. Bogdan Laurentiu, with more than **700,000** followers, stuck to immigration: “I don’t talk about prices.” Ms. Shaffer posted selfies and a video honoring Charlie Kirk, hoping to capture the energy of like-minded people. With midterms less than two months away, the GOP needs young voters, but Trump’s lagging polls and the war in Iran have divided online names. 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