Trump says GOP forced to move convention out of North Carolina
President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that Republicans have been forced to move their convention to another state saying that North Carolina’s governor refused to guarantee the use of the Spectrum Arena in Charlotte.
“Had long planned to have the Republican National Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina, a place I love,” Trump tweeted. “Now, @NC_Governor Roy Cooper and his representatives refuse to guarantee that we can have use of the Spectrum Arena.”
Trump said Republicans had planned to spend millions of dollars in Charlotte which would have created jobs and helped the state’s economic climate.
“Would have showcased beautiful North Carolina to the World, and brought in hundreds of millions of dollars, and jobs, for the State. Because of @NC_Governor, we are now forced to seek another State to host the 2020 Republican National Convention,” continued Trump on twitter.
The president has yet to name an alternative site for the convention but Republican officials have already begun visiting other venues. Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee said Republican officials were coming to scout Nashville on Thursday and said the city is the best place in America to have a convention.
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp responded to Trump’s announcement on Twitter.
“Hope you have Georgia on your mind, @realDonaldTrump!”
Cooper wrote a letter to the top convention organizer and the National Republican Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel stating that it was a necessity for the party to plan for a scaled-back convention with fewer people and face coverings.
“We think it is unlikely that we would be to the point at the end of August to be able to have a jam packed 19,000-person convention in the Spectrum arena,” Cooper said. “So the likelihood of it being in Charlotte depends upon the RNC’s willingness to discuss with us a scaled-down convention, which we would like to do.”
McDaniel accused the governor of dragging his feet on giving them guidance for proceeding with convention plans.
“We have an obligation to our delegates and nominee to begin visiting the multiple cities and states that have reached out to express interest in hosting,” said McDaniel.
The Republican governor of Florida has also said his state would be interested in hosting if North Carolina fell through.
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